Listen to your people. They have to either give me enough credible answers and say, ‘Hey, Dr. Fresh, we really don’t want to do it for this and this reason,’ or they’ll have to follow me. They’ve learned that they either have to stand up and tell their part of the story or they have to follow me.
I really take their story very seriously. Suppose someone tells me, ‘Dr. Fresh, you’re wasting your money putting a sensitive toothpaste on the market because nobody is going to buy this because everybody is going to buy Sensodyne.’
Can I fight it by going through the dental route or is his reasoning strong enough? If I feel his reasoning is strong enough, I say, ‘OK,’ and I drop the product. If I think his reasoning is wrong, I say, ‘Listen, we can do it.’
I only listen to those people who actually have their own opinion. Those people who are just yes-people, I don’t even listen to them anymore.
Honest opinions usually stand up later on in the game. You can have a yes-man two times, but the third time, you know he just said yes to please you. You know when opinions are honest. When you are talking to them, you know very quickly if that person put any thought behind it or if he is just saying yes quickly.
There are a lot of decisions that I do wrong. Nothing is 100 percent. But I do do it. It’s better to do than not to do.
Set the right example. As long as you’re very honest with people and as long as they know whatever is coming out of your mouth is 100 percent correct and not a sham, they start to work according to you.
I come in at 8:30 in the morning, so I don’t expect anybody else to come at 8:40.
I’ve seen CEOs spend lavish money on offices and cars when they tell employees the business is not doing well and the business is stressed and they are on a firing line and the next day they come to work the next morning in a Ferrari. That’s not the right signal to employees. You have to ensure that you are leading by example.
Stay close to competition. I make sure that rather than fighting forces, I try to join hands with them. Rather than trying to fight Colgate or Crest, I’ll try to sell their product with mine and make them my ally rather than my enemy. I always try to join hands with the person that I fear the most.
It’s like a country like Zambia trying to pick a fight with the United States. What good would it do to them? I’d say, ‘Let’s find a way to work together. Maybe you come and build up our schools and educate my people and I’ll give you some minerals in return. Let’s both progress and take care of our people.’ I’d rather find a way to assimilate than fight.
How to reach: Dr. Fresh Inc. (866) 373-7374 or www.drfresh.com