Last week I told you the #1 reason most business plans fail. The executive summary from that article is this: You’re doing too much.
Today, I want to share a close second: you’re going too fast. Heard of the fable, The Tortoise and the Hare? Slow and steady wins the race in the real world, too.
Of course, this is contrary to everything we’re being told in today’s world. It’s contrary to everything we’re programmed to do from an early age. We start each year with our personal list of new year’s resolutions, and we start our work year mapping out the three-to-five (or more!) strategic goals for our business. And the expectation, especially in business, is that not only will all our goals be executed over the next twelve months, but the results of the executed plans will be realized in the same year. Ludicrous.
Business executives and leaders in organizations are the most guilty of expecting too much, too fast, and this is the driving force behind their employees leaving them and in many cases leaving the corporate world altogether. Currently, a third of the workforce have left corporate to work as independent contractors or to start their own gigs. Check it out:
What I’m about to share applies to every CEO, executive, entrepreneur, solopreneur or business leader trying to start, transform, or change something and make an impact where you work.
If you’re serious about building a business that is consistently profitable, growing and successful, all without burning yourself and your people out, then this fact must be recognized: SLOW AND STEADY WINS THE RACE.
SLOW = TIME.
STEADY = CONSISTENCY.
It’s not what you want to hear, but it’s true. There’s no fast lane to lasting success.
HERE ARE THE FIVE RULES FOR WINNING BY SLOWING DOWN:
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Give your plans enough time to work.
I’ve seen hundreds of well-laid plans abandoned before given the proper time to take root and bear fruit. This is so frustrating for your employees and everyone you serve! This happens when the executive team gets distracted by a more promising idea, opportunity, or strategy. The result? Frustration, loss of productivity, confusion, chaos, a disgusting amount of waste, failure to execute, the blame game, decreasing morale and broken trust.
Key examples of this include abandoned marketing efforts, leadership development programs, organizational structure changes, and new product or service offerings. I’m sure you can list ten more examples from your own experience.
Changes should be made when needed, but hold yourself accountable when making a change. It’s too easy to justify. If it was worth committing to in the first place, give it time!
How long? If you’re in the earlier stages of your business or the initiative is something relatively new or different to your business, plan to give your initiative about a year. If you’ve been up and running for a while, or the initiative is somewhat familiar to others you’ve tried, give it at least six months.
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Consistency is key.
Hear this: slow and steady will not work if you’re not consistent with your efforts. You can’t let up. Ever. If you’re giving your initiatives time but not giving them consistent effort, you’ll end up with dwindling profits, a poor market position, and fading credibility. Whether you’ve committed to work 4 hours a week, 20 or 40, if you are consistently and cheerfully working toward the one thing you committed to doing, you will grow, succeed and win.
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Quick isn’t quality.
Speed and quality don’t mix. When you move too fast, quality suffers. Rushing to complete something by a deadline just you can tell your Board or stockholders it’s done and then celebrate with your employees gets you nowhere. If it’s not done right, it won’t be effective, you won’t see results, and you may as well have not done it in the first place.
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Don’t compare.
I attended a webinar this weekend and came away with a much-needed reminder: “Follow your calling, not the crowd.” It’s so easy to get caught in the comparison game as others around you are seemingly accomplishing so much. This creates distracting pressure and lures you to do more and do it faster because others appear to be achieving, earning, or growing faster than you are. Some of you get so discouraged about where you are versus where you “should be” that you simply give up or check out for a time (which puts you in violation of #2). Comparing yourself to others – as business owners or leaders – is not only insane, it takes you further from your goals, not closer to them.
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Stay focused!
If you lose sight of the #1 reason businesses and plans fail, you will not see your goal come to fruition. Going too fast is typically a result of committing to more than one big thing. I wrote over 2000 words about this already, so I won’t say more here. Commit to one goal, prioritize it, and stick with it.
Give things time to work, and put consistent, heart-felt effort into it, and I promise you will reap rewards. Your first year with these strategies may not yield your best batch of wine, but next year you’ll be amazed at how much you’ve achieved and how far you’ve come. The year after that, you’ll be enjoying the finest vintage of your life, and it will only get better from there.
“Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as if working for the Lord and not men.” ~Colossians 3:23
