I joke with my wife that one day I will write a book titled, “How to Fail in Business,” because of all the different and unique ways we have found to derail our success! Here is a small list of How to Fail in Business:
- Don’t have OR listen to Mentors. In my first business, I not only did not have mentors (Ego was TOO BIG) but I was also completely ignorant and foolish to some of the simplest business practices. I used to throw away every invoice and bill after I paid it because I thought the check was enough! You should have seen the look on my CPA’s face when he looked at my shoe box of checks (My Business filing system). It was priceless! If you don’t want to succeed then make sure you do not have mentors and if you do… then do not listen to them
- Do not have any internal Systems for your team/employees to follow. Most of the businesses I’ve owned have been absentee – I did not work there or come in that often. My internal Systems consisted of telling employees what I wanted from them the day they were hired and then letting them go with no road map on how to get there. EVERY type of business needs internal systems set up and in place to give everyone in the business, no matter where they are on the depth chart, a map on how to get the job done. If you don’t want to succeed then PLEASE DO NOT create any internal systems!
- Do not train your people on Customer service weekly. There are two basic types of Customer Service:
- Requested – when your customer asks for or complains about something. They have a request and bring it to your attention, and like any good business person, you find a way to make them happy. This is PASSIVE Customer Service and will get you a C on your report card.
- Unrequested – This is where the MAGIC happens! When you are PROACTIVE and find ways to serve your customers without them asking. Think of it this way: if you only buy your spouse a gift on “Requested Holidays or special events” then you are not really doing ANYTHING SPECIAL – it’s EXPECTED!!! BUT if you buy gifts or do something special JUST BECAUSE – WOW HAPPENS! Find Your Passion and You Will Find Your Life!
- These are my top 3 Sure Fire ways to fail in business! There are MANY more and I would love to hear from you on some of the ways you found to Fail!
- If you DO NOT WANT to succeed in business, then practice PASSIVE/REQUESTED style Customer Service!