Listening Leaders Archived Edition

December 3, 2008

LISTENING LEADERS GRACIOUSLY GIVE GREAT GIFTS

Another celebration of Thanksgiving has passed and Listening Leaders® once again face the annual search for the perfect gift for all who are privileged to be on “their 2008 holiday gift list.” In light of the present worldwide economic downturn and a “Black Friday” filled with excited bargain hunters, 2008 gift givers are challenged to become creatively thoughtful. With only 22 shopping days remaining until the real “Sales” begin this issue of the Listening Leaders® Newsletter proposes two ways to give truly great gifts.

For anyone where money is no issue, we recommend you simply go to the 82nd Annual Neiman Marcus Christmas Catalog or web site. If money is no object, some of the following items may suffice.

For the gear-heads on your list you may want to consider the Limited-Edition Fighter Motorcycle listed as a “sci-fi dream come to life.” Packed with 190 mph of performance packed into it’s cutting edge carbon fiber, titanium, and aluminum chassis, with a lot of high-tech bells and whistles, there are only 45 available at a mere $110,000.00 apiece.

If you have additional cash, and your gift recipient needs to tote others around, check out the Limited-Edition 2009 BMW Individual 7 Series Sedan at a mere $160,000.00. With a 2009 launch date, there are only 31 cars available designed to commemorate 31 years of the BMW 7 Series in the USA. But remember, part of the gift includes two business-class tickets on Lufthansa(R) from New York, gourmet meals, luxury hotel for four nights including Munich and the French Riviera, and rare insider access to BMW.

For the easily impressed sports fans on your gift list, you might consider a Harlem Globetrotters On-Court Experience for just $110,000.00. Your special gift recipient will have an once-in-a-lifetime chance to play with a dream team, on court with the Harlem Globetrotters. Your exclusive gift package will include a personalized official uniform, guaranteed playing time in a U.S. 2008-09 season game, introduction as a special guest, and insider access to the team.

However, if you don’t want to give a gift that requires running, check out the Dallas Cowboy Texas End Zone Package for only $500,000.00. Your gracious gift of an entire Cowboys Texas Stadium end zone will put 530 square yards of sporting history into someone’s backyard. But hurry, the exclusive package also includes the VIP treatment for the last regular season Cowboys game in Texas Stadium. Your gift recipient will get pre-game photos in their zone with Jerry Jones, a luxury suite for the game, a once-in-a-lifetime post-game tailgate party (with the Dallas Cowboys cheerleaders) on their soon-to-be new backyard, autographed memorabilia from Cowboys legends, and a VIP package to attend the opening of the new stadium in 2009. The Jerry Jones family and Cowboys organization will generously donate the entire purchase price to The Salvation Army. A limited edition of 380 framed 26" x 36" collages with a touchable section of end zone is also available.

If you have any remaining cash hidden under the mattress, you might want to treat your golfing friends with a Jack Nicklaus Custom Backyard Golf Course, beginning at $1,000,000.00. Jack will personally study topography aerial photos, and landscape maps for the site, then send his team to survey the property. He'll create a formal design plan and color renderings for up to three holes and a practice area. Of course, your gift recipient will have to have their construction crew build it, with supervision from Jack's world-class design team. When the course is finished, the “Golden Bear” himself will stop by to play the first round personally with them. He'll sign his club and ball for their collection and throw in a custom set of Nicklaus clubs, including a personalized bag. But remember, the construction and site preparation costs are not included.

If you travel with the thoroughbred horse-set and you want to give someone a gift of a working, turnkey, in-the-running thoroughbred racing enterprise, check out the Three Chimneys Thoroughbred Racing Package for a mere $10,000,000.00. For this exclusive package, Three Chimneys will build a stable of 12-15 thoroughbreds and with your gift recipient’s input will train them, house them, select races, enter them in races, provide a personal racing concierge, and manage the entire enterprise for the next four years. The owner will get to name their stable and any unnamed horses, design their own silks, attend races, pose for pictures, give quotes to the media ... and keep all the purses and trophies. If they love horses, they will love you, for at least the next four years.

Finally, if you are financing a special wedding in 2009, you might want to combine it with your 2008 Holiday gift. Check out someone’s rare opportunity to make nuptials the stuff of family legends, with an exclusive turnkey luxury wedding experience with a Platinum Wedding at the Resort at Pelican Hill, beginning at $1,300,000.00. Located on the breathtaking coast of Newport Beach, California, this gift comes with a personal engagement coach to take care of every detail, a couture wedding gown and bridesmaid dresses custom designed by Carolina Herrera, up to 40 private ocean-view guest villas and every detail exquisitely executed from the magical cake to the perfect flowers to the private celebrity entertainment at the reception. The special experience also includes resort events for the bridal party, a rehearsal dinner event, an after-reception party, and gourmet breakfast the next day for family and guests.

For more gift ideas you can request to be placed on the Neiman Marcus Catalog mailing list. Or, you can simply consider our Listening Leaders® suggested “Gift List.” For, as suggested in previous years, truly gracious gift giving begins and ends with careful listening. Observant gift givers listen for individual wish lists throughout the year. Opportunities lie in identifying what others actually need; discovering the gifts others expect to get, or simply discerning the gifts others would like to receive. Constant and conscious listening provides the opportunity to be a gracious gift giver.

But wait, there is more. All “Gracious Gift Givers” have the on-going and constant opportunity to give everyone a multitude of everyday “Listening Gifts.” Unlike the Neiman Marcus gifts, “Listening Gifts” are plentiful, affordable, invaluable, and appreciable. So this season, add the special “Listening Gifts” of: “Attention, Appreciation, Caring, Commitment, Contentment, Control, Empathy, Feedback Honesty, Hugging, Reflection, Remembrance, Responsibility, Sharing, Silence, Smiling, Thanking, Thinking, Thoughtfulness, and Time. Wrap these attitudes and actions in a bow for delivery everyday, and your epitaph will eventually read, “Here is a Listening Leader® who Graciously Gave the Greatest Gifts.”

LISTENING LEADER® KNOWLEDGE NUGGET: Listening Leaders® Graciously Give the Great Gift of Listening Throughout the Year.

Some gifts deserve repetition, for when magnanimous Listening Leaders® have gifted everyone on their list they will be wise to make one final gift; that is the gift of listening to them selves.

So to repeat, although timely at any period of the year, our long-time International Listening Association colleague, Bob Bohlken provides everyone a marvelous poetic holiday gift. Inspired by Peter “Dale” Wimbrow Sr.’s 1934 classic “The Guy in the Glass”© often mistakenly referred to as “The Man in the Glass,” Bob crafted a most lavish gift entitled, “Listen to the One in the Mirror.”© Read it, repeat it, memorize it, and share it, and it will serve you in an enduring way. In short, it is a timeless gift that will provide anyone and everyone a multitude of positive returns.

“Listen to the One in the Mirror” ©

“When life’s choices come your way, Listen to what others have to say. But when all is said and done, Look into a mirror and listen to the reflected one.

When temptations are laid at your door, And promises are yours to take. Discuss the consequences and more, But listen to the one in the mirror for your own sake.

You may fool the world throughout the years, Others may admire you as you pass. But you’ll suffer heartache and tears, If you don’t listen to the one in the glass.

It is you alone who makes your choices. No matter what others may say or do. You may listen to other voices, But the voice of the one in the mirror is true.”

LISTENING LEADER TIP OF THE WEEK: Gift yourself.

GOLDEN CIRCLE LISTENING LEADERS QUOTES OF THE WEEK:

Every man according as he purposeth in his heart, so let him give; not grudgingly, or of necessity: for God loveth a cheerful giver ~ II Corinthians 9:7
The manner of giving is worth more than the gift ~ Pierre Corneille
A truly great man never puts away the simplicity of a child ~ Chinese proverb
In charity there is no excess ~ Francis Bacon
That action is best, which procures the greatest happiness for the greatest numbers ~ Francis Hutcheson
What comes from the heart, goes to the heart ~ Samuel Taylor Coleridge
Everything flows and nothing stays ~ Heraclites

A LISTENING LEADER GIGGLE:

Charles shared a story about a fellow who bought his new girlfriend a very large and beautiful diamond ring for Christmas last year.

Upon hearing about this extremely extravagant gift, Charles asked, "I thought she wanted one of those expensive sporty four-wheel-drive vehicles."

"She did," he replied. "But where was I going to find a fake Jeep?"

Enjoy your gifting!

LISTENING LEADERS KUDOS

Kudos to StoryCorps new partnership with National Public Radio and the Library of Congress. Their latest endeavor to launch the first National Day of Listening on the day after Thanksgiving is a nice compliment to the International Listening Association’s long standing “International Listening Awareness Month” every year in the month of March. StoryCorps is the nonprofit creator of the acclaimed oral history project “Listening Is an Act of Love.” Since 2003, StoryCorps has recorded more than 20,000 interviews nationwide and invites everyone to share the gift of interviewing and sharing subjects of their choice. We salute StoryCorps founder, Dave Isay, efforts to gift listening and preserve powerful historical gems for posterity!

LISTENING LEADER TOOLS AVAILABLE TO YOU.

Subscribe to Dr. Rick's e-newsletter LEADERSHIP SEEDS by sending an email to RKB@ListeningLeaders.com The leadership seeds content takes 90 seconds to read and a lifetime to master.
Order the Listening Leaders Book
Take the Leadership Behavior Inventory (LLBI).
Order the complete Listening Leader Workshop-in-a-Box
Inquire about the Listening Leaders Certification Program by sending an email to RKB@ListeningLeaders.com

FOR DETAILS, PLEASE CLICK ON: www.ListeningLeaders.com

WE ARE LISTENING and invite your action

Together, we can change the listening attitudes, skills, and knowledge of leaders throughout the world. We appreciate and invite your assistance in expanding our listening leader’s connections. Eight simple steps in advancing this important movement include:

Be gracious in your gifting.

Forward this newsletter to your children, grand children, friends and colleagues. More important, invite them to Subscribe to the “complimentary and weekly” newsletter by going to www.listeningleaders.com

Send us your listening leader insights, examples and stories.

Start a Listening Leaders Reading and Discussion Group. Invite your Librarian to purchase our Award winning LISTENING LEADER book.

As meeting, conference, and convention attendees spend the bulk of their time listening, please let others know of our availability to Keynote Conventions and customize Listening Leader Workshops.

Invite us to identify specific needs for listening development of leaders in your organizations.

Ask about our proven listening leader training programs and our customized in-house train-the-trainer strategies and our Certification program.

We can help, we are committed, and we are listening.

Listen, Lead On & Make Today Count! – Manny & Rick

__________________________________________________________________

LISTENING LEADERS: THE TEN GOLDEN RULES
TO LISTEN, LEAD & SUCCEED

By Dr. Lyman K. Steil
& Dr. Richard K. Bommelje

Publisher: Beaver’s Pond Press
(ISBN 1-59298-073-2)

A pioneering book that directly connects listening with leadership.Based on more than 50 collective years of work with listening leaders throughout the world, Dr. Steil and Dr. Bommelje have created 10 practical, proven, and priceless rules to enhance everyone's listening and leadership success. Although outstanding leaders are outstanding listeners, most leaders have neglected the development of their listening attitudes, skills and knowledge.

“This is the most significant book ever written on listening and leadership and will profit leaders at all levels in all types of organizations and enterprises.” Dr. Ralph Nichols, Father of the Field of Listening

ORDER YOUR COPY at www.ListeningLeaders.com or www.amazon.com

Listening Leaders is a weekly e-mail newsletter for people who understand the value of Listening Leadership in their life.

It is brought to you by
the INTERNATIONAL LISTENING LEADERSHIP INSTITUTE
We welcome your comments, suggestions and questions.
Please e-mail: ClientServices@ListeningLeaders.com.

Also, please visit our website: www.ListeningLeaders.com

Join our Golden Circle of Listening Leaders who are spreading Listening Leadership attitude, skills and knowledge worldwide! Forward your copy to anyone you believe will benefit from reading The Listening Leaders!

COPYRIGHT AND REPRINTS
Reprint permission is granted when the following credit appears: "© International Listening Leadership Institute. Reprinted with permission from ‘“The Listening Leaders Newsletter,' a weekly Internet newsletter”. For your own personal subscription, go to www.ListeningLeaders.com"

PRIVACY STATEMENT
Your e-mail address is absolutely confidential. We will NEVER give, sell or share your address with anyone.

Subscribe Cancel Update

Dr. Lyman K. (Manny) Steil
25 Robb Farm Road
St. Paul, MN 55127
651-483-3597
LKS@ListeningLeaders.com

Dr. Richard K. (Rick) Bommelje
8530 Amber Oak Dr
Orlando, FL 32817
407-679-7280
RKB@ListeningLeaders.com

[ListeningLeaders]