AVAILABILITY OVERVIEW

Stay Sharp

When Karl Elsener returned to Switzerland after learning the cutlery trade, he noticed Swiss soldiers needed a versatile tool so that they could dismantle and repair their weapons quickly.

Victorinox Swiss Army, Inc. now employs 950 workers in Schwyz and manufactures 100 pocket knife models, including the CyberTool, which has small screwdrivers and hex bits for personal computer repairs.

Change Your Attitude

An available person responds to needs. Help the team reach its goals, even if you prefer something else. When a coworker needs your help organizing a common work area, give what help you can, even though you also have other things to do.

Find a Solution

A pocket knife with multiple tools allows you to use the appropriate tool for the task at hand. You use a knife to cut a rope and a screw driver to tighten a screw.

Similarly, you must know your responsibility so that you can take appropriate action. When an inspector asks about operations, answer the questions for which you have direct responsibility. If someone else assists a customer, do not interfere unless your coworker asks for help.

Prioritize these obligations so that you can be available to the right people at the right time. If your child has a school program on Tuesday, you cannot help a neighbor build a new deck.

Take Action

Victorinox stands behind its multitool knives with a lifetime warranty against any defects in material and workmanship. Similarly, available individuals will be there when you need them.

Think through your responsibilities, and ask yourself how you can serve others at work, at home, and in your community. Listen when your spouse or children need you. Coach and encourage the individuals under your supervision. When a customer needs something, find a way to help.

You might not invent a world-famous pocket knife, but your availability can change the world for the family members and coworkers who depend on you.

Written by Lauree Beth Stedje

Five Keys to Building Availability

1. Be Productive

It is easier to turn a ship when it is already moving, and it is easier to make time in your schedule when you have a schedule to keep. You must demonstrate dependability and excellence before you can expect to benefit others. Manage your time and resources so that you will have the flexibility to see needs and explore opportunities.

2. Develop Useful Skills

Thinking and learning are lifelong disciplines. Research business trends, and know what skills you will need in the future. Consider how you can improve family and workplace relationships. The listening skills that make you a better family member can make you a better coworker. Professional skills can help you at work and allow you to meet needs in your community. Keep up with the changing demands of your industry and your life.

3. Find a Way to Help

Understand your job description at work and your role in your family, and consider how you can best address particular needs. Perhaps you cannot afford to give coworkers money, but you can take a Saturday and help paint a house. You might not have the authority to give a pay raise, but you can publicly praise a coworker for character. You might not give money to an alcoholic family member, but you can pour some coffee and listen. Discern what a person needs, and consider how you can best help.

4. Communicate With Others

Have an open-door policy, or let others know when you can help them. If you do not have time now, make time in the near future. Arrange your schedule so that you can help when others need you. Communicate when you plan to be away. Communicate with supervisors before agreeing to help someone outside your immediate area of responsibility.

5. Serve Cheerfully

You will have to do things you would rather avoid. Whether you dread the disciplinary action you take when someone steals tools or the monthly crunch to send out invoices, the key is not to feel happy about it but to get it done anyway. Wholeheartedly tackle each step in the process. Look past the difficulty, and find ways to proceed. The sooner you start, the sooner you can finish the job.

Availability Application Discussion Questions

Break into small groups. Have each group read one of the five keys above and discuss the corresponding question below. Share answers and personal applications with everyone.

1. Describe a recent opportunity to benefit others. How did habits of dependability and diligence prepare you for it?

2. What skills could help you in your current job? How can you develop them?

3. Give an example of a recent need and how someone gave appropriate help. How did he or she avoid giving inappropriate help?

4. How do you communicate and coordinate with supervisors and coworkers? Who sets a good example in this area?

5. Name an upcoming project. How can you tackle it wholeheartedly?

Word Etymology

The word available is derived from the Latin root valere, which means "to be strong" and hence "to have value." A three-strand cord, for example, is stronger and more useful than a two-strand cord.

Availability n 1: capability of being used, 2: that state in which a thing can be reached or attained, 3: accessible.

Availability is the ability to contribute your strength and talent to those who need it.

Availability In Balance

Consider the Timing

Cautiousness is knowing how important right timing is in accomplishing right actions. Evaluate whether you have time to properly help someone, and consider when the person needs your help. Honor others schedules and feelings when you give assistance.

See the Possibilities

Wisdom is seeing and responding to life situations from a perspective that transcends my current circumstances. When someone asks for help, consider your responsibility to the other person and how you can appropriately help. Sometimes a person needs to work through the process alone; other times you should offer to help.

Go for It

Responsibility is knowing and doing what is expected of me. Responsibility gives availability direction. Set priorities, and learn to say no so that you can pursue what is best.

WORKPLACE

Leadership Tips

An effective team must have an effective leader because a leaders attitude and actions set the tone for the other team members.

* Demonstrate the dedication and flexibility you want from your coworkers.

* Understand different talents, personalities, and communication styles. Listen to coworkers, and communicate in ways that inspire each one.

* Solve problems. Do not let personal conflicts hinder your availability or team effort.

* Take time to listen when coworkers suggest new ways to reach the goal.

* Outline jurisdictions so that each member knows his or her responsibility. Be available to clarify direction as needed.

* If a team member needs help, set an example by pitching in.

Looking Ahead

When his father received orders to the Philippines in 1898, the young Douglas MacArthur wanted to enlist, but his father told him, "My son, there will be plenty of fighting in the coming years, and of a magnitude far beyond this. Prepare yourself."

MacArthur went to West Point, graduated at the top of the class of 1903, and became the only American to serve as a general in three wars.

* The first requirement of leadership is preparation. Consider how you can serve others now and in the future.

* Place a priority on the skills and education that will improve your effectiveness. The discipline and faithfulness that make you better at your current role will help you tackle future needs.

* This preparation does not require you to know the future. It does require you to have clearly defined values and a the diligence to pursue them despite difficulties and distractions.

* Today's pressures often crowd out tomorrow's opportunities. Follow wise priorities today so that you can be available when others need you most.

Whether you lead an army or supervise a janitorial crew, your availability depends on your readiness and ability to do what needs to be done.

Employee Tips

Relationships in Action

Business is made of individuals working together to do things. Thus, the relationships you build will determine how well you can do your job.

Know your organizations goals, and focus your efforts on the teams goal.

Resist the temptation to guard your turf. Help others succeed.

Greet anyone who walks into your work area.

Communicate and coordinate with other departments.

Do not gossip. Deal with individuals directly.

If you cannot help a customer, find someone who can.

Do what needs to be done, even if you have to do additional research or learn another step in the process.

Follow advice consistent with your mission and good character.

Share the credit

Praising Availability

Teamwork requires individuals to look out for the interests of others so that the entire team can succeed. When team members prepare themselves to capitalize on the strengths of each team member, the team can accomplish what individuals could not do alone.

Recognize those who take the time to prepare themselves and their surroundings for what they need to do, and note how this preparation provides the flexibility to fill unexpected gaps and make last-minute changes in order to succeed.

Honor coworkers who value the team's interests more than their own. And acknowledge team members when you receive recognition.

On The Job

Jump Start

Broken jumper cables and matches that fail to strike can make a bad day even worse. Similarly, your availability can save the day, and your self-centeredness can make a bad situation even less bearable for coworkers.

Do Something

* Know your priorities.

* Keep your schedule current so that you can adjust it as needs arise.

* Make good use of your time.

* Keep track of what still needs to be done.

Keep Learning

* Be aware of trends in your occupation. Consider how these changes relate to your job.

* Think through the information presented at meetings.

* Listen to supervisors and coworkers when they offer instruction.

* Think through tasks, and learn from experience.

* Pursue excellence.

Lend a Hand

* When you get a phone call or someone walks into your work area, give them your full attention.

* Ask questions in order to find out what others need.

* Direct customers to those who can help them.

* Recognize your responsibility in each situation, and do what you can to help others.

Clarify Expectations

* Listen before saying anything.

* Find out when a project or report is due, and make sure you understand all the components it should include.

* Let coworkers know your schedule.

Adjust Your Attitude

* Know what you need to do each day, and get started without complaining.

* When you face a challenging project, clarify the goal, and take the first step forward.

* Take satisfaction in the finished product, even when someone else gets the credit.

* Find ways to benefit coworkers without them knowing.

FAMILY

Wisdom in Relationships

Time Management

Time management requires organizing your life so that you can make the best use of time as it passes.

Prioritize

Keep family, work, friends, hobbies, and your other responsibilities in perspective. Your family members and their needs should come before the needs of friends or coworkers. Your obligations at work should come before your hobbies.

Evaluate what your responsibilities require and what tasks will bring the greatest benefit. Who are you responsible for, what relationships matter, and what tasks have you committed to fulfill? Once you have identified your priorities, set short- and long-term goals. Make lists to keep you on track.

Schedule

Making a schedule is like filling a large jar with rocks and sand. If you start with the sand, you will run out of room for the rocks. If you start with the rocks, you can fill the remaining spaces with sand. Schedule your day according to your main priorities, and then add other tasks.

Do not let the urgent distract you from the most important. Keep your goals reachable, and recognize when real needs and opportunities cross your path. Evaluate your decisions realistically, and adjust according to your priorities.

Discipline

Develop habits to maximize your productivity. Go to bed on time so that you can get up on time. Get up when the alarm goes off so that you will not have to frantically prepare breakfast and rush out the door. Arrange your surroundings so that you do not waste time searching for items.

A little discipline goes a long way toward accomplishing your priorities and helping others when they need you.

Availability for Kids

Picture This!

Availability is making my own schedule and priorities secondary to the wishes of those I serve. This means you are willing and ready when friends or family members need your help or your company.

Have you ever been in a car when the battery was dead? Have you ever seen someone start a car using jumper cables? You do not use jumper cables every day, but when you need them, you need them right then, right where you are.

Be ready to help others whenever and wherever they need you.

Spotted Giraffe

Read about the giraffe on page four. Then make your own giraffe to help you remember the lesson. Use the template below to trace a giraffe onto a sheet of paper. Decorate your giraffe by gluing brown or yellow cereal to the giraffes body. Use crayons or markers to draw trees, grass, and sky on the rest of the sheet.

Supplies:

* Blank paper

* Pencil or pen

* Crayons or markers

* Breakfast cereal

* Glue

Practice It!

After reading this lesson, discuss the following questions with a parent, guardian, or teacher who can sign below.

1. When have you helped someone at school?

2. What kind of attitude should you have when helping at home?

3. Why should you ask permission before doing something unusual?

Availability for Teens

Team Player

When individuals combine their efforts toward a common goal, they can achieve what they could not do alone, and victory waits just around the corner.

Playing on a team requires preparation. Everyone must be ready to perform whatever he or she is called upon to do. This allows a team to fill gaps and make the other adjustments necessary to win the game.

Teamwork also requires individuals to look out for the interests of others. Everyone has plans and priorities, but availability recognizes and values anothers goal and achievement.

Not Available

Say yes to what is good and no to what is wrong. Never agree to illegal activities, bullying others, or using drugs.

* Let your parents and trustworthy friends know where you are.

* Protect those who are vulnerable.

* Stand up to negative peer pressure.

* Do not make fun of others.

* Respond correctly to the requests of authorities.

* Manage time wisely so that you can contribute to your family, school, and community.

Attitude Matters

A boy stood up in his chair at the dinner table, and his father immediately told him to sit down. After making a fuss, the boy sat down and announced, Im sitting down on the outside, but Im standing up on the inside!

Attitude makes a big difference. Some people make themselves available on the outside, but have a bad attitude on the inside. They say they are glad to help, but their attitude reflects the opposite. An available person is genuinely grateful to help.

Discussion Questions

After reading this lesson, discuss the following questions with a parent, guardian, or teacher.

1. Why is your attitude important when helping others?

2. When should you say no to someones request?

3. How should you respond when your parents or teachers ask for your help? Give an example of what they might ask you to do this week.

STORIES

History

Nancy Wake-Forward

The White Mouse

On August 30, 1912, Nancy Grace Augusta Wake was born in Wellington, New Zealand. Her family moved to Australia when she was two, and she left home to become a nurse at 16.

When her aunt bequeathed her 200 pounds in 1932, Wake left for Europe where she socialized with young, carefree cosmopolitans and freelanced for Hearst newspapers. She reported on Hitlers rallies in Berlin, interviewed Hitler in 1933, and witnessed German stormtroopers whipping Jews in the streets of Vienna.

Finding Needs

In September 1939, Nazi Germany invaded Poland, prompting Britain and France to declare war on Germany. On November 30, Wake married French industrialist Henri Fiocca and moved into a villa at Marseilles. Six months later, France capitulated.

Wake bought a vehicle and began supplying refugee camps with food and medical assistance. She served as a courier for the French Resistance and then joined the Allied Escape Route Organization, aiding escaped POWs, refugees, and downed Allied aircrews.

Her position as a socialite covered her underground activity, and the Gestapo could not get a fix on her identity. Wakes work was attributed to The White Mouse and earned her a spot at the top of the Gestapos most wanted list.

Taking Risks

As the Gestapo continued its efforts, her husband and colleagues urged her to flee France. In 1942, with a five million franc price on her head, Wake tried six times to cross the Pyrenees into Spain. During one attempt, Vichy militia captured and interrogated her for four days. After reaching Spain, Wake went to England. She joined the British Special Operations Executive, received training to assist Maquis Resistance fighters, and returned to France via airlift.

The Maquis coordinated attacks in order to weaken, confuse, and sabotage German forces in preparation for a massive Allied invasion. When the radio operator had to destroy the code book during a German raid, Wake rode a bicycle over 310 miles in 72 hours to replace the code book. The terrain was mountainous and the mission grueling, but she knew a woman had the best chance to get through the German check points.

In April 1944, Wake and 7,000 Maquis partisans attacked a force of 22,000 SS and caused 1,400 casualties. On D-Day, June 6, 1944, the invasion came. Within a year, Germany surrendered.

Setting an Example

After the war, Nancy Wake learned of her husbands torture by the Gestapo and his death in 1943. She served as a British intelligence officer after the war, married ex-POW John Forward in December 1957, and returned to Australia after a brief stay in Malta. Wake-Forward lost her second husband in 1997 and moved to London in 2001 where she lives at the Royal Star and Garter Home for retired soldiers in Richmond, West London.

Nancy Wake-Forward is the most decorated woman from World War II, and her availability earned her the gratitude and admiration of people from New Zealand, Australia, France, Great Britain, and the United States. I hate wars and violence, she once said, But if they come I dont see why we women should just wave our men a proud goodbye and then knit them balaclavas.

Written by Jeffery Alan Boothe

Points to Ponder:

Nancy Wake-Forward made herself available when her people and the world needed her.

* Do not look the other way when others suffer.

* Do what needs to be done.

* Find creative ways to meet specific needs.

* Cooperate with others.

* Take opportunities as they come.

* Serve others, whatever it costs.

* Learn about tools and technology that can increase productivity.

* Develop the skills and knowledge to increase your effectiveness.

* Finish what you start.

Useful Links:

* http://www.abc.net.au/am/content/2004/s1057703.htm

* http://www.medaloffreedom.com/NancyWake.htm

* http://www.biographybase.com/biography/Wake_Nancy.html

Nature

Lessons From the Giraffe

Giraffes move across the African savanna in loose herds and have no established leader. Individuals come and go as they please, but while part of a herd, each giraffe watches out for danger and warns the others.

The average bull stands 18 feet tall and weighs 3000 pounds. A cow stands 16 feet tall and is several hundred pounds lighter.

The giraffes 8-foot neck weighs over 500 pounds. Blood pressure fluctuations created by lowering or raising its head could cause the giraffe to blackout, but blood vessels in a giraffes head expand when the giraffe lowers its head and contract as the giraffe raises its head, ensuring a steady blood supply to the brain.

Mind the Surroundings

In order to drink, the giraffe must spread its front feet apart and lower its head. Thus, one giraffe remains upright while the others drink. When the lookout puts its head down, another raises its head.

A healthy adult giraffe has few predators. Lions pose the biggest threat, but lions attack only young, vulnerable, or weakened giraffes. Crocodiles sometimes try to grab an adult while it is drinking, and young giraffes fall prey to leopards and wild dogs.

Large eyes and a keen sense of hearing equip a giraffe to detect danger sooner than other animals. Biologists observe antelope and zebra grazing near giraffe herds in order to use the giraffes movements as an early warning system.

Protect the Vulnerable

A baby giraffe stands 6 feet tall and weighs 80 to 150 pounds at birth. The female, or cow, carefully camouflages her calf among trees and undergrowth. She remains nearby to watch for predators during the day and returns at night to nurse the calf.

As the calves grow, the cows help one another by forming a nursery, called a crche. One female watches over several young while the others forage for food and water. The young become independent at 12 to 16 months.

A giraffe grazes and ruminates 16 to 20 hours each day. A giraffes tough, 18-inch tongue allows it to eat leaves from the thorny acacia tree, and its height allows it to reach higher than other species.

A giraffe can survive on 15 pounds of forage per day, but it can eat over one hundred pounds per day when food is plentiful.

Written by Kristin Fahrenbruck Baumgartner

The Giraffe in Action

Watch Out

Unlike other mammals, giraffe herds have no set leader. When a giraffe is part of the herd, however, it watches out for the others.

Take Turns

Herd members work together in order to avoid danger and get the water they need. One giraffe keeps its head up in order to spot danger.

Communicate Clearly

Giraffes communicate across wide areas. Courting bulls cough, cows whistle to their calves, and studies indicate giraffes also use infrasound.

Be Ready

A giraffe remains alert at least twenty hours a day and rests up to two hours a day, dozing off in five-minute increments.

Useful Links:

* http://www.cmzoo.org/zoocam.html

* http://www.giraffes.org/

* http://animals.nationalgeographic.com/animals/mammals/giraffe.html

* http://www.sandiegozoo.org/animalbytes/t-giraffe.html

Character Today

Pursuit of Customer Satisfaction

Nordstrom ranked fourth overall and first among retailers in Business Weeks customer satisfaction ranking, March 2007.

Freedom

In their 1995 book, The Nordstrom Way, Robert Spector and Patrick D. McCarthy describe the 8x5 inch card handed out at the Seattle-based retailers one-day employee orientation. It welcomes the new hires to Nordstrom and lists one rule. Rule #1: Use your good judgment in all situations. There will be no additional rules. Please feel free to ask your department manager, store manager, or division general manager any question at any time.

This policy frees employees to do what they need to do in order to satisfy the customer. A sales person can help a customer find items in other parts of the store, gather items for a busy customer, make a delivery, or lower the price in order to avoid being undersold.

Support

Nordstroms commission-based pay system encourages sales people to meet customer needs and build a personal clientele. Sales associates keep a book, recording each customers preferences and past purchases.

This information helps the salesperson keep in touch with customers, send thank you notes to customers, and call when a new item might interest a customer.

Leadership

Managers hire, fire, schedule, evaluate, coach, and encourage their personnel. And they regularly spend time on the sales floor interacting with coworkers and customers.

Directors and managers visualize the organization as an inverted pyramid with the customers at the top. Sales and support personnel do everything they can to satisfy customers. Department managers, buyers, merchandise managers, store managers, regional managers, the executive team, and the board of directors focus on helping front line staff satisfy customers.

One day in 1974, the Nordstroms walked through a store on their way to a meeting and heard two women complaining about being disappointed. Bruce Nordstrom pointed the women out to then department manager Betsy Sanders.

Sanders caught up with the women, and found they were disappointed because they could not afford a particular dress they had admired. Sanders took them to a different part of the store, and they each found something they liked.

Several hours later, Bruce Nordstrom emerged from the meeting and asked Sanders, Betsy, I know you took care of those customers. I just want to hear what the story was.

As Sanders told Spector and McCarthy, That was just emblazoned on me. I thought, the customer is number one with them. It doesnt matter whats on his mind. Hes not going to forget there is a customer with a need.

Written by Loren Paulsson

The Lighter Side

Attitude

Joey didn't like oatmeal, and in protest he stood up in his chair at breakfast. His father immediately told him to sit down, but Joey refused, citing his distaste for oatmeal.

Finding his protest ineffective, Joey finally sat down. Then he muttered, "I'm sitting down on the outside, but I'm standing up on the inside!"

Some make themselves available on the outside but have a bad attitude on the inside. Attitude makes all the difference. An available person is genuinely grateful to help.

Picture This

Be Available to Your Customers

* Build real relationships rather than contacts.

* Put people before products.

* Listen so that you can understand and anticipate needs.

* Communicate openly and honestly with your customers.

* Build trust by giving sound advice based on your knowledge of the product.

* Seek and accept feedback. Address the issues it reveals.

* Exceed customer expectations, and create a positive experience.

* Keep promises.

* When problems occur, fix them, and mend the relationship.

* Hire individuals who will provide quality service.

* Treat associates the way you want them to treat customers.

* Be helpful, even when there is no immediate payoff.

* Never belittle customers or their complaints.

* Give back to your community as part of your workplace culture.