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Steve McClatchy Redux at Busch Stadium

Focal Pointe’s industry peer group, The Growth Network, holds an educational summit each year. The group’s seven member firms each send representatives to learn, collaborate, and share ideas. In 2018, the event was held in Washington, DC and featured keynote speaker, Steve McClatchy, who gave a highly informative presentation entitled, Decide: Work Smarter, Reduce Your Stress, and Lead By Example, focusing on productivity and time management.

Steve’s presentation was so impactful that Focal Pointe founder and president John Munie brought him to St. Louis last week to speak to the employees who were unable to attend the event in Washington, DC, as well as selected Focal Pointe vendors and special guests. The group spent the day at Busch Stadium, where Steve discussed topics including effective prioritization, avoiding burnout, and tips and tricks to increase efficiency, particularly using Microsoft Outlook.

For example, one tip that McClatchy offered was to draft frequently sent emails (such as introductory or sales follow-up emails) and attach them to a unique signature in Outlook, eliminating the need to retype them every time they are used. When on the go, he recommends using a smartphone assistant, such as Siri, to schedule reminders for appointments and personal information like birthdays and anniversaries. Combining these two tactics, Steve showed attendees how easy it can be to send contacts or potential clients a “happy birthday” email, helping to keep you and your company top of mind.

Steve also addressed the common issue of burnout, and how to avoid it. He posited that we all have “have to’s” and “want to’s” – we have to do the laundry or attend a meeting; we want to read that business book on being an effective team leader. Often, our schedules become so full of the “have to’s” that the “want to’s” get pushed aside and never accomplished. Over time, this can lead to burnout. The key, Steve said, is to schedule blocks of time in your daily or weekly schedule for the “want to’s” and commit to keeping this appointment with yourself just as you would any other appointment.

Events such as this are just one of the many ways Focal Pointe invests in our greatest asset, our employees.