New Business Development – Page 16

Increasing Efficiency At The Expense Of Customer Experience

I recently took
a MSC cruise.

EVERY meal in the dining room
was served cold.

Why?

Because waitstaff waited
until every meal in their section
was ready
before picking it up
from the kitchen.

Yes, this improved efficiency.
Fewer trips had to be taken
to the kitchen
which meant
fewer waitstaff were needed.

But it decreased
the guest experience
so much
I would never recommend
MSC cruises to anyone.

Increasing efficiency
is great.
But don’t increase efficiency
at the expense
of customer experience.

Warning Is Caring

Most people don’t want to
be warned
about issues or danger.

They don’t like being warned
and they hate the warner
for warning them.

I know this
and I’ve reached
the stage of my life
where I keep my warnings
to myself
…mostly.

As long as it doesn’t
directly impact me,
I let people
do dumbness.

If I warn you,
it means I care about you.

It means I’m willing
to risk
the hate
so you aren’t harmed.

View warnings
as an expression of caring.

Take Advantage Of Government Programs

We installed solar power
and a heat pump
and it was all paid for
through government programs.

You read that correctly.
It was free
to us.

I went to university
on a full scholarship
(it paid for everything
including room and board)
given by a government-funded program.

There are also government programs
in almost every country
to help new businesses.

This is part
of what your taxes pay for.

And our new businesses
need all the help
they can receive.

USE these programs.

More Complex Doesn’t Mean Better

Every month,
MailChimp changes
their newsletter product.

It becomes
more and more complex.

It now takes
ten times longer
to do simple activities
like archiving
unsubscribed users.

Which means
completing the hard work
of switching newsletter providers
becomes more appealing.

More complex
doesn’t mean better.

It usually means
the opposite.

Don’t add complexity
unless it is absolutely necessary.

If You Don’t Ask For Help

A Youtuber was complaining
about how all the plants
in her garden were dying
or doing poorly.

I saw immediately,
from the video,
what her issue was.

But she didn’t once
ask for help.
She complained
but she didn’t seem to want
or welcome
any advice.

So I kept my advice
to myself.

If you have a problem
or a challenge,
ASK for help.

Then…
appreciate that help,
even if you don’t plan
to take the advice.

That increases the probability
that person will help you
again.

Keeping Weak Products

We all know the phrase
“Feed the strong.”

99% of the time,
it makes financial sense
to pour the majority of our resources
into promoting, selling
and supporting the strongest products/services
we offer.

And it makes financial sense
to starve our weakest products/services.

But does it make sense
to remove those weak products/services?

Usually, it does.

Those weak products/services
add complexity.
They require listings
and customer service
and maintenance
and storage
and other resources.

It only make senses
to keep them
if they serve
the better selling products/services
in some way.

Consider delisting
weak products/services.

Tell Me The Truth

There’s a debate
amongst scientists
about whether or not
they should tell people
the doomtastic truth
regarding what is happening
and what will soon happen.

I want the truth.

If I wanted to hear
placating lies,
I’d talk to a politician.

I reach out to experts
because I want to hear
their informed and honest opinions.

Especially since I plan
to verify those opinions
with my own observations.

We know the climate
and healthcare
and other areas are f*cked.
We have eyes and ears.
We can see that.

Don’t patronize us
with lies.
Tell us the truth.

What Is Enough For You?

In today’s world,
enough seems to be a dirty word.

We’re always supposed
to want more.
More money.
More customers.
More projects.
More. More. More.

Having enough,
however,
is a powerful place to be.

It gives us choices.

If we have enough startup funds,
for example,
we can build our businesses
the way WE wish to build them.

If we have enough experience,
we become an extremely valuable
and sought after addition
to teams and projects.

If we have enough projects,
we can stop evaluating new ones
and focus on the projects we already have.
That increases the odds
they will be successful.

Figure out what enough
looks like for you.

When you reach enough,
change your focus.

Having enough is powerful.
Harness that power.

When Your Resources Expand

We installed solar
in our home.

Which means…
electricity
i.e. power
no longer
has any additional cost.

Our resources, our access
have greatly
expanded.

And I’m thinking of
all the opportunities that come
with that.

I can install more grow stations
for my vegetables,
as one small example.

I can run more business devices
(like multiple screens).
More systems can be automated.

When your resources expand,
your opportunities expand.
Re-evaluate your possibilities.

Track Accomplishments

Yesterday, I shared
that I review past accomplishments
to increase my energy and confidence levels
before tackling a new project.

You might be thinking
you don’t have any accomplishments.

Of course,
you have accomplishments.
You have survived up until this moment,
haven’t you?

Heck, you are surviving
a f*ckin’ pandemic!

And you have other accomplishments.

If you’re reading this post,
you can read.
Not everyone has tackled that skill.

You can source
food and water and other things
necessary for living.

I could give you a list
a hundred posts long
of your accomplishments.

But I shouldn’t have to
craft this list for you.

YOU should craft it.
And you should add
to this accomplishment list
after you accomplish something new.

You have accomplishments.
If you are questioning this,
the accomplishment you’re lacking
is tracking your accomplishments.

Maintain a list
of all your accomplishments.