Inspiration
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Dealing with the Hard Things First
In the first year of our existence, Derek and I have been presented with numerous challenges, most of which being something we never learned from college or anywhere else. Most of them could be figured out with help from mentors, friends, Google, etc…but there are certain circumstances that cannot be figured out so easily. Derek and I then ask, what are we to do? This has never happened to anyone in the world we begin to think…WHAT IS THE ANSWER TO THIS QUESTION?
Although we have previously been in the circumstance where we know we are right, but cannot win, we have to make it right for the customer. At the end of the day, the customer needs to feel like they were treated fairly or they will never come back. Taking bullets for problems with vendors and outsourced projects are only part of the headaches for us thus far. We have had to deal with things that were never told to us by anyone or read about in a business book anywhere.
The one thing told to us at a young age (of our business of course!) was to deal with the hard things first. It is such a novel idea that is not always thought about. People may think ”Oh my, a big problem or issue, it will need a lot more time and energy than my day to day situation, I will put it on the back burner and deal with it when I have more time.”
That is the worst thing you can do. You end up overlooking the issue or half-assing it later on. When something that is a challenge presents itself, you need to deal with it right away. That way, you can get to your day-to-day operations afterwards and feel good about having figured out a solution to such a problem.
Since living this mantra of dealing with the hard things as they arise, our business operations have been running much more smoothly and our clients have been much happier. Through some of the worst experiences up to this point, dealing with the hard issues has lead to our best customers. Even if we screw up or something goes awry, dealing with that customer first and foremost has generated great results for our company as a whole. This leaves Derek and me sitting and shaking our head about how things turned out as they did, but reminds us to keep with the mantra.
Some things to think about when a tough situation arises:
- Is there something you can do to help accommodate the situation?
- If so, what can you do?
- Even though it may not be your fault directly, if it flows through your company (be it a vendor or contractor), you need to make sure you make things right
- Do not procrastinate on a tough issue
- The longer you wait, the more likely it will be you forget something in the situation or forget the situation completely
- Once you have the situation figured out, realize the problems you had and make sure to keep a mental note of them to ensure another situation such as this one does not happen again
- If you have a bad experience and figure out a solution, make sure to celebrate that experience a little bit. It is okay to let your hair down and go to a movie or to have a beer…it will keep you sane.
- Do not be afraid to ask mentors or others for help
- As I am sure that you have given good advice in the past, the saying what goes around comes around comes into play and someone will be willing to help you out
Balance Your Inspiration with Action
Ask anyone that starts or runs a business and you are likely to be told stories of random instances of inspiration that seem to strike from no where and affect the course of their company positively.
The thing is, it is not just business owners, but all individuals that share in these random instances of creative idea generation. Unfortunately, for many, these come and go without any remberance. Going astray in those random spurts of creativity? Good ideas
Just two weeks ago, I grabbed a recent edition of BusinessWeek and started reading. My reading started in front of the television upstairs and made its way around the house until it ended up in the bathroom with a stack of other magazines. Truthfully, I do my best reading there.
I got to reading a story on a company called Plan B Branding. The article was called “It’s Not Whether You Win or Lose. It’s How You Sell the Game“. It told the stories of Jason and Casey, a pair of enterprising individuals that followed their passion of branding to the minor leagues, creating a niche that did not previously exist.
The parallels between the company Matt and myself are running now and that which Jason and Casey are currently successful at were astounding.
Jason and Casey started their business in college, the idea? They saw logos out there and knew, they, themselves, could do them better. After sending out letters to over 130 minor league teams, one responded. They proceeded to spend three months creating that logo…for free.
Interesting because as I was working for Bradley, I found myself thinking the same thing. I was the person in charge of doing all the creative for an NCAA Division-1 athletics institution as a student. This very point was enough to convince me that I could do this on my own and make money at it. It also began the conversation between myself and Matt about the idea of starting a business.
After reading the BusinessWeek article, I immediately handed it to Matt, excited to see two young individuals having success in a similar arena as us. This is where the fun began, because after Matt read it, he found their website and crafted an email to them. Balancing both of inspiration with a bit of action.
To our astonishment, they not only got back to Matt, but set up a conference call with us for that Friday. Extremely excited for the opportunity, our team prepared questions and fired away to Jason on the other end.
We had blocked 20 minutes off for the conference call but it lasted over an hour, with no realization of this until the conversation was over. The discussion was encouraging, inspiring, and eye-opening. We left with over a page of notes each and with a renewed focus, a great contact, and a piece of advice we won’t soon forget: “Go into battle assuming all your ninjas are going to die.” An effective idea for any business meeting, proposal, or creative concept.
Matt simply acted on an idea with this same premise in mind. So what if he didn’t get an email back? He spent a few minutes crafting an email and if he got a response, great! If not, what’s 10 minutes of time?
We got great advice, from a great person in Jason. He merely requested we pay it forward when our time came. So here’s some advice for all of you:
1. When an idea strikes: WRITE IT DOWN!
Too many great ideas come to people and they don’t write them down. They become lost, only to reappear at some other date to the person chiming “I HAD THAT IDEA!” So, go out and get a notebook. I have three grid paper moleskine notebooks at my ready. One on my desk at work, one on my nightstand, and one that seemingly floats about the rest of the house. I chose grid paper because it allows me to sketch logos while also writing. But a napkin or $.20 notebook will do.
2. If that written idea seems good a week later, do it.
Too many people have too many great ideas and fail to act on them. ACT ON IT. It is amazing to watch Rob Dyrdek function in the show ‘Fantasy Factory’ on MTV. He has random spurts of creativity and the one difference between him and millions of Americans is that he has a profound way of getting it done. From crazy ideas like Rob’s to applicable ideas that can help people’s lives, if you don’t act on them they aren’t worth the ink they’re written in.
3. Pay it Forward.
As Jason said at the culmination of our call, ‘When someone comes around asking for help or guidance, make sure to do what I did and share your knowledge.’ Likewise, I just saw the enshrinement of Karl Malone into the hall of fame. He ended his acceptance speech stating ‘What good is success if you can’t share it with someone else?’
When you have even the remote semblance of success, don’t be too caught up in what you’re doing to forget the immense joy that comes from helping others and lending advice.
Now go out after it and get it! Take the time to read that article, it just might inspire you too.
Click on the link for the BusinessWeek article and if you’re interested in learning more about Plan B Branding and their impressive body of work, click here.
The Winner’s Psychology
I am going to begin this blog with a quote, “In the pros, talent alone isn’t enough” (CALIPER, 14.) To athletic supporters, this may already be known, but to others its shocking. Allow this to resonate for a moment and let us explore this in a self sense. During this on going economic recession, millions of individuals across the universe strive to seek jobs. Sound like competition? Believe me, its an intense playing field with limited silver lining. Some spend days visiting several business establishments turning in applications and submitting their resume.
Some spend hours applying electronically only to be placed in a database flying low on the recruiter radar. Then there is the bitter sweet excitement you have been selected for an interview. Dressing to impress, sharpening your knowledge on your previous work experience(s), and acknowledging your skills and talents in efforts to highlight your candidacy have all been checked off your preparation list. Now, you are at the interview and throughout have maintained strong eye contact with the interviewer as well as sold yourself undoubtedly well acing every question and then some with zero hesitation. The interview ends with sincere handshakes and you leave with a business card in hand most likely in efforts to obtain contact information to inquire on the status of your application. Two weeks go by and its been crickets between you and the prospective employer, no phone call, no e-mail. Two weeks turn into over a month and crickets turn into utter darkness.
It is then safe to assume you did not get the job. This is often unfavorably what several peoples’ job hunt succumbs to and it is immensely frustrating. You feel you put your life on hold for this one shot and it crumbles. How is it that employers do not have the time to tell a candidate they are a no hire? Several questions run through your mind; “was I not qualified enough overall?” “Did another candidate have more on the job experience?” “Did I disappoint in the interview?” etc. Instead of worrying about the inhumane reasoning behind no response, build yourself mentally. Sports managers and coaches go through a similar process when assessing potential players in talent recruitment. They ask themselves whether or not a player is prone to injuries or if they can dominate the court on a team-basis.More importantly, are they able to handle a loss psychologically? What about several consecutive losses?
This is where we take into account “the psychology of the winner” established by Herb Greenberg, Ph.D, President and CEO of Caliper, a company that aids businesses in peak performance. Greenberg believes that three characteristics attribute to this winner outlook: self-discipline, competitiveness, and an optimistic sense of self. Let us break down these themes. Self-discipline is the inner desire of continuous improvement. Competitiveness is the fuel to the fire where the ultimate drive and risk are a go. A positive self sense is remedy towards handling failure. If one has belief in he/she, failure is seen as a minimal part of the situation and moving on is easier.
Greenberg believes that players can beat the odds by marriaging talent and inner motivation. Players that ride on ability alone never make it off the bench due to their lack of self-discipline, competitiveness, and self-esteem. At the end of the day, athletes only face winning or losing, as individuals we face survival in day to day activities. Utilizing the characteristics that make up “the psychology of the winner” can allow us to make it through any experience or event in any personal or professional application, especially in the world’s on-going battle in seeking employment. Rejection is not so bitter after all.