Those of you who are sports fans…know that the higher up you sit in the stadium, the more you can see the play unfold. My experience has proven this in football, soccer, hockey and especially NASCAR.

Consider the military General. He is back behind the lines looking at the aerial reconnaissance or satellite imagery. It is the Lieutenants, Captains and Majors who are closer to the front lines directing the enlisted people. The General is able to see the big picture while the other officers are looking at their area of responsibility. The smart General is getting input from his officers.

In business, if you are the CEO, you need to be taking a 30,000 foot look at your business. Your operations manager, sales manager, human resource manager and accounting manager are giving you their ground level perspective. And if you are a sales person, customer service person, Director of First Impressions (our title for what should be formerly known as the Receptionist), a part of shipping and receiving or any other function, an important part of your job is to let your manager know what the customers are saying, doing and thinking on the front lines.

In your Running Shoe Monday Meeting, be bold enough to start fresh. Today is the first day on the job. What are you doing different today than you did on Friday? Here is what you put on the table: 1. Be strategic. 2. Look at your entire operation from 30,000 ft. 3. Engage your employees to be an integral part of the process.

Regardless if you are a General, a Major, a Captain or a Lieutenant. Listen to the Privates, Corporals, Sergeants and Master Sergeants. It is a wise supervisor who listens before giving directions or orders.

Here is your bold butt kicker idea: Find your elevation and look at your company, your division or your area of responsibility. Take a big picture view. Report what you are learning to your general. If you are a general, report what you are learning to the junior officers and the people on the front. What would it look like if your approach was unified?

Remember that this is the final week of our special offer to Shoe Gram Subscribers. Call the University of Street Smarts and as our gift to you for subscribing to the Weekly Shoe Gram, we will give you 1 Free Business Idea as part of the 1st Anniversary of the Shoe Gram. Call (775) 746-5340 or toll free at (877) 414-9985 and we’ll set an appointment. This offer is good until May 28, 2010 at 5PM Pacific Daylight Time and is limited to one great business idea per company.