A smart friend of mine asks “Am I A Broken Record?” You Decide

Hi,

Here for you is a good point of view from an Inc. 500 CEO friend of mine who shares my viewpoint on this.  She and I prefer the same “hammers (tools)” for cracking the back of this recession, and recommend you take up your own hammers so we can all exert some serious pressure to knock some sense into the thinking out there.  We will all benefit.

Best, David, and thank you to my good friend Joy.

If you’ve been reading my newsletter, you’ll have noticed I’ve been hammering the fact that you need to plan for the new year and not let the economy determine whether your company grows or not.

I recently had a subscriber tell me that by continuously bringing up the poor economy, I was in fact hammering in the external noise and making it more solidly true! I see the point he was trying to make, but I whole-heartedly disagree! So, I’d like to clarify a point: I am not suggesting that you simply put your fingers in your ears and yell “La! La! La!” at the top of your lungs, the whole time pretending there is nothing wrong with the economy. What I am suggesting is that you not let the external force of the economy be your excuse to fail!

So, guess what? You are 100% responsible for the future of your business. Yikes! If you really consider what the means, it really puts YOU in the hot seat.

Don’t spend your valuable time bitching and moaning about the economy!
DO something about it.

Quick story about a buddy of mine who is a ‘Lemon’ lawyer… He basically represents folks who wound up buying a lemon of a car. Well, crap economy means fewer car sales, which means fewer lemons, which in turn means less business for him! What did he do?? He hired a couple of attorneys that are experts in creditor harassment suits. He put a marketing campaign in place with TV ads, direct mail — the works! He is so excited about 2009 and is predicting his best year ever!

So, what can you do right now to counteract the media hype of doom and gloom?

1. Get Perspective: Take a few days and get out of your office so that you can take a panoramic, objective view of your business and your industry.

2. Research: During those few days, get your wits wrapped around what is occurring in your industry in terms of your competitors.

3. Set Goals: Where do your numbers need to be? Break down your income needs. Not just what you need yearly or quarterly, but what you need to bring in on average on a daily basis in order to make your targets.

4. Implement: We’ve all had ideas that have been brushed aside in the fray. Find those ideas and figure out which ones need to be implemented to solidify your sales.

5. Get Advice: Reach out for sources where you can learn and get your questions answered. It’s possible that as a business owner you have not been through this before, and reaching out to those who have can be a real help.

In the end, no matter what the economy is doing, it’s up to you to plan ahead and make the right choices for success. Start 2009 off right and you won’t regret it.

Love,
Joy

P.S. Of course you can email me anytime with questions and I will do my best to help you!

Don’t forget, if you have any questions for me you can always send them to me through my blog by clicking here!