The Noise Reduction System™ is taught in a series of workshops based on the book “Make the Noise Go Away – The Power of An Effective Second in Command”, written by Larry G. Linne. The overall class addresses all the concepts in the book and provides tools that help participants work through the concepts and make them a part of their life at work.  The ultimate objective is for the “noise” to be eliminated so that first in commands and second in commands can be free to do what they do best.

The class is designed for second in commands.  Their first in command will attend the first and last of the 10 sessions.  This gives them understanding of what is going to happen in the class (critical element), what was learned, and what they should expect going forward. The class is taught in a 2 to 2 ½ hour workshop one day per month for 10 months.

In my 13 years of work on this topic, I have found that the majority of business leaders (FICs and SICs) end up reaching a point in their careers where they are so overwhelmed with things (noise) that keep them from doing what they do best that they end up being non-­‐productive.  That non-­‐productivity costs them money and makes the rest of the organization less productive as well. 

This system has freed leaders up to do what they do best and is creating wealth for first and second in commands.  The bottom line is the QUANTIFIABLE value brought to participants.  One lady who understood the value of the system (first in command) said she was putting three of her second in commands through the class.  She said to me, “how can I afford not to put them through it.  I am spending less than 20% of my time doing what I do best.  If they go through the class and do what you teach, I will get to 75% + of my time doing what I do best.  That is worth millions of dollars over time!” I think that tells the story pretty well. SHE GETS IT!

FAQ

Q: What do you mean by tools?

A: Intellectual Property provided to participants in forms or documents that work them through the concept being taught so that they understand it and can apply it. Tools in the NRS™ are designed to bring the concept to reality in the shortest amount of time.  One of the greatest values a consultant can bring to a client is simplicity on concepts so they can implement and get results.  That is what these tools do for the participants.

Q: What do you mean by “what FICs and SICs do best?”

A: Most people in first and second in command jobs have been very successful in their lives. They have done something or multiple things that bring great value to themselves, their family, and those around them. It could be visioning, selling, client relations, managing suppliers and vendors, managing professional relationships, financial management, leading others, coaching people, and the list goes on. When they do these things it usually turns into big dollars.

Q: What do you mean by NOISE?

A: Noise is anything that keeps people from doing what they do best. It may be uncertainty of what is going on in the business. It may be people problems, financial results, hiring, process or control issues, lack of communication, too much going on, client problems,

errors in the business, sales issues, training, new product development, marketing, operational strategy, vision, competition, and the list goes on. The noise happens when the FIC has to deal with something that doesn’t align with what they do best.

Q: How does having an effective second in command make the noise go away? A: Read the book!

Q: How can I afford to send my second in command?

A: How can you afford not to? A few hundred dollars a month would be an easy check for any business owner to write if all their noise went away. Do the math. What is the cost of doing nothing? Not perpetuating?  Not reaching your potential?  No sleep? Shorter life due to stress? Not spending time with family?  Losing the company?  These are the results of business who can’t make the noise go away.

Q: Who is the ideal person to go to this class?

A: The class is not designed for secretarial support personnel. However, they would get value from the class. The class is designed for managerial/leader level people who work for the senior leader of the company. However, a first in command is anyone who has responsibility of results in a business and has employees under their responsibility. So, we have had sales people, attorneys, doctors, and senior leaders of larger corporations send their second in commands to this class with great success.

Q: What should a first in command expect from the second in command going through this class?

A: They should expect that they will attend all the classes. They should also expect to spend at least one (two is better) hour per month letting the second in command debrief what they learn in class. They should expect the second in command to proactively show evidence of implementing the strategies.

Q: Give me some ideas of what the second in command will learn.

A: Upward communication strategies to take things off the FICs mind so he/she doesn’t worry. Innovation implementation strategies. Client management techniques. Understanding the power of values and applying it in the business. Proactive culture management. Decision making strategies to make better decisions the first time. Performance management techniques to get more productivity and better results from employees. How to not repeat mistakes in the company. How to reinterpret the FIC message to “connect” with the employees. Those are a few of the 26 different tools we go through. Each of these tools would individually pay for the cost of the class when implemented in the organization.

Q: How many people are in a class?

A: Typically classes have 10 to 12 participants. This small class size is designed so the group can get value from interacting with each other. Learning is maximized with adults when they can learn from a teacher, gain their own learning from experiences in class, and learn from others who are gaining the same experience. Small group classes allow for all three of these things to happen. More than 12 would require the class to break up into smaller groups for some of the exercises.

Q: Ok, you have one last chance to sell me on The Noise Reduction SystemTM. What is your argument?

A: Again, there is the cost of doing nothing… however that argument has already been made in other questions. So, the structure of how first and second in commands work in today’s business world is incredibly risky as to its success. Most avenues, we have learned, are destined for failure. We think working harder, digging in deeper, pulling up the bootstraps, and other great techniques will get us there. Those strategies are getting the results of stress, family breakups, second in command firings, frustration, loss of sleep, and not a lot better results. The concepts taught in the book and in this class are giving freedom to first and second in commands that they couldn’t accomplish in other traditional ways.

We have more stories than we can count of FICs working 50% of the time they were working before (and getting greater results), profit increases, growth that is beyond expectations, new businesses being able to be started (when they couldn’t before), and people falling in love with their work again.

A Final Story from Larry:  Two weeks ago I was at an event and at the end they had a question and answer session. One man walked to the microphone and said “I have to give my testimony to something that has happened to me. My son and I were working 65+

hours a week. He is my second in command. I was NOT happy with his performance and he will tell you that I was driving him crazy. I knew that I was going to have to sell the business to save my relationship with him and possibly save the net worth of my company. I

received the book, Make the Noise Go Away, that day from a friend. I read the book and decided to try the concepts. I put my son through the NRS™ and he brought the concepts