image from www.huskerlocker.com
Commitment sounds like a great word, right? In marriage? In health? In business?
But, here’s the truth. I see far too many business owners sold out and committed to plans, campaigns, blueprints and even systems that they should drop like hot potatoes.
Tuesday Truth: If something is NOT working for you in business, you need to drop it. You need to stop doing it. Commitment is over-rated.
As Dan Kennedy states, “As-is is rarely sustainable: There is no safe place to stand still…”
So, how do you decide? What to keep? What to persist in? How long to stay the course? And when to jump ship? Here’s a rough guide that should help you:
1) Make sure that everything you’re doing in your business has a measurable goal attached to it. In other words, what do you EXPECT or HOPE this action will produce for you in business? if you don’t know WHY you’re doing it, you’ll either give up on it too soon or you’ll stay committed to it too long. Neither is acceptable. It’s hard to measure the effectiveness of something that you’ve not set a specific goal for.
2) Set a date. How long will you give a specific strategy before assessing its effectiveness? I don’t care who “preaches” a specific strategy, how many people it’s worked for, or how many people swear by it… How long will you give “it” before deciding whether or not it’s working FOR YOU?
3) If by SAID DATE, your said strategy isn’t accomplishing SAID MEASURABLE GOAL, change something. You don’t have to quit entirely, but at least TWEAK your strategy. Do SOMETHING differently.
VERY IMPORTANT Notes:
— SAID DATE should give SAID STRATEGY at least three months to perform, and — for goodness sakes — NO MORE than one year.
— ALL of your client attracting, marketing, networking and sales strategies should have an attached measurable goal and assessment date.
— Just because something worked like a MIRACLE for you in the past…. if it’s not working TODAY, there’s no moral or ethical obligation to stay committed to it. The market changes. YOUR market changes. Industries change, etc. There’s no safe place to remain stoic.
