Why am I starting this blog post with a picture of the Rock ‘Em Sock ‘Em Robots?
First, let’s make sure you know what they are.
Rock ‘Em Sock ‘Em Robots is a kid’s game where two plastic robots face each other in a make-believe boxing ring. The robots have arms that can punch. It takes two kids to play. One player controls the red robot and the other controls the blue one. Each player uses their thumbs to cause the robots to punch at the other robot’s head. The object of the game is to hit the other robot in the head. You immediately know you did it because the robot’s head pops up, and you hear a “GRRRRR” sound, like scraping metal, when you connect.
The television ad used to say, “You knocked my block off”!
What I always liked about this game is that you could play the game for several minutes, fighting it out, and then, all of a sudden, one punch ended the game. GRRRRR!” Game over! No prolonged endings.
Here’s the reason I’m writing about Rock ‘Em Sock ‘Em Robots: I meet business owners who are unhappy with their businesses. They want more sales, customers, excitement, recognition… you name it, they just want more from their businesses. And all of this is great, to elevate your expectations about your business.
But somewhere, someone told many of these owners something like: “All good things take time” or “Good things come to those who wait” or “Patience is a virtue” or “Change is hard”.
I’m here to tell you: These quotes are worthless when you’re trying to turn a business on an upward path.
The first thing I tell a business owner to do is to quit waiting. If you’re unhappy, take action now.
Second, I tell the owner to identify an action that will significantly impact the sales OR the image of the business in a monumentally positive manner.
I remind owners that it took them months and sometimes years to build their businesses to their current position, and we don’t have that same amount of time to turn it around.
Not everything happens overnight. But a whole lot of things do. In business, it often takes just one major “punch” to start the momentum rolling your way. Sometimes, one specific, definitive action can cause an immediate result that puts you out in front of your competition and puts you back in front of your best customers.
With one punch, we’re looking to create business momentum, and we’re looking for a quantum-leap-change that will immediately get noticed.
What we’re not looking for is a tiny, insignificant event. We’re not looking at creating small, incremental changes.
Maybe later. Right now, we want to get everyone’s attention and turn the tide in our favor.
I challenge every business owner reading this: Turning your business around doesn’t have to be hard, take long, or require patience.
You just have to purposely decide you’re going down that path, and look for the event that will provide the GRRRRR!
POW: Just like that! You’re moving forward!
Until next week!
Jon Schallert
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