I’ve been in business for a long time and over the years I’ve received wonderful advice from some respected people. I’ve followed this advice and feel better for it. I want to share some of it with you.
“Do what you can in the time you have.”
Sidney Kess, my mentor and partner for over 30 years, knows how many projects I have going all the time. Perfection isn’t an option because there just isn’t enough time. Excellence, however, can be achieved by doing my very best on each and every project.
So I complete the work in the time I have, give it my all, and don’t reproach myself that I could have done better if I’d had more time (which I didn’t).
“When something goes wrong, think of 3 good things that come out of it.”
I can’t remember who shared this wisdom with me (it was a woman on my radio show several years ago), but I’m grateful for learning it. Here’s how it works:
A shipment that was supposed to be delivered to your customer did not arrive on time and the customer is very angry.
Three good things to come out of it:
- If you don’t yet have one, you can create a customer response script for your staff can to use when handling angry customers, addressing their concerns, and retaining their business and your reputation.
- In the future you refrain from making promises that may not be kept because of conditions beyond your control. Better way: Say you’re shipping for a particular delivery date but make sure the customer knows that things may happen to delay arrival.
- Take this opportunity to investigate other shippers that may have better on-time delivery rates.
“Learn a little each day.”
My first boss, Bernie Greisman, taught himself several languages by learning a word or two each day. The task of learning Latin seems daunting to me, but I witnessed that over time, any skill can be mastered by building it up gradually.
I’ve taken this to heart by spending time every day learning something new. Following this advice has helped me retain my interest and enthusiasm in what I do.
Conclusion
Think about advice you’ve received and pick some good ideas to follow.
