Lawrence Fine

Many people, when they get involved in a negotiation, will dig their heals in and not want to concede anything. Since they see a negotiation as a “win/lose” scenario, they see anything they concede as a win for the other side.

One solution some suggest is to ask for something you really don’t want so when it’s time to “concede something” you concede something you didn’t really care about in the first place. The logic in doing this is that by conceding something you don’t care about, the other side will have to concede something as well, and it most likely would be something they will care about. This would mean, in a true win/lose scenario, you give up something you didn’t want in the first place, they give up something they did want so therefore you are “winning”.

Instead of using this “game playing” technique, why not, instead of giving up something you don’t care about, give them something they do care about? By doing this, you care changing from an adversarial negotiation to a cooperative negotiation and will most likely end up with a better deal for all.

As an example, if you are looking to sell a house and have an interested buyer. You want $250,000 for your house and they are offering $230,000. Some sellers might offer to include appliances or a new paint job knowing that they don’t want to take the appliances with them or that they have some extra paint from another house. An alternative would be to figure out what is keeping the buyer from offering more and working from there. They might be worried about the cost of moving their belongings across country or the cost of putting things in temporary storage. If you can find real issues and then help them find a way around these issues, you will be able to get to a better resolution. It might be something as simple as providing some storage space (if you have some available) to make it easier on the buyer. Or, you might have a relationship with a mover and be able to help them arrange a better deal than they could get on their own.

By finding ways to help the other side, you will help them get a better deal than they initially thought possible while also ending up with a better deal yourself.

The alternative is to continue to to try to “beat” the other side and continue to have both sides lose

Have a great day!

Lawrence

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In order to grow your organization, it’s important to understand how to delegate tasks. Frequently, business owners/entrepreneurs start off doing EVERYTHING. They are the marketing department, the bookkeeping, the maintenance the operations etc. As their business grows, they need to bring other people in to do some of these tasks otherwise they will limit their potential for growth.

These managers who are successful will hire talented individuals who specialize in these areas.

The danger is, when you delegate entire department responsibilities to others is to get disconnected from the process.

This might mean you no longer know what marketing is doing or it might mean you lose all control of operations or it might mean you simply lose the connection with your business.

As an example, if you own a McDonalds franchise, it would make sense to occasionally work the counter to see what your employees are dealing with on a regular basis. You might think you know what they are dealing with because you used to do it yourself but the reality is, things change. Get-behind that counter sometimes and really do it. Not only will it re-aquaint you with the procedures but also with your customers.

If you run a camp, be at the front of the line occasionally during registration.

If you are an attorney involved in a class action law suit, spend some time with the plaintiffs rather than only dealing with the big picture.

As the owner or manager of a business, it’s important to deal with the big picture issues of your organization in order to continue to grow. To do this, it requires delegation and a good staff. However, it’s important to occasionally get your hands dirty doing the day to day operations in order to keep proper controls.

Some people get to the point where they think they are ‘too good’ to do the ‘dirty work’. Those people usually aren’t good enough

Have a great day!

Lawrence

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What resources do you need to get your job done?

Have you have ever really given some thought to what would be needed to get your job done properly?

Would a faster computer make a big difference?

If you had video conferencing equipment, would that allow you to be more efficient?

Would additional helpers speed the process up dramatically?

Would greater education allow you do the job quicker and better?

If you really give this a great deal of thought you can come up with a list of resources that would genuinely allow you to do your job better (this list needs to be a real list and not a “what would be cool to have list”).

Next, you have to figure out how to get these resources.

If you occasionally need a faster computer for some intensive programming, is there a place locally to rent usage of computers by the hour?

If you occasionally need video conferencing equipment, is there a Kinkos (correct name is FedEx Office but in my mind it will always be Kinkos) convenient with video conferencing equipment you can use by the hour? Or is there a conference center that might have this equipment available for rent?

If additional helpers would speed up the process, might temporary workers be affordable? Or, have you considered contacting the local university and looking into creating an internship program that could prove to be a win/win for all involved?

If greater education is the answer, have you considered looking at the local university or finding classes online that you could take?

In many instances, the only reason you can’t get access to these resources is the lack of thought and lack of creativity in finding ways to get the resources in an affordable way.

Rather than complaining about a lack of resources, go out and find a way to get the resources, you will be surprised by how far a little ingenuity will take you.

Have a great day!

Lawrence

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If you had someone who would help guide you in your business decisions, would it help you?

If you had someone who would help guide you in your personal decisions, would that help you?

For many (most?) people I would think the answer is yes.

Next the question is, how do you find a mentor?

People are willing to help those who they see helping others. If you want someone to help you, start by helping someone else.

Pick something you are an ‘expert’ at and find a way to help. Whether it’s coaching a youth sports team, joining the “Big Brother, Big Sister” organization or just helping out with a neighbor when people see you helping others, they have a tendency to want to help you as well.

Somewhere it was written “give and ye shall receive”. It works with mentors as well!

Have a great day!

Lawrence

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What if you didn’t buy anything you couldn’t pay for? Some would say it’s quite obvious you shouldn’t buy anything you couldn’t pay for but in this case, I’m talking about NO EXCEPTIONS.

What if you didn’t buy a house until you could pay cash for the house (no mortgage)?

What if you didn’t buy a car until you could pay cash for the car?

What if you didn’t use any credit cards (debit cards are ok because you have the money for those purchases)?

What if you didn’t go out to eat because it is cheaper to eat in?

What if you wore your clothes a bit longer until you could truly afford to buy new clothes?

What if you only went on a vacation you could pay cash for?

For most people, this would result in them living a very different life. Smaller house (or maybe a case of renting instead of owning). Instead of the latest model SUV it might mean driving an older model smaller car.

While it might result in a very different life, would it really be a worse life? No worries about payments, no “keeping up with the Joneses”. Just simple living.

If more people tried this, they would find themselves in a better position financially and most likely find they appreciate the things they have more.

Just a thought

Have a great day!

Lawrence

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Every day, I receive emails (spam) from various groups saying that they can increase my business significantly by getting my web site to the top of the search engines through “legal, white hat methods”.

If they were so good at what they claim to be able to do, why wouldn’t they use these talents to get their own companies web site to the top of the search engines rather than sending illegal spam?

Recently I saw a post on a marketing forum from a marketer saying he was real good at his job but he needed help getting new clients. If he were so good as a marketer, shouldn’t he be able to promote his own services? If he can’t promote his own services, why would you expect he could promote someone else’s services?

Too often, people want to charge for their services teaching others how to do things when the reality is, they don’t know how to do these things themselves. Until you are good at what you do, you shouldn’t be charging others for your services. Does this mean the basketball coach has to be a great basketball player before he should be allowed to coach? No. But it does mean this coach should have some mastery of the techniques and tactics as well as the ability to teach them

Take the time to truly learn the skills needed to be good at something before you offer your services to someone else. Short term, it might not be beneficial but long term, it will pay off well

Have a great day!

Lawrence

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People and organizations are constantly changing. They pick up new skills, build up their portfolio, change their priorities etc. The question you must ask yourself is, does anyone know about these changes?

If your organization has added a new division, what are you doing to let your current (and potentially future) clients know? If you have gone to school to further your education, what are you doing to let people know (whether they are future employers or clients)?

If you have changed and no one knows, does it really matter? The obvious answer to that is YES it does! If you have new talents, new experience and new opportunities you will most likely feel better about yourself. However, if you are trying to expand your business or business opportunities, you must let others know.

People (and organizations) don’t want to seem like they are bragging but without letting people know about your changes (and hopefully your improvements) you are limiting yourself.

Whether it’s sending an email, mailing a press release or something else, it’s important to let people know your gains.

I realize i’s difficult to do but if you want to grow as an individual or organization, you must be willing to share your updates with others

Have a great day!

Lawrence

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People who find mistakes are valuable

People who fix mistakes are invaluable

People who complain about mistakes are virtually valueless

Which are you?

Have a great day!

Lawrence

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If you lost your job, or you lost your business, or you lost your house, would you start over again?

If you have been an accountant for many years and were to suddenly lose your job, would you look for another accounting position or would you see this as an opportunity to do something different?

If you have been a Realtor and sales weren’t being made due to the economy or for some other reason, would you find a new way to sell houses or would you look to enter a different field.

If your house burned down and you had to rebuild from scratch, would you build the same house in the same location?

If the answer to these questions are “no I wouldn’t start over doing the same thing” than should you ask yourself whether you should be doing those things in the first place? If being an accountant doesn’t make you happy, find something different. If selling houses really isn’t your thing, find what your thing is. If the house that you live in isn’t what you really want, figure out a way to get what you really want.

Many people, when forced into change, find that what they have been doing for years doesn’t really make them happy. For example, the person who loses their job, starts a new career and realizes they have spent a great deal of time in their previous career doing thing that made them unhappy.

If the main reason you continue doing what you always have done is because it’s what you always have done, consider taking a chance, make a change and do something that makes you happy.

You don’t have to wait for someone else to force the change, take the initiative and do the right thing.

Have a great day!

Lawrence

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What if you completely rethought your marketing strategy? Many organizations spend most of their marketing budget on acquiring new customers. The theory is new clients help build your organization.

What would happen if you take the money budgeted for new customer acquisition and spend most of it on customer retention?

Many organizations have a discount for new customers (first year half off, 30 day trial etc). This certainly gives the appearance that they care more about their new customers than their older customers. If I have been a customer for 5 years, why should I pay more than a new customer who hasn’t shown any loyalty to the organization?

Most studies show that it costs a lot more to acquire a new customer than it does to retain a current customer so wouldn’t it make more sense to put the emphasis on retaining your current customer base?

This could be done with discounts for loyal customers, or anniversary gifts or many other ways. However, it could also be done by putting your money toward better customer service.

As an example, if a restaurant hired an extra server or two and provided quicker service (or maybe it’s a case of less hurried service) the customers are more likely to have a positive experience and come back again. While the cost of an extra server or two might seem to be coming out of the bottom line, the reality is by increasing the likelihood of the customers returning, rather than being thought of as simply an expense, this could be thought of as a marketing expense that results in more long term revenue and profit.

If a hotel adds an additional person to the front desk which would allow them to deal with the customers better, answer the phones quicker etc, how many room nights might they be adding? It wont take more than one or two to cover the cost of the additional employee so what might seem like an added expense will actually result in increased profit.

Any organization that doesn’t have the time to answer the phones properly might want to consider hiring another person to assist in that function. Every phone call must be thought of as a potential customer and having them hear “thank you for calling, please hold” is a major turn off for many people.

Some might think that while this would be effective for customer retention, it doesn’t help with increasing the customer base. I would argue otherwise. If you do your job well, the best salespeople are your current customers. If you provide a bad service, your customers will have a negative experience and this will result in not only losing them as customers but also them telling others. This will more than offset any marketing you are doing. If you provide good service, your customers will have a good experience and most likely return but probably wont tell anyone. If you provide great service, not only will your customers return but they will tell everyone they know (and this includes posting on blogs, tweeting on twitter, writing on the walls of facebook etc). Great service will bring in more customers, in the long run, than almost any type of marketing

There are three main reasons more organizations don’t reconsider their marketing in this manner. First, they have always paid for ads in the yellow pages, or billboards or newspaper ads or TV commercials and the fear of change is overwhelming. Second, they don’t understand the HUGE difference between good service and great service and since they feel they are providing good service and it’s not increasing their customer base, they don’t see this as being effective. Third, they simply haven’t thought about marketing in this manner.

Give it a try, treating your current customers as special will make a world of difference!

Have a great day!

Lawrence
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