Busy being Stupid

Busy being stupid

I believe in “Keeping what you earn” and working smart not hard. That means that a lean and mean practice is best where you achieve your objectives quickly and then relax for the second half of the day to do good strategic work, catch up on your reading, visit some clients for a casual coffee, etc.

However, there are some legitimate expenses which can be classified as "the cost of doing good business" which, ironically, many try to eliminate.

• Taking a vacation for two weeks and leaving a message on your voice mail along with an auto-respond on your email stating you're away and will be unreachable until you return. If you were to call in to your voice mail and check emails twice a day for two weeks while on vacation, it might cost you a bit. That's a necessary expense if you intend to attract and maintain major clients. Allocating less than an hour per day to attend to your business does not ruin your vacation. It may well be that if you confirm some business it pays for your vacation.
• There are some who refuse to travel on a sales or marketing call unless the prospective client pays. I wouldn't pay for someone to visit me and make a sales call. Would you? As long as you are meeting with the true buyer (the person who will agree to the work and write your cheque), the investment is probably worth it, and can be maximised by setting up other meetings while you're in town. This is part of my costs in establishing what will become a long-term commercial relationship where we will do great work together.
• Then there are those people who cannot turn off their mobile phone or their automatic send/receive on their email. All the while complaining they do not have enough time in the day. Turn these gadgets off! Check them 5 times each day (first up, morning tea, lunch, afternoon tea, days end); determine what is important, make the necessary calls or type the required replies and get on with what you should really be doing. Manage technology rather than technology controlling you; prioritise your time and remain focused. You are not the Prime Minister and so rarely is there something requiring your immediate attention that cannot wait two hours.

There comes a time to save money and a time to spend it. And, you can never create more time, you can only prioritise your time and then manage your priorities. When you get those conditions reversed, you're going nowhere fast.

Invest in:

• Building your marketing whirlpool
• Efficient technology and support facilities
• Quality marketing collateral and brand image
• Appearing in front of "true buyers"
• Vacation, personal time, family time, and strategic time

If you simply change your approach to maintain control, you'll find more money in your bank account and more time to enjoy it with your family and loved ones.