The Old Red Shirt

It's red. It's a pullover. It never needs ironing. I can throw it on and do what needs to be done. I use it for lounging around watching television or for reading a book in my favorite chair. It doesn't matter if I spill on it cause it's already stained. I can do yard work in it or indoor projects. It's great for raking leaves or trimming branches or sawing wood. I've even dared painting while wearing it. (There's a eggshell white stain on the back of the left arm for proof.) It may be cliche, but it's still true. That's how cliches become cliche.

After going to my closet for years (y-e-a-r-s) to find my favorite red microfiber waiting for me as a default fashion item, I couldn't find it. Carefully I moved every hanger thinking that perhaps I had overlooked it. I emptied out the laundry hamper. I looked in every drawer. This particular day required my comfortable red shirt. There was too much to do that had to be done and this shirt reassured me that I could get it all done. Why doesn't Google have a solution for this?

My wife is my GPS for things I can't find. But I could not find her. Someone needs to invent a GPS to find GPS devices. A mild panic started to seize me but before giving in I hurried to the laundry room. The red shirt was not in the washing machine. It wasn't in the dryer.

OK, I was out of options. The clock was ticking and I had to get my chores done. Not finding my shirt was not helping me.

Don't lecture me that it's just a shirt and that I have other perfectly good stained worn shirts to wear. This is psychological. It ventures into an area of my mind where reason is suspended. That same area of the brain that I rely on when deciding whether to go for the next slice of pizza or not.

Change is not comfortable. 
Change is not comfortable especially when it comes to changing the way we've always done things around here. We've always done sales like this. We've always handled customers this way. We've always marketed to these people. We've been at this for y-e-a-r-s so don't think we don't know what we're doing.

Top performers in any area of life know the value of change. They are comfortable with change. They are comfortable with being uncomfortable. And as a result these top performers are always willing to take another look at being more effective, more efficient, more productive, more profitable and more strategic. Change is about optimization.

Just back away from the red shirt.
In order to leave behind the way-we've-always-done-it mindset and embrace change for a better tomorrow, you need to frequently ask yourself questions like these:

• What is the best use of my time, talent, and treasure?
• What resources am I not utilizing to its fullest potential?
• How can I maximize output (returns) and minimize input?
• What strategies will give me supersized results?
• What processes are underperforming?
• What relationships can I better leverage?
• What other business can provide me with best practices that I can implement?
• What opportunities am I missing?
• What customer feedback should I be addressing first?

"That shirt is gone."
My wife got tired of seeing it and gave it to Good Will. She won't tell me which one. I now have a blue and gray plaid button down with a fleece lining. It fits better. She says I look better. That in itself is a big improvement. Maybe change is not the monster I thought it was.

"Now let's go take a second look at your closet."

Somehow I know that there is a lesson in here for my business.

______________________

Which one of your employees has an idea of how a process can be improved? How will you find out?

What no-cost solution can you implement to increase customer retention?

Who do you know that can keep you focused on key questions that result in business improvement?

Send me an email: A.Furst@theGrowthCoach.com