This is not a fight
Time and You. It’s not a fight. It cant’ be won. Sure, you want to do more stuff. But is it, though? What if you could do LESS, in less time? Time is nothing but a constraint. If it were a resource, you could use it at will, you could store it, you could buy and sell it. So, what to do instead? First, make your peace with it. It is what it is. And it’s ok. Second, grab a piece of paper and jot down EVERYTHING that comes to your mind you would/could/need to do this year. Don’t filter it. Just…
Do you know what’s the easiest way to not stand out?
Do the same as everybody else. Set prices based on the market. Focus on revenue at all costs (literally). Go for the easy sale (at the low price). Fight any chance you see change coming. Block crazy ideas. Do what you’re told. Not standing out is safe. Makes life easier. You face no resistance. You subdue. And then you fade.
Closing doesn’t need to be that hard
Going into a sales conversation to close a deal that might feel significant to you in terms of revenue doesn’t mean it’ll be the same for your customer. You need 2 main things: Be willing (and ready) to hear No. And follow up with more questions to understand, not to convince. Be willing to walk away. If it’s not a fit, it’s not a fit. And that’s ok. It’s just a number. Say your offer is 50 000 euros / dollars —and keep the straight face. The more you practice saying it out loud, the more…
Are you taking the hit?
So, tiktok is gone. At least (for now in the US) banned. Here’s what you hear: “It’s a big hit on brands and creators.” “It was a main revenue source.” “It was a strong comms platform to connect with new customers.” Now, the obvious (?) thing is to find other platforms where to leverage the same. Or is it? Because this is actually one more reason not to leverage these platforms as the key point for your comms. Same thing happened with Twitter few years back. And Clubhouse. And Facebook. And…
Things you can’t own
Somebody else’s perspective. A position in somebody else’s mind. A category. Stop trying to influence. Serve.
What gets measured
… gets managed”. A quote wrongly attributed to Peter Drucker (he never said it). Nonetheless, you’ve surely heard it. But the thing is that a measure only tells you nothing. It’s a point in space. It doesn’t have context. It’s a data point. Measurement: the reading of something. You can’t manage a measurement. What you can do, though, is apply judgement to it, so that you can inform a decision. The (risky) thing is:1. Getting the wrong things as metrics2. Using these metrics as measuring3….
A small tip to standing out
Reality is —and this work in your favor— that the bar is SO low. Most of the businesses in your industry and in your market claim they have great service, “experience” (wtf is it anyways?), solutions. Yet when things go South, they do a little bit less of the bare minimum. You doing a little bit over, makes you stand out. Know why? Because clients don’t care about the bare minimum. They care that they’re taken care of. That they’re understood. And there’s action behind the words. When you do…
Your boundaries
The first interactions with your clients are the ones that last. I mean, real interactions. After the honeymoon phase. The behaviors that you tolerate are the ones that get reinforced (aka building a culture). If they get always discounts, they assume discounting is the culture. If they get abusive, they assume they can go on with abuse. The good thing is that boundaries (setting them, and respect them) are on you. Keeping your boundaries doesn’t need the other person for anything to do. It’s…
What’s your runway?
Runway: estimated time you could run your business in the scenario where you would have no income / revenue. Whatever runway you might have right now is fine. When you have this, it’s a good time to raise your prices radically. Ditch the 1%, 5%, 10%, 15% raises. Double your prices. Now, it’s not only about doubling the prices for the sake of it; but to think of what could you do for these new prices. And most importantly, how would these new prices better help your customers? The best time to…
Build it right and they’ll come
Pre-S: Funny thing, friend of the list Genevieve Hayes, just sent an email with an approach to the same subject. Go check it out here. “Build it right and they’ll come” takes a few assumptions in mind: That you’re building FOR SURE the right thing. That your customers will automatically know you built it and will give you their money. That there’s certainty about your offering (aka no risk, since they will come). There’s one more to add: lack of focus. When building your offering, you might…
