MaineBusiness.com

Action Step, by Step

I’m from Texas and, for better or worse, learned much of my business “attitude” from business people such as Ross Perot, Stanley Marcus and Roger Staubach (yes, he used to play football too.)

There are not too many people more bold than Ross Perot. In 1962 Ross Perot started Electronic Data Systems (EDS) with $1,000. In 1984 General Motors purchased EDS for $2.5 billion (That’s with a B)

There are probably dozens, if not hundreds of stories and lessons you can learn from his 22 year trek to the top, but one of the most important lessons I learned is Perot's experience after the sale. After GM purchased EDS Perot found himself on the GM Board and it wasn't long before he became frustrated (to put it mildly). Perot was all about action. GM seemed to be all about meetings. Here's how Perot put it.

"At EDS, when you see a snake you kill it. At General Motors, when you see a snake, first you seek out the best consultants on snakes. Then you appoint a committee on snakes. And then you study snakes for a year or two."

You can laugh, but we all need to be wary; there is a lot of truth to that story. Think about yourself and your crazy schedule, the fires, the meetings, the tasks. I know how critical envisioning, thinking and planning are; much of my business is built around just that. However, it is also important not to confuse thinking with action. Here are my Bold Rules for Moving Forward.

Most of us don't have problems with taking action in the parts of our business that we like and are comfortable with. If you like to sell, getting out and selling will not be a problem. Ditto if you like drafting a training plan. You'll get right to it.

The time you need to step up and be bold is when you aren’t comfortable or you don't like to do what you know you should do. That's when it's easy to procrastinate. That's when it's easy to confuse thinking and actually doing business; or doing the right business.

An action step is something you do to improve your business that is visible from the outside. Making a sales call is an Action Step. Making a phone call to make an appointment is an action step. Deciding to make that call is not.

There are times when you need to think about your business. There are times when you need to decide what to do on a client project. Just remember: if that thinking or deciding doesn't result in something visible from the outside it's not an Action Step.

So when you think about your business, think about what has to happen to get the result you want. Then Do It. When you decide what to do on a client project, Do It and make that decision visible.

Action Steps

Be BOLD. Take Action.

Do you need help staying on track, taking the time to envision, think and plan yet take consistant action? Sponsored by Bold Vision Consulting, the Ocular Forum is a membership based confidential peer group for non-competing business owners and independent professionals eager to support each other in growing a successful business.

An Ocular Forum membership supports long-term and annual planning with a system for implementation and follow through, support, encouragement, and confidential advice while your partners hold you accountable for taking the actions important to your success. There are two Ocular Forum memberships being formed:

Portland Maine – Applications due September 14

Waltham, Massachusetts – Applications due September 14

Meetings are monthly and membership in each Ocular Forum group is limited to 6 members.

Call 207-221-3492 or visit http://www.boldvisionconsulting.com/OcularForum.php for more information.

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