Hey, The Needle’s Stuck

by Dr. Michael Hudson · Leave a comment
Filed under: Define Solutions, Generate Ideas, Get Results, Lead People, Solve Problems, Take Action

OK, it’s an old reference, but for those of us who grew up with turntables, the phrase is a familiar one.  For those who missed that era, here’s the deal…

When you played a record and it got a scratch on it or a piece of dust in the groove, as the turntable rotated, the needle would skip across a section of the record.  Sometimes the record would essentially become stuck and play the same note over and over until someone gave the needle a nudge and got it back on track.

While I am not suggesting that getting things back on track in the economy is as simple as giving the record needle a nudge, I do think it’s time we all stop accepting the skipping and start taking action to change the tune.

Here are three specific thoughts to consider:

1. Stop saying it’s a bad economy, a tough economy, or a difficult economy. It is, after all, the only economy we have, and it has periodic cycles.  The challenges of today are different and they demand more from business leaders.  But let’s stop talking about how bad it is and start doing something about it.  Solutions will not come from shared agreement on how tough things are, but rather from driven people who decide to look for ways to grow their businesses in spite of what others are talking about.

2. Change the channel the next time you hear another ‘how bad it is’ story. The reality is that we become what we think about.  The more negative stories you read, hear, and watch, the more you begin to see the negative side of things.  That stifles creativity and innovation, makes you over think instead of act, and changes your perspective to create a self-fulfilling prophecy where you achieve less than you could if you thought differently.  During the recession in the early nineties an entrepreneur told me that his company “chose not to participate.”  When I asked how they did it he replied “we just change the channel and wrote our own story.”  Why not give that a try in your business?

3. Seize the moment and find ways to do everything better. Challenges motivate people to act in ways that they wouldn’t otherwise act.  Since we are in a time of change, why not invest your time and energy in finding better ways to do the things that you do in your business.  Identify the small changes that will create incremental positive impacts and implement them.  Get your team out of its comfort zone and explore options for really significant innovations and get to work on them.  The teachable moment about the need to do things differently has arrived and it is time to capture it!

The list could go on, but the point has been made.  The needle is stuck on the same message every moment of every day.  The phrases ‘bad economy,’ ‘tough economy,’ and ‘in this economy’ have become de facto excuses for doing nothing.  But that is a choice that is beginning to look and feel a lot like lemmings following their peers off a cliff.

Here’s a better choice you can make:  Choose to move the stuck needle and get started putting our business on the pathway to success by figuring out solutions and taking immediate action.

Enough said.

What are your thoughts?  What action step can you take to start changing your little corner of the economy?  When will you do it?

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Here’s A Good Question to Ask Yourself

by Dr. Michael Hudson · Leave a comment
Filed under: Define Solutions, Generate Ideas, Get Results, Solve Problems, Take Action

Many small business owners, entrepreneurs, and independent professionals suffer from the same problem.  Because they lead their business and have limited (or in many case no) staff, there is no one whom they can bounce ideas off of or turn to for advice.

The result is that when faced with difficult decisions or moving into new areas of thought, they can tend to jump too quickly to a decision.

It’s a natural (and logical) process–they are programmed to get things done, they want to do instead of debate, and they don’t want to waste time and end up back at the same point where they started.

But there is an inherent danger in this approach.

Despite my core belief that the cost of no decision almost always outweighs the cost of a bad decision made at the right time, my experience tells me that there are times when small business leaders just need to step back, take more time, and gather more input before making a decision.

It is a difficult thing to do and it often feels like it goes against everything you believe in, and that’s the reason you need a tool to help you do it.

The good news is that there is a very simple tool you can use that works every time.

All you need to do is to ask yourself this question and answer it honestly: If someone else told you what they were preparing to do and how they reached the decision, would you tell them that they had done the necessary work and were ready to take action?

If you can honestly answer with an enthusiastic “Yes,” then go ahead and take the action.  But if the answer is no, probe your mind a bit and identify the reasons you are saying “No.”  Then take action to get the information, advice, insight, or support that you need to move you to the place where you can say “Yes.”

A Word of Caution: This is one of those things that feels easy to do, but is not.  It takes a lot of fortitude to ask and honestly answer the above question.  But if you can train yourself to do it, you will make better decisions and create more powerful results.  Try it and see for yourself.

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Stop Majoring in Minor Things

by Dr. Michael Hudson · Leave a comment
Filed under: Define Solutions, Get Results, Lead People, Manage Projects, Solve Problems, Take Action, Think Strategically

Consider this a quick reminder of something that you already know, but that we all sometimes seem to forget:  Real, meaningful, measurable progress can be achieved only when you let go of the minor things and focus on the major things.

Here’s how to put this idea to work today, and every day:

1. Track your activities and analyze how you are investing your time each day. If more than 30% of your time is being spent on things that have little impact on the big picture vision you are pursuing, or on things that others could easily do (if they even need to be done), then reallocate your effort to keep your focus on doing the things that matter.  Focus is the secret sauce that produces the most valuablel results.

2. Examine your recent decisions with an eye on whether they were made quickly enough, whether the right people were involved, and whether there is any way that you could have improved the process. Cycling multiple e-mails among several people about something trivial is never a good use of anyone’s time, but it happens with alarming regularity. Stay focused on the process and remember that the cost of no decision (or a slow decision) almost always outweighs the cost of a wrong decision made quickly (and corrected later).

3. Engage your team, your colleagues, your associates, and even your family in conversation about what you can do to help them be more effective in getting the things done that matter to them. They’ll realize that you see this as important, and even if they don’t ask you the same question you will be sharing your experiences and your perspective, which will lead to natural changes in everyone’s behavior that help keep you on track.

Enough said.  I share this today because across the past two weeks too much of my time (and the time of several others) has been lost to minor things that could have been much better handled.  All of the people involved share the blame, and I need to right the course of the ship if my June goals are going to be achieved before the end of the month.

How’s your progress going on your June goals?  Please post a comment and share your insights and observations!

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Improve Your Impact by Asking the Simple Questions First

by Dr. Michael Hudson · Leave a comment
Filed under: Blog

My experience working with growing businesses for the past 25 years has shown me one thing–the best solutions are discovered by those who think differently about the problem.

The simple reality is that people with fresh perspectives often see things that more experienced people tend to overlook.  It’s not because they are smarter or better at problem solving.  It is because they ask different questions.

Consider the old story about the delivery truck that was stuck under the bridge.  Tow trucks were called, engineering experts were summoned, and the problem was tackled by people with years of experience removing vehicles from difficult situations.

But nothing that they tried worked.

Then along came a young boy walking home from the store with his mother.  The lad asked: “Why don’t they just let the air out of the tires?”

Aha!  A simple, elegant, and practical solution that was far less complicated than anything being suggested by the knowledgeable and experienced people on the scene.

The lesson:  Always ask the simplest question first when you are confronted with a problem. Think about how someone with no knowledge of the situation would see the problem, adopt a different perspective, look for the uncomplicated answer…it will often work, and you’ll save a lot of time, money, and aggravation.

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Every Business Owner Needs Somebody Who Calls You on Your Stuff

by Dr. Michael Hudson · Leave a comment
Filed under: Define Solutions, Get Results, Lead People, Solve Problems, Take Action

No matter how or when it happens, it is seldom a pleasant experience.

But if you step back for a moment and recognize the favor the person has done for you, you quickly realize that the proper response is a genuine “Thank you,” even though that probably is not the first phrase that came to your mind.

The simple fact is that at times every small business owner, entrepreneur, and independent professional has done it.  They’ve reached a point where something that they have not done is starting to create real pain, discomfort, or loss in their business.

If they are lucky, there is someone in their life who is paying attention and listening closely to all of the excuses, laments, and reasons they give for why the thing that needs to be done has not been done.  Often it’s time pressure, sometimes it’s a lack of money, and at other times it is some well thought-out rationale–but at its heart it is an excuse, nothing more, nothing less.

It is at those times that every business owner needs someone who calls you on your stuff. Someone who will, with a caring and compassionate heart, point out that your explanations are crap and that you need to step up and take ownership of the situation–either do it yourself, find someone else to do it, or stop using the fact that whatever it is hasn’t been done as the reason why something else isn’t getting done.

There is nothing more valuable than the person who cares enough to be brutally honest. The person who reminds you of the reality that you already knew but were trying to avoid or cover up.  The person who symbolically hits you on the side of the head and wakes you up in a way that makes your next step obvious, and for some reason much easier than it seemed before they called you on whatever it was they called you on.

If you don’t have someone like this in your life, find someone–even if you have to hire them as a business (or personal) coach.  Nothing is more valuable, and nothing leads to bigger results than having someone confront you with the reality that you have been avoiding.

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Must Read: Linchpin by Seth Godin

by Dr. Michael Hudson · Leave a comment
Filed under: Build Business, Communicate Clearly, Define Solutions, Expand Market, Generate Ideas, Get Results, Increase Sales, Lead People, Manage Projects, Serve Customers, Solve Problems, Take Action, Think Strategically

The recent release of Seth Godin’s bestseller Linchpin in paperback was accompanied by an opportunity that every business owner, entrepreneur, independent professional, and thinking person should pursue.

Here’s the deal.

In a blog post last week announcing the release of the paperback edition, Godin offered free access to an awesome video created from an audio of a speech he gave last year to anyone who buys the paperback edition of the book.

It’s one of the best investments you’ll make this year.  You get a great book and access to an amazing  4-part video that will stimulate your thinking, while also showing you the power of motion graphics to tell a story (even if they do at times “run amok” as is stated on the video viewing page).

Trust me.  This is a book you want to read and a video you need to watch if you are serious about creating long term success.

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Relationship Building 101

by Dr. Michael Hudson · Leave a comment
Filed under: Business Builder Tip, Communicate Clearly, Get Results, Serve Customers

The new world of social media has (forever?) changed the way we interact with prospects, customers, and colleagues.  But the ease of communicating is leading many business owners to make a critical mistake:  forgetting the basics of relationship development.

Consider these two examples:

Person A connects and immediately sends you a message sharing their mini-treatise on the wonders of their product or service with a link and “suggestion” that you buy it or try it.

Person B connects and immediately sends you a message that thanks you for the connection and asks a simple question such as “What do you like to do for fun?” or “Tell me about your business.” or (my favorite) “How can I help you today?”

It is no doubt obvious which person makes the better impression, and which one has the best chance of ultimately doing business with their new friend.

Which one are you?

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Lying is Not A Business Building Strategy

by Dr. Michael Hudson · 4 Comments
Filed under: Communicate Clearly, Increase Sales, Serve Customers

Why do so many people who call me on the phone lie to me?

It’s happened three times this afternoon.

The phone rings, I answer, and the person on the other end asks to speak with someone who is in charge of some specific area of the business.

When I let them know that they are speaking that person, they say that are from some company that is either known by a set of initials that I have never heard of, or they some name that they pronounce so fast that I don’t have a chance of understanding it.

Then one of two things happen:

1. They launch directly into their script and don’t take a breath until they think they have me enthralled by their story, or

2. They tell me why they are calling in a sentence or two.

When there is a pause, my response is usually that I am not interested in that particular product or service right now, and that’s when they always lie to me by saying that “this is not a sales call.”

Really?

You think I am that stupid.

You think I believe you just called someone you don’t know who is responsible for some specific function at a business whose name you mispronounced because you just wanted to talk.

More important, do you really think this is a way to get business from anyone?

Enough said.

If you’re ever tempted to do this, don’t.

Lying is not a business building strategy!

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Leverage the Amazing Power of Threes

by Dr. Michael Hudson · 2 Comments
Filed under: Define Solutions, Generate Ideas, Get Results, Solve Problems, Take Action, Think Strategically

There is something instinctual about groupings of three.  Whether it’s three options, three similar things, or three ways to look at a problem, our minds are drawn to groups of three.

Here’s what this means for your business:

  1. Customers they will become more engaged when you provide them with three options.
  2. Arguments will be more convincing when you outline three alternatives.
  3. Decisions will reveal themselves when you consider three perspectives–the two extremes and a mid-point.
  4. Presentations will be more memorable when you build them around three main points.
  5. Ideas will be easier to generate when you look for three ways to do something, instead of just one right way.

The list could go on, but the point has been made.  There is a magic in groupings of three that can be easily leveraged to improve your success in many areas.

Give it a try.  It works!

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An Interesting Perspective on Business Strategy

by Dr. Michael Hudson · 2 Comments
Filed under: Build Business, Define Solutions, Generate Ideas, Solve Problems, Think Strategically

In my work with growing businesses I am often called upon to facilitate planning sessions to define the future of the business.  My approach in these sessions focuses on creating a future that goes beyond what is currently thought possible–to consider what could be and then work backwards to define how to make it a reality.

The concept was revealed in the book The Merlin Factor by author Charles E. Smith, Ph.D.  Smith’s most recent book, Navigating from the Future takes his concepts a bit further and makes them practical for business leaders.  Watch this video interview to learn more about the concept and how you might apply it to your business.

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What do you think?  Would you create a stronger, more successful business if you looked into the future and decided what was possible, then worked back to figure out how to get there?

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