The real problem with complaints

The problem with complaints from customers is not what the compaint is about.  It doesn’t matter what it is about or who is compaining and not happy.

The problem in the digital age is that you have a complaint!

It does not matter if the customer is right or wrong.  It does not matter if you missed making them happy by a little or a lot.  You arguing, denying, negotiating, or blaming someone else is NOT going to help.

The problem is you have a compaint. 

You did not prevent the complaint in this case.  Working to prevent them is an important job.

Listen. Apologize Sincerely.  Take action to make the customer happy.

When a Leader Loses Influence

If a leader loses the listening or credibility of those he leads, he has no ability to positively influence anymore.

People will avoid, tolerate, and ignore him.

Then, it’s over.

Team members know that great leaders are clear, consistent, fair, and humble, and are there for the team, and the goals at the same time.  

"Make me feel important"

Want to get the most out of your team members (because they want to) and have them stay?

Pretend each of your employees has a sign around their neck that says “Make me feel important”.

Then, make them feel important at your company.

A REALLY great business takes a long time.

Early death is not a sustainable business model. 

Take care of yourself.

Teamwork is important

When the National Transportation Safety Board analyzed major flight accidents it found that 73% of them occurred on the first day of a flight crew working together.

When a team has worked together for a long time, they operate more efficiently with less mistakes and better outcomes. They have routines long understood and optimized by everyone involved, with no surprises.

This is why I don’t like to lose people.  I like people to stay for a long time.  They get better and learn more, and work better with their teammates.

What is your average tenure?  At my oldest company which I founded in 1987 with 250 employees, the average tenure is 6.7 years.  There is high trust, high efficiency, and high quality.

Go ahead and measure yours.  If it’s low, you might understand why people make mistakes, why they need lots of training and management, and why they don’t work as well together as you’d like.

Make a comment with the orange button!

Trajectory

“An object in motion tends to remain in motion until acted on by an outside force.”

If you don’t do anything to change it, where is the trajectory of your business taking it in 2024?

What do you need to do to get to where you want to be?

Curtains open…

As a leader, you don’t have to be at your best all the time, only when it really matters.

When you have a big presentation – it matters.

I find that the best thing I can do is to get my head and energy straight.  Preparation is important, but that is something you do days beforehand.  In the 36 hours before, you get rest, eat well, and get centered.  Don’t cram the notes or scripts.  Don’t try to remember everything you want to say.  Instead, connect with WHY you are saying it. 

What you are saying is important, but how you are saying and who you are being while you are saying it are just as important.  Nobody will respond well to a great message delivered by a tired and clouded leader. 

Have great energy and clarity and be authentic and relaxed, while being enthusiastic.  When you are, the right words will come.

If you have to work more than 50 hours a week, you are doing it wrong.

This is the classic problem for the entrepreneur.  You start something that you want to make your life better, and it swallows you up and makes your life worse.

You start as the only employee.  Then you have a few helpers.  You are fighting for survival.  You find that if you work twice as many hours it can make a difference.  And this lesson will kill you in the long run.

As you grow you keep this mentality – working all the time.  Your family and fun and health all suffer.  “It will be better once we ____________” you tell yourself.  That day hasn’t come yet.  There will always be another hill to climb.

The solution?  Empower others to take parts of your job.  People are your way out.  Let them help you.  Can’t afford people?  Raise your prices.  Can’t raise your prices?  Add value so you can.

Find a workable model and get your butt home by 6:00 because selling your time for money is not what this is about.  It’s about having a business that works without you (if necessary); if you didn’t show up, everything is going well.

Working hard is great – I highly recommend it.  Working long?  Well, sometimes – but that is mostly a sign you are doing it wrong.  You have to cut down the amount of things YOU do. 

You have to teach others how to do “IT”, and become a leader.  

Can you envision 30 years from now?

People ask me – “Did you envision all this when you started?”  

Answer – “No.  It would have been impossible.”

Besides, if someone told me all the work I’d have to do back then, it would have been too daunting and I probably wouldn’t have believed in it and would not have tried.

Your business journey is like driving at night.  You can only see as far as your headlights.  But if you drive that far, you can see farther.  Keep doing that.

Learn from your actions.  The world is giving you feedback on what works and what doesn’t every day.  Pay attention. Make adjustments and decisions.  Each one is a fork in your journey.  

You can’t plan long-term.  There are so many assumptions you make when you do that, and if one os wrong, it throws off the whole thing.  You can have a general idea about what it will look like long term, but have to be clear about what you are trying to accomplish now so you can tell your team and take action on it.  

As you go, you will realize what needs to be amended, what needs to be dropped, and what things you learned that can be leveraged into something new.  Opportunities will come along.  

You can’t accomplish great things in one big effort.  There are steps and stages and chapters that unfold with continued effort, creativity, learning, and of course, perseverance.

I think in weeks and months, and the years take care of themselves.

Keep driving.

The Short Term Thinking Disease

If you limit yourself to things that can be accomplished in a few years, you limit the height of your accomplishment – and kill exponential growth down the road.

Life is long.  You have to do something each day.

Why not see how far you can go with long-term time horizons and a sense of daily urgency with your action, and realize the awesome power of compound interest over long periods of time?

This is your chance…and you only get one.