Some people love you when you are struggling…

Some people love you when you are struggling. 

But when you start doing well, they don’t like it.  They turn on you.  They talk you down when you aren’t around.  

This has everything to do with them, not you.  Your success is making them look bad and they don’t like it.

You can’t fix this in someone else.  Just get them out of your life.  They’ll talk…ignore them.  

Keep getting better.

You can't make a good deal with a bad guy.

If someone has poor character and can’t be trusted, do not do business with them, and do not have them on your team.

I can tell you lots of stories…

If someone is not with you and for you, then you can be with them and for them all you want – but you will regret it. 

Do not deal with people who are not trustworthy.  

Numbers as a percentage of income

When you look at your Income Statement each month, be sure that your accountant puts the % of income for each expense.  Take a look.

Pick three major expenses and see if you can dig in and figure out if you can lower them as a percentage of income.  When I say “dig in”, you can look at invoices, ask questions, look at all the expenses in the category, see where the product went or how effective the employees are that represent that expense, etc.

Of course, if your income goes up and down month to month and the expense stays the same, then the expense as a percentage will go up and down.

Make friends with the numbers.  They are waiting for you to notice them!

Numbers are a primary feedback loop

Do you know your numbers?

Do you study your financials and know what each number represents?

Do you even get accurate Income Statements (aka P&L statements) and Balance Sheets on a timely basis each month?

Can you make a connection between actions and behaviors and the numbers?

Can you then adjust those actions and behaviors to produce better numbers?

Are your salespeople competent and confident?

Customers like to buy from competent and confident salespeople.

Are your salespeople competent and confident?

When was the last time you had them do a presentation for/to you?

"Overnight successes"

The baby bird hatches from the egg and the media reports an overnight success. 

We recognize and celebrate the hatch.  But building a business takes a lot of hard work, day in and day out, thousands of problems solved correctly or lessons learned.  

It’s a journey.  Learn to love the daily work, and keep your eye on the horizon.

Capitalism vs Socialism

“The inherent vice of capitalism is the unequal sharing of blessings.  The inherent virtue of Socialism is the equal sharing of misery.” – Winston Churchill

Socialism seeks to take from those who produce and have, to give to those who do not produce and don’t have.  It takes away the incentive to produce from both sides and reduces the total effort and results produced.

Capitalism gives an incentive to produce, as the fruits of labor and effort can be kept by an individual.  It must have property rights, laws to protect against misdeeds and malice, some reasonable level of regulation, sound money, and personal freedom.

History and current-day examples are full of evidence – capitalism has lifted billions out of poverty.  Socialism (and government-controlled economies) remove freedom and don’t work, and its close relatives communism and dictatorships are disasters.  

I’ll stand for capitalism.  How about you?

Carrying a contagion

Recently I went through a company and heard three different people independently say the same thing – “People are tight with the money right now.”

They got the idea from each other, and they keep talking about it – using it as an excuse for why things are the way they are.

The reality is it was an excuse.  

If anything, things were the way they were because “they BELIEVED people were tight with the money right now”.

Oddly enough a couple of salesmen had great weeks the next week.  I guess the people out there decided things were good again…lol.

It’s not about THE economy – it’s about YOUR economy – and you make that.

Shut off negative voices from wherever they may come, and go get it!

Clarity

A leader has to be clear about where they are going and how they are going to get their team there.

It’s easier to be clear on a simple plan.  

Come to an agreement with yourself.

Get clear, and then get everyone else clear.

…and what would they start doing?

If a leader who was better than you showed up to replace you, what would they start doing right away?