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4 FEDA News & Views Joe Schmitt President Rapids Wholesale Equipment jaschmitt@rapidswholesale.com The President's Message N ow that we have all been back from the FEDA Convention for several weeks, it seems appropriate for me to ask, "What are you doing with the knowledge you gained?" The Convention Planning Committee focused a great deal of effort on ensuring each of the speakers at the 2017 FEDA Convention offered action items at the end of their presentations. Remember the new "ABCs of Selling" keynote Daniel Pink left us with: A (Attunement), B (Buoyancy) and C (Clarity) are essential in everything from persuading a team member to trust in your vision to con- vincing a supplier partner to work with the KEC before bypassing the dealer network. As I reviewed my notes, I realized— fi rst and foremost—how poor my hand- writing is, which promptly made me so thankful that we have audio available for all of the workshops and general sessions. There were plenty of take-away nuggets, all of which are only benefi cial if I take action—soon. Otherwise, it is very likely that my organization will not benefi t from the time I spent in San Antonio. My personal plan is to begin with my own weekly "genius hour," by devoting at least 60 minutes to work on new ideas or master new skills. This will give me the space to allow myself the time to absorb and develop more of the content into an actionable, impactful plan for my company. (Thanks, again, Daniel Pink). Here are the items that are on my radar from the FEDA Convention: 1. Ensure our sales professionals have "buoyancy" by coaching them through the hardest part of being in sales—facing a continuous ocean of rejection. (Daniel Pink) 2. Enhance our current innovation process by getting our team on board with the "genius hour" con- cept, allowing them the time and space to innovate and create a bet- ter path. (Daniel Pink) 3. Teach young employees how to sell an idea up the "hierarchy," while helping them understand the value of getting small wins, trying some- thing new and the art of not bowing to the fear of failure. (Seth Mattison) 4. Remember and share the words of Seth's grandfather: Love people, serve people, add value and HAVE FUN! 5. Implement professional interview- ing techniques and processes to ensure we make the best hire pos- sible in this highly-competitive time. (Stephanie Bean of Ace Mart and the entire "How to Professionally Interview Candidates" roundtable group) 6. Test at least fi ve of the apps that were presented to make my work or home life more productive/ profi table: Slack, Animoto, Charlie, Expensify & HelloGbye. (Your Nerdy Best Friend, Beth Z) 7. Spend time working to develop our story and mascot to make our brand more impactful to customers and prospects. (Johnny Cupcakes) What Actions Have You Taken? continued on page 32