Just go for it? Really? Yes, really. Sometimes you need to downplay cautions, history, probabilities, and all the other excuses standing in your way. There will always be reasons to hesitate on any decision, but the bottom line is: You can prepare all you want, but you’ll never be 100% prepared.
While observing organizations, I consistently find that while skills, finance resources, competition, marketing, and operations are critical, it’s actually the intangibles that often make the difference. For example, culture, expectations, and excellence greatly affect success more than we acknowledge.
The world is and will always be ever-changing. So, we should accept more uncertainty and take more chances. Jobs, Bezos, Gates, Zuckerberg, etc. all took incredible risk in order to succeed. Should you go for it? Consider this example of alternatives:
Accepting a $100,000/year job with reasonable certainty of continuity versus embarking on an entrepreneurial venture with the potential of being a multi-millionaire and achieving your dream career. If you’re considering the practical probabilities, risks, and potential of these choices, you’ve ignored the argument to go with your intuition, gut, and passion. And so many of us ignore these things naturally because we were taught to analyze excessively and rely heavily on numbers and statistics. But, in many cases, knowing and calculating an expected value actually has more traps than virtue. For instance, you limit yourself by relying on a projected number and, therefore, may disregard solutions and strategies that could have even greater potential.
It is my belief that we don’t choose passion enough. However, there are several factors that actually make the entrepreneurial path more desirable: 1) you can take a job any time 2) you’ll gain great experience from the entrepreneurial endeavor 3) you’ll probably suffer fewer losses than expected. For example, most young people will experience several jobs changes before they’re 30 anyway… So, why not take some risk pursuing a dream? Go for it!
Passion also acts as an important incentive, which can result in success. Don’t underestimate it! Many experts argue that we achieve only a small portion of our potential because we’re stuck in boring, unsatisfying, and dead-end positions. I have many colleagues who remain in dying industries (like retail) and have suffered for years. They’re stuck in declining companies that have failed to adapt to emerging trends like E-commerce, logistics, and operations. But, what could we achieve if we were able to escape those soul-sucking jobs? As Sheryl Sandberg said, “Consider what you would do if you weren’t afraid.”
So, you’ve decided to “Go For It.” Now what?
Establish successful parameters. We frequently underestimate our denial and overestimate perceived barriers. For example, the pandemic is clearly changing parameters and we need to adapt rather than wait for things to return to the way they were. The entertainment industry, energy companies, work at home options, and urban real estate are all areas that are undergoing dramatic change and will permanently alter the economy as well as our lifestyles. Additionally, technology, E-commerce, productivity improvements, and Zoom are opening the door for more opportunities. Use these changes to your advantage.
Consider social factors. Income inequality, partisanship, racial equality, and diversity are among the social topics that are changing our culture, practices, and awareness. Similarly, the aging and minority populations in our country are creating dramatic shifts in our society. We simply spend too much time on partisan arguments about these issues rather than developing solutions and maximizing opportunities.
Encourage positive change. For example, women are fighting for equal opportunities and treatment. This requires some much-needed cultural adjustments as well as some operational changes like creating proportional bathrooms in sports stadiums. Additionally, working from home is enabling many parents to fill both work and parent duties. An important and needed change is actively recognizing that women have been held back and working to maximize their potential.
Accept failure. (But, don’t quit!) Mistakes are inevitable. Edison may have said it best, “Many of life’s failures are people who did not realize how close they were to success when they gave up.”
Look for the positive and be the positive. We’ve all felt what it’s like to work with/around negative people—their energy sucks everyone else down to their level. We feed off of those around us. Create an atmosphere where everyone lifts one another up. When a problem arises, work together to find a solution. When mistakes happen, look for the lesson to be learned and grow. Everyone will be better for it. A structure that focuses on learning from mistakes will always be more equipped to deal with them when they arise.
Support risk taking. If we know we have support, we are more likely to take (appropriate) risks, which can lead to innovation. When people are afraid, they can’t perform to their full potential. Fear is one of the leading factors that holds us back and prevents us from trying new things.
Focus on collaboration. Make sure the organization has the resources it needs to succeed. That may mean providing additional training, one-on-one feedback, updated equipment/software, or extending deadlines. Understand your organization’s needs and let employees know that they can rely on you to back them up.
Treat people equally and individually. This might sound contradictory, but it simply means that, while everyone should be treated fairly and equally, each person’s individual needs must also be taken into consideration. Some might require more supervision or verbal encouragement while others thrive being left with complete autonomy on a project.
“Going for it” does require a different perspective—you must look to the future and not the past. Here are three different examples that illustrate this idea: 1) Wayne Gretzky was a great hockey player who revolutionized the game. One of his contributions was Gretzky’s rule, which states that you skate to where the puck is about to go, rather than where it’s been. 2) Xerox developed the personal computer in the 1970s, but dropped it when they didn’t see any future. Steve Jobs, who bought the technology for almost nothing, toured the facility in 1979 and presumably hopped around and yelled, “What is going on here? You’re sitting on a gold mine! Why aren’t you doing something with this technology? You could change the world!” 3) Prior to Jobs’ revelation, Moore’s Law was created, which states that operating circuits could double their performance every year. That forecast (which was true for decades) allowed the computer industry to shrink all its components and increase performance annually to plan for new developments on the basis of that expectation.
Think about this: What’s the point of a band covering a song if they don’t change it up and put their own spin on it? So, I suggest: Look at what is, but find a way to see beyond that and run with it. Robert Kennedy’s paraphrasing of a George Bernard Shaw quote is quite fitting: “There are those that look at things the way they are, and ask why? I dream of things that never were, and ask why not?” And I ask: Which will you be?
Dr. Bert Shlensky, president of Startup Connection (www.startupconection.net) is a graduate of Sloan School of Management at M.I.T. He served as the president of WestPoint Pepperell’s apparel fabrics business as well as the President & CEO of Sure Fit Products. Having provided counseling to over 2,000 clients, he now focuses on working with select startups and small businesses.
The pandemic has caused some chaos, to say the least. The uncertainty and severity of the situation has caused most of us to shift focus, reconsider our efforts and priorities, and question risk. As a result, it’s critical to reexamine how to maximize opportunities, results, and challenges. While there’s still plenty of unpredictability, there are several clear rules to follow that will help you prioritize and improve results.
I believe the 80-20 rule (which states 80% of results are from 20% of sales) is one of the most useful guidelines. Reassess and renew efforts on programs that have the most potential. But, it is equally important to eliminate unproductive efforts.
Bigger is getting more important: For example, between 40-50% of online consumer sales are on Amazon. You can’t ignore that impact and its affect on results.
Prioritize innovation. Culture, execution, measurement, marketing, and operations are critical elements that support success from innovation.
Learn to prioritize more effectively. Focus on what you’re good at and pay less attention to your weaknesses. For example, I have a client who has the best product in the industry, but charges a little more money. She has achieved success by moderating some prices, but mostly by developing messaging that explains her quality difference.
Limit objectives to a handful. Limiting strategic priorities allows you to focus on what matters most. It can also serve as a way to drive a decision when faced with difficult trade-offs, which can also increase results. We are frequently encouraged to develop multiple alternatives; yet, spending time on weak alternatives can be extremely wasteful.
Make the hard decisions. We need to be flexible in order to evaluate alternatives and respond to change, but we also need to make firm choices to manage challenges and trade-offs.
Address critical vulnerabilities. We tend to focus on strengths and opportunities and ignore challenges, but this can lead to neglecting a vital aspect of a plan. For example, logistics, customer service, and safety are frequently overlooked, but they can provide important differentiation that will make your business stand out.
Provide specific action plans. They should be concrete enough that participants throughout the organization can understand what to focus on and what to avoid.
Eliminate costly and unproductive activities. This is key. Consider cell phones, email, social media, and the Internet: Most of it is time-consuming junk that can be eliminated or reduced (or, at least, not viewed every minute of the day). Develop a master list of activities and then categorize them into areas like: urgent, maintenance versus development, cost, risk, results, probability of success etc. This will help you see which activities need more focus and which need less as you prioritize.
Consider culture. It’s a critical component of establishing priorities. Sometimes, “now is not the time” is an appropriate response. Other times, opportunities for change are required and you need to be as prepared as possible. For example: Issues like safety, stress, and uncertainty have become critical elements and adapting to the pandemic is unavoidable.
Opportunities to expand your market will arise—so keep the 80-20 rule in mind as things change. Some efforts could be declining while new critical opportunities may be emerging. These instances are worth serious consideration—especially when the investment is minor. You may open up a door to a broader 20 percent.
So remember: prioritization can produce dramatic results. Spend more time analyzing your priorities and watch how that affects your results.
Dr. Bert Shlensky, president of Startup Connection (www.startupconection.net) has an MBA and PhD from the Sloan School of Management at M.I.T. He served as the president of WestPoint Pepperell’s apparel fabrics business, and President and CEO of Sure Fit Products. Having provided counseling to over 2,000 clients, he now focuses on working with select start-up and small businesses.
I live in New Rochelle, New York and was part of the first quarantine after the pandemic hit the United States. I think, because we were first, our neighborhood may have learned to cope slightly better than some other areas. We walk, we talk, we shop, we distance. We wear masks and, in general, we seem to be much more supportive of one another than what seems to be happening elsewhere. People were even helping each other during the power outrage that lasted several days. I am diabetic and three of my neighbors with generators offered to store my insulin. I talk to people from other neighborhoods and, from what I’ve heard, many of them could be coping better with the impact of the pandemic. I’m not referring to the poor and the sick, but people who are still working, but stressed out far too much.
But, how do you improve your coping strategy amidst so much uncertainty and tension? A good place to start is to manage your expectations and focus on the things you have control over. In recent years, the U.S. experienced 9-11 as well as the 2007-2008 economic decline. Both of those events caused short-term disruption and long-term consequences. We are now seeing the same things happening with the pandemic and there are three key pandemic impact areas that I think should be considered as we forge ahead:
1.The most important factor is simply the pandemic itself, which is causing dramatic health, economic, and social consequences that will last through much of 2021, if not longer. There have already been approximately 200,000 deaths in the U.S. and we aren’t even close to a vaccine yet. There’s also been a shift in healthcare with Tele Visits becoming the new norm. Even if a vaccine does become available, healthcare will never be the same. Nursing home protocol, hospital financing, and virtual medical care are among the areas facing significant change. For example, it is even estimated that births in the U.S. will decline by about 500,000 or 10% in the next year.
2.Another major impact will be economic. While much of the economy is slowly returning, industries like entertainment, travel, restaurants, and sports will undergo dramatic change. We have no idea when and how these businesses will return, but they will certainly be quite different from what they once were. For example, it is estimated that there were 600,000 restaurants in the U.S. before the pandemic. At least 20-30% will probably close within a year. Similarly, most forecasters are predicting 6-10% unemployment next year.
Additionally, working from home has become a major social phenomenon that will definitely impact the economy. People have learned that they can stay home and be more productive while having more time for themselves. This is a result of not having to commute, reducing meetings, and eliminating long lunches. Many are estimating that work-from-home could replace 20-40% of office work, especially for the next two years. This will result in several byproducts including a decline in real estate and urban stores. And as more people move to the suburbs, several other markets could dramatically be affected as well.
The greatest impact, however, will most likely be the continued growth of income inequality. The thirteen wealthiest Americans increased their wealth almost $1 trillion dollars since the pandemic started. In contrast, the poor have increased hunger, loss of healthcare, and unemployment (especially among minorities).
3.The third key area is political and many do not want to discuss it because there is too much emotion and uncertainty attached to the subject. However, the election this November will have a dramatic impact on our society. Our lives will be affected drastically based on who is elected—and this applies on a national, state, and local level. Minimally, there could be more diversity and focus on areas like criminal justice, income inequality, health care, and education. While partisan politics will probably increase, it is always important to focus on solutions rather than rhetoric after elections.
Now, how do we deal with all of this pandemic impact when we don’t know the what, when, or how surrounding them? The most important thing you can do is to recognize change and deal with it. Don’t be surprised or stressed out by the changes because they’re not going away. So, consider alternatives and ensure that you relax. Accept that the next several months will be like “flying an airplane while you are building it.” Sure, that might sound scary, but try to shift your thinking. Attempt to approach daunting situations like they’re challenges rather than obstacles.
Accept the inevitable and search out opportunities. E-commerce, delivery, work at home, and tech are all growing. My local pizza parlor added lobster Wednesday night, a friend in advertising is doing yard signs for drive-by parties, drive-in movies are doing well, and other events—like virtual baby showers—are becoming popular. Companies are developing all kinds of programs in addition to Zoom that will make working from home more effective. Embrace your challenges and set your mind on problem solving.
Consider the increased opportunities for risk during this uncertain period. Basically, everything is pretty much up in the air anyway, so what do you have to lose by taking more risk? Additionally, there are lots of opportunities in areas that are permanently affected by the pandemic. Home delivery, virtual technology, and online shopping are all currently booming businesses. Even the gains in the stock market have shifted to new companies like Zoom and Tel-a-Doc.
“How will you ever know whether you’re a flying squirrel if you don’t give it a shot?”
In this rapidly changing environment, you should also do a brief self-assessment to evaluate your status quo and consider potential changes. The purpose should be to better understand challenges and opportunities rather than simply make changes. This review might include looking over your resume, evaluating your employment status, assessing potential changes in your status, education, and living environment. You should also consider what you like about yourself, your job, and your employer.
Extra Credit: Do something nice and maybe even outrageous for yourself. You probably used to spend gobs of money on restaurants, sports, travel, clothes, gas etc. that you aren’t spending now. Consider an extravagant treat for yourself. A special meal, a trip to the gourmet grocery, a health/spa treatment, a new pair of shoes, or a chauffeured car tour could all be nice distractions during this crazy time. (There are limits, however. I passed on a $50,000 chartered trip to California… and that was before meals and hotels…)
While we’re not sure what the new normal will require, we do know many of the opportunities and challenges. Avoid guaranteed failure with obsolete or doomed activities and, instead, embrace innovation, testing, and new paradigms. These cultural changes must include openness, infrastructure, and measurement. And cut yourself some slack and be kind to your neighbors… these are difficult times for us all.
Dr. Bert Shlensky, President of www.startupconnection.net, offers experience, skills, and a team devoted to developing and executing winning strategies. This combination has been the key to client success. We welcome comments, suggestions, and questions. You can write him at: bshlensky@startupconnection.net or call at: 914-632-6977
A compelling book title is fantastic and it may even entice people to pick up your novel, but if the content is sh*t, then what’s the point? You’ll quickly be found out and considered a phony. The same goes for any endeavor: a great idea is swell, but without substance to back it up, it’s just another half-baked plan and soon-to-be failure. In my experience, entrepreneurs are superb at expressing their ideas, passion, and excitement. However, their biggest misstep is neglecting the basics, which make a business successful. A great business idea is swell, but you need to lay the essential groundwork. A common “oops” moment is when an entrepreneur has failed to develop any estimates or parameters to understand their potential sales and profits.
While these obvious mistakes are unsettling, I find that many entrepreneurs are shortsighted when it comes to many basic business requirements. They skip vital steps (perhaps without even realizing they’re doing it), which can really leave holes in a business plan or proposal. You need to lay the essential groundwork.
The following is a list of basic considerations for small business managers. These topics are the essential groundwork of any successful business:
Set personal goals. What are your goals and priorities? And which of those need the most improvement? Remember the saying, “If you don’t know where you are going, any road will get you there.” You need to have a vision and some direction. And, in the middle of a pandemic, simply pausing or surviving might be the best goal.
Don’t be afraid of risk. There are numerous opportunities to take more risk. A great starting place is: Do something instead of nothing. Explore new options, get rid of failing efforts, and try utilizing outside ideas (whether it’s a think tank or hiring new employees with specialized skill sets).
Continue learning. Education is a key element to growing and staying relevant.Utilize books, the Internet, and external resources to make better choices. Pay attention to data, but don’t forget to trust intuition as well. You can also look to other businesses’ failures and successes to better understand your industry and market trends.
Embrace Change. Don’t just talk about change. Take action! Responding to disruptive change requires finding a way to incorporate data, analysis, and pre-existing models while also embracing out-of-the-box thinking and flexibility.
Don’t neglect key elements of success. Operations, customer service, and logistics are just as important as traditional functions.They present huge opportunities for a business to become more efficient and differentiate itself. (Like selling on Amazon or bundling products.)
Understand diversity. Demographics are affected by age, location, socioeconomic status, race, gender, etc. Current events have certainly affected trends relating to racial and female groups. Staying up-to-date on your target consumer and their habits will help inform your decisions. Do you know who your customers are and what demographics they belong to?
Measure and assess. Remember the 80-20 rule, which states that 80% of your sales will come from 20% of your products and/or customers. Are you measuring your sales, key items, and customers?
Know your parameters. As the saying goes, “A chain is only as strong as its weakest link.” Make sure to figure out where your weak links are as well as your strengths.
Relax. You can’t do everything in one day. Pace yourself and remember that there will always be uncertainty and change. Stay focused and take it one day at a time.
Always be willing to improve. What are your biggest challenges? Where are you overlooking potential opportunities? In what areas could you do better? Don’t be afraid to ask yourself, “How am I doing?” And then answer honestly.
People often hear “back to basics” and think, “That doesn’t apply to me. I’ve been doing this for years!” But, that mentality is detrimental. Performing a check-in is not regression. In fact, successful people frequently use a “back to basics” approach to keep themselves sharp and focused. Lay the essential groundwork. Fundamentals are important; they set us up for greater achievements.
Yoga is a great example: If you haven’t mastered the basic yoga pose, you won’t be moving on to that handstand or anything else more advanced. Yogis often perform check-ins by doing foundational poses to reset and strengthen the core of their practice. This approach is beneficial for everything we do—from relationships to business to athletics. An example would be checking in with a partner and doing the consistent work required to keep the foundation of your relationship strong. Or, it could mean reevaluating your business goals and analyzing your process to ensure you’re staying on track and heading in the direction you’d envisioned. In both cases, however, the benefits of going “back to basics” once in awhile can definitely help keep you focused and headed for success.
Contact us for a FREE evaluation and get an alternative perspective on your business. We’d love to help you identify ways to adapt to current trends. No one has time for BS—so we’ll cut straight to the point and answer any questions you have. Reach us at:
Dr. Bert Shlensky, President of StartupConnection.net, has an MBA and PhD from the Sloan School of Management at M.I.T. He served as the President of WestPoint Pepperell’s apparel fabrics business & President and CEO of Sure Fit Products. More than 2,000 clients have benefitted from his business acumen over the course of his long career. He now focuses on working with select startups and small businesses. Please visit our website: https://www.startupconnection.net/ for more information.
When we expect a certain level of quality from ourselves, we tend to work harder to meet those expectations. If we don’t believe we’re capable of achieving greatness, we probably won’t. In other words, we perform to the standards expect from ourselves. We must turn expectations into probable results.
My favorite musical has always been My Fair Lady because of the Pygmalion effect, which infers that having positive expectations leads to enhanced performance, which results in a higher probability of success. The implication is that confidence and energy will increase if we believe in ourselves. On the other hand, a negative self-perception results in a significantly lower chance of succeeding. What we think we’re capable of, therefore, basically becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy. We can turn expectations into probable results.
It’s important to attribute this effect to human behavior rather than science. For example, in a coin flip, the odds of getting “heads or tails” will not change even if you’re full of hope and positive thinking. Similarly, expectations and attitude can help when it comes to things like sports. So, a team might play better if they believe in themselves (the movie Major League is a great and hilarious example of this). BUT, talent, practice, and consistency also play important roles in success—so positivity can’t guarantee that a lousy team will win a championship.
Additionally, if you enjoy what you’re doing, you also have a higher probability of success.
So, when we discuss “projections,” it’s important that expectations and probability (how likely it is that something will happen) are both taken into consideration. For example, when flipping a coin, the probability of getting “heads” is 50 percent. However, the probability of winning the lottery is 1 out of millions. This illustrates how probability is greatly affected by percentage, BUT it is also affected by volatility and variance. For instance, the pandemic is creating highly uncertain and volatile circumstances, which makes it nearly impossible to accurately forecast anything.
Despite this, it is my opinion that dubious circumstances can create opportunities if we remain patient and seek alternative solutions. For example, many restaurants are experiencing immense difficulties, but pizza parlors seem to be thriving. Perhaps the takeaway here is that restaurants should look into cooking and preparing family-style meals to deliver. Another option would be to partner with delivery services like Uber Eats or Postmates, if they haven’t already. At some unknown point, we will go back to attending sporting events, concerts, eating out, and traveling, but until then, we must shift our focus to addressing the needs of the time. That might mean expanding your work-from-home options or pivoting to a different target audience—in other words: it will take work, but that’s business.
Now, in order to effectively utilize expectations and probability, it’s imperative to develop, test, measure and adapt different approaches. Many plans, forecasts, and proposals are done in a static format with one dimensional analysis and results. Those are usually all wrong because we live in a more dynamic and interactive world. For example, branding, marketing, pricing, and operations must all be assessed together rather than viewed separately as isolated activities. Similarly, businesses need to have alternatives plans in place and ready to go so they can adapt quickly. Mistakes will occur. So what? Steve Jobs was fired, Thomas Edison tested thousands of light bulbs before succeeding, and Walt Disney’s editor told him that he “lacked imagination and had no good ideas.”
So how do you use expectations to create positive outcome?
When it comes to the rapid changes that occur constantly in our society and environment, we are frequently afraid of risk. The Internet, digital technology, mobile phones, Google, and Amazon are all examples of technology that is transforming our lives. Therefore, relying on old methods or a “we’ve always done it that way” mentality may actually be riskier than making a change.
Similarly, business analysis, big data, the cloud, and other management tools are great resources to mitigate risk. I’ve done a lot of work testing different pricing strategies to improve performance, especially on the Internet. You can’t just stick with what used to work and, therefore, your expectations must include the assumption that you will need to adapt frequently.
Furthermore, your probability of success increases when your expectations include actionable goals:
If you expect big results, consider taking bigger risks.
If you expect accuracy, focus on obtaining better data and improving your testing, analysis, and measurement tools.
If you expect to keep up with competitors, include innovation and hire exceptional people (this might involve tolerating some “deviant” behavior from employees, but that’s often a side effect of utilizing out-of-the-box thinkers).
If you expect long-term success, create an open company culture that embraces diversity, change, collaboration, communication, and pushes boundaries.
If you expect greatness from your staff, empower them to do their jobs to the best of their abilities. This requires hiring and training good people, trusting them and giving them the authority, they need to perform effectively, and understanding that they will sometimes make mistakes.
If you expect to address and solve problems, develop reliable resources outside of your company. Don’t utilize friends and family who won’t tell you the truth in order to spare your feelings or who may not even understand your business’ needs. Visit places like Google, your library, and incubators for networking opportunities.
If you expect to increase profit, focus more attention on the process of decision-making. How good is the information you’re using, what are the consequences of possible mistakes, and how much risk can you afford? With the exception of issues like safety, I think we can all afford more risk. We’re generally overly concerned with the consequences of mistakes and we lose sight of the potential gains.
If you want to succeed, believe in yourself. Because if you don’t, why should anyone else? You need to turn expectations into probable results.
I have learned that traditional and detailed startup recommendations (like planning and budgeting) are not as important as we previously thought. Instead, a continuous process of analyzing, measuring, and adapting to ever-changing parameters, programs, markets, and risks has a much higher probability of success. Finally, expect greatness from yourself. Learn to turn expectations into probable results. Success requires positive thinking and high expectations. If you truly believe in something, you’ll work tirelessly to make sure it’s successful. So, why can’t that something be you?
Please visit our website www.startupconection.net to book a Free Session in which we can help you develop an action plan that will evaluate potential and risk. We always discuss process, expected outcomes, and cost before you make any commitment.
Dr. Bert Shlensky, president of Startup Connection, prides himself on his ability to define what is unique about each and every business. He works closely with individuals to develop a personalized approach that targets specific areas of concern and offers solutions based on his 40+ years of experience. His expert team will address your particular needs while working to save you time and money.
Do you ever feel like you’re spreading yourself too thin across too many endeavors? It’s a common occurrence among ambitious people trying to achieve excellence. There’s this notion that we can either be adequate at several things or excellent at one (maybe two). There is substance to this idea: Think of Olympic athletes—they train all day, every day striving to be the very best at what they do. Undoubtedly, this comes with many sacrifices, but no one can argue that they are not exceptional at what they do.
We live in a society where unsolicited advice is shoved at us day in and day out. This comes in the form of advertisements, social media posts, news articles, friends/family, etc. These opinions include recommendations to change this or that, be flexible, be more analytical, more inclusive, more supportive, and so on and so on. While these all seem like noble endeavors, are we spending enough time attempting to truly do them right? Are we dedicated to putting in the work necessary to ensure our efforts make a difference?
Some examples:
Everyone says rely on science and data. However, we frequently advocate conclusions without validating the assumptions. For instance, remote education has become increasingly popular. For the most part, however, eLearning does not properly address the need for one-on-one contact especially among children with special needs.
Organizational structures, procedures, and communication are being challenged because of antiquated practices. However, new approaches may not be adequately researched, tested, or measured. Nearly every retailer that is in bankruptcy or consolidating (such as Penny’s or Hertz) has been advocating new strategies and regularly changing chief executives for years, but with dismal results.
We quickly fall in love with innovation especially when it comes to technology and services (think Airbnb and Uber). Yet, many of these efforts lose millions of dollars and will never actually be profitable. WeWwork and Gilt are notable current examples.
We need a shift in perspective regarding change, execution, and excellence. The following are some specific instances where organizations simply need to better understand their new environment and work to more effectively execute fundamental change:
Demographics are a critical factor for most businesses. The world is simply getting older and more ethnically diverse. A critical issue that affects excellence is: Do you understand your target audience? This includes all of the nuanced social characteristics that go along with it. For example, if your product is geared toward people under the age of 25 and you don’t have a website or online presence, you do not have a clear grasp on the buying habits of your demographic.
Organizations that don’t understand and use the digital transformation need to change, rather than just execute. Opportunities like the cloud, Google, internet, CRM systems, digital phones, apps, etc. are simply changing the processes, costs, and marketing of businesses. Amazon and other online retailers will continue to revolutionize—requiring traditional brick and mortar stores to react and adapt. Similarly, companies like Uber and Airbnb are significantly transforming their industries and will continue to do so.
In the current state of the world, businesses are and will continue to be subjected to radical and continuous change. In order to survive such a turbulent climate, they need to build mechanisms into their processes that can adapt quickly. As we prepare to face ongoing uncertainty and instability, we must focus on changing and simplifying processes in order to reduce risk. Therefore, strategies such as pivoting and “develop/test/measure/adapt” need to be built into our organizations.
Despite the fact that we consistently praise excellence, we frequently ignore opportunities to pursue it and actually do things better. Some simple ways to improve performance and incorporate excellence into your business practices include:
Review how and why you do things the way you do them. Eliminate ineffective practices from our organizations. Some practices may be outdated or just flat out not working.
Focus on customer service. Many companies are devoting new efforts to improve this department. However, these efforts are limited without a culture to reinforce them. Consider this: Do companies really care about their customers and get excited when a customer has a great experience? Many companies treat their customers and employees like expendable pieces of the machine. A critical element of culture is trusting employees and staff. This requires hiring and training good people, giving them the authority they need to do their jobs well, and understanding that they will make mistakes at times—mistakes that need constructive correction and not just reprimand.
Consider pricing adjustments. Pricing is not a dirty word and there are numerous tools to improve results without deteriorating your brand. Packaging efforts like bundling and unbundling, quantities, timing, quality, the Internet, and service are all elements that should be part of pricing strategies. For example, Costco and Four Seasons Hotels follow quite different, but successful value strategies.
Analyze and analyze some more. All of the aforementioned efforts will be even more successful the more open and analytical your organization is. Businesses need to understand their environment, review their successes and failures, listen to new ideas, and be willing to accept the truth even when it’s not what you want to hear.
Remember that business is about people. They are your most important assets. Hire excellent people and then listen to them and reward their behavior. A simple please, thanks, and “How are you?” go a long way. Kindness and appreciation are incredibly easy and efficacious efforts.
When it comes to achieving excellence, remember to evaluate situations and determine the appropriate strategy. Assumptions, efforts, process, and results are greatly improved with analysis. Additionally, evaluating alternatives can also help build support for any processes that are executed.
At the end of the day, keep in mind that you’re only one person and you can’t do everything. And if you try, as mentioned earlier, you’ll probably only achieve mediocre results. So, in your pursuit of excellence, remember that we each have limited financial and human resources. Prioritize and learn to focus on the areas where you can have the greatest impact and the aspects of your business that customers really care about. Training always sounds good, but it frequently fails to achieve its goals. Instead, consider hiring people who can specialize in the areas where you may be lacking and delegate tasks in such a way that will encourage excellence across the board. Finally, when it comes to matters of safety, health, social values, and civil rights, we must incorporate these issues into our values and efforts so as to facilitate excellence and not impede it.
Dr. Bert Shlensky, president of Startup Connection, prides himself on his ability to define what is unique about each and every business. He works closely with individuals to develop a personalized approach that targets specific areas of concern and offers solutions based on his 40+ years of experience. His expert team will address your particular needs while working to save you time and money. Check out his books for the business entrepreneur: Marketing Plan for Startups & Small Business and Passion & Reality for Business Success. Both are available at www.startupconnection.net.
When you want to stand out, reach out to Bert for the tools that will build your “sticky” brand. My focus is on understanding and analyzing your dilemmas and challenges, so your company becomes profitable faster.
Call (914) 632-6977 or email me at bshlensky@startupconnection.net. Don’t leave without signing up for our useful free eBook!
Feeling stumped or overwhelmed? Contact Bert at (914) 632-6977 or Email to start the process. Thanks!
