It’s great to hold all of the cards provided you aren’t playing by yourself.
Some people are so determined to have complete control they don’t realize that while they might have control, the thing they control has little value.
Wouldn’t you rather hold some of the cards of something of value rather than all of the cards all by yourself?
Have a great day!
Lawrence
You have a young baby who is very sick. Would you rather take the baby to a doctor who has never had a patient die or one who has young patients die on a regular basis? Based on this one statistic the answer might seem to be very simple since the first doctor would SEEM to be much better.
When you look further into the above example you might make a very different decision. The first doctor might never have lost a patient because he has never treated a patient with anything worse than a cold. The second doctor might lose patients regularly because he is the best at what he does and because of that he treats all of the babies who have no hope. This second doctor might be their only chance so people are going to him even though there might only be a 10% chance of success.
This is a harsh but realistic example of where statistics might not be an accurate barometer of a persons abilities and competencies.
Just something to think about.
Have a great day!
Lawrence
There is a saying “those who fail to plan are planning to fail”. While I certainly agree with that saying the reality is there are many people who so concerned with failing that they spend an inordinate amount of time planning their other options.
They figure if this fails they have to know Plan B, Plan C and Plan D as well as the options with dealing with the ramifications of Plan A when it does fail.
While it’s nice to have multiple options if you aren’t careful you will have so many negative thoughts going on that you will not be able to buy into the plan you have chosen.
If you don’t believe in yourself and in what you are doing consider doing something else. On the other hand, if you do believe in yourself and what you are doing, be willing to go “all in” and take the chance!
Plan to succeed and then go out and do it!
Have a great day!
Lawrence
Yesterday I wrote about the importance of having a great team to take advantage of opportunities. Today, I want to emphasize that having great talent is important, it’s also extremely important to have proper positions.
In football, having great offensive linemen but no quarterback or running backs will not lead to success.
In volleyball, having great outside hitters but no setter will not lead to success.
A symphony lacking a percussion section will most likely fail.
A great team might develop a great product but if there isn’t marketing and sales it might fail.
Great salespeople without a staff to back them up in order to fulfill the sales will most likely fail.
It’s not just about having some great people. You need to make sure you have the right people in the right positions and when you do, great things can happen.
Have a great day!
Lawrence
Frequently I get a call or an email from someone I know who has an idea for a new product, business or service. They think it’s a great idea but usually have no idea where to go from there.
If I wanted to start a new business and had the choice of a great idea (or ideas) or having a great team of people around me, I would pick the great team every time.
An idea without the people to implement the idea usually doesn’t amount to anything.
A great team, without a great idea, will usually be able to come up with a great idea in a short period of time.
If you want to do something great, make sure you have the right people to execute. Once you have the right people wonderful things can happen.
I would choose great people over a great idea every day. How about you?
Have a great day!
Lawrence
Most of the great successes in the past century or so have been from creating something truly different rather than simply making something better.
If the car manufacturers had simply wanted to make something better they would have tried to breed faster or stronger horses instead of creating a new industry.
The telephone wasn’t an improvement of the telegraph, it was a complete game changer.
Television wasn’t an improvement of the radio, it was a completely new idea.
Making something better is wonderful. Making something that is new is how to be a game changer.
Be a game changer!
Have a great day!
Lawrence
Idea A is successful.
I think Idea A is a bad idea
I think my idea (we shall call it Idea B) is a much better idea than Idea A
Therefore Idea B will be successful.
While to some this might seem like simple logic in reality it doesn’t work that way at all. First of all, we are rarely objective about our own ideas. Secondly, just because we think something is a good idea doesn’t mean others will. Thirdly, even if others agree it’s a good idea (or even better), it still doesn’t mean it will be successful. There are so many other factors that would need to be taken into consideration (timing, sales, marketing, other ideas, reputation etc).
Remember, just because you think you have a better idea doesn’t mean it will be more successful…but it might!
Have a great day!
Lawrence
Certain people have great talents. It would be nice if we all did…but we don’t.
The key is for those people with great talents to use them and not waste them.
If Ludwig van Beethoven hadn’t composed music, the world as we know it would have been different.
If William Shakespeare hadn’t written, the world as we know it would have been different.
If Ben Franklin hadn’t innovated and invented, the world would have been different.
If Martin Luther King Jr hadn’t led, the world would be different.
If Nelson Mandela hadn’t stood up for what he believed in, the world would be different.
If Marie Curie hadn’t done research, the world would be different.
It’s easy to delude ourselves into believing we all make a major difference in the world but other than a few people, most of us really don’t have a major impact on the world. As an example, if I stopped writing this blog right now, the impact on people would be so minimal that it wouldn’t really matter.
The challenge is that these people with great talents don’t owe us. We aren’t entitled to their greatness. For many, they achieve their greatness at tremendous sacrifice to themselves and their loved ones. They don’t owe me. They don’t owe you. They don’t owe anyone. Hopefully, the people with great talents will strive to maximize their abilities not out of obligation but rather out of passion, desire, personal satisfaction etc.
The other challenge is knowing who are the next “great ones”. Frequently the people with great talents aren’t recognized early on due to them doing things differently than others. This makes it more difficult to recognize them. Because of this, we need to encourage as many people as possible to maximize their strengths and to use their talents to the fullest.
If you have great in you, use it to your fullest. You don’t owe it to anyone other than yourself.
Don’t waste great.
Have a great day!
Lawrence
You are almost ready to launch your new business (or product, or service or campaign) but you want to add a few more things to make it even better. It will only take another week or two. You finally get them added (probably took more time than expected) and now have two more things you want to add.
At some point you have to realize that good is good enough and while you are pursuing perfection (in your mind) your business isn’t open, the product hasn’t launched, the service isn’t being offered etc.
At some point you have to say “it IS good enough” and get to market.
As Seth Godin would say “Ship It!”.
Your pursuit of perfection will inevitably fail because you will never achieve true perfection. Doesn’t it make sense to get it launched first and then, if necessary, improve from there?
Just something to think about.
Have a great day!
Lawrence
A project will take one month to complete.
When will it be done?
The obvious answer is “one month”.
The real answer is one month ONCE IT HAS STARTED…and that is assuming they work on it for the entire month.
Make sure you look at more things than just the amount of time needed to complete when looking at scheduling.
Just something to think about.
Have a great day!
Lawrence
If there is one thing Lawrence Fine is most passionate about it's teaching. From sharing his knowledge about soccer as a soccer coach, he now shares his expertise in the field of human resources and the Internet. (More...)