motivation

Big Hairy Audacious Obstacles

by JimRaffel on May 7, 2012

image of sobcon 2012 chicago
I just returned from the Successful Online Business Conference (SOBCon) and I have far too many takeaways to even try and share them all in one post. Instead, on the drive home today I searched for the most significant takeaway; the one that will stay with me for the rest of my life.

Big Hairy Audacious Obstacles

Perhaps you are familiar with the term Big Hairy Audacious Goals (BHAG). The folks who attend SOBCon have achieved and are striving for BHAGs. I was struck by the fact that most of the goals in the room are focused on a higher purpose. Sure most of us are there to figure out how to make more money, but that doesn’t mean the goal can’t be non-financial.

If you are striving for big goals, then you are going to run into big hairy audacious obstacles. Stories were told in the SOBCon room over the weekend that made the problems I have faced seem small. The specifics aren’t mine to share but I can assure some of the most successful people in that room had overcome very large obstacles.

Maybe it’s as simple as “if you aim high, you’d better be prepared to fall far.” This is a feeling I know and my story, unlike those of my SOBCon friends, is mine to share. So here’s what my big hairy audacious obstacles can look like.

The rut and losing my way

In the 26 years since I graduated from college, I have only collected a paycheck six of those years. I realize now that the goal I set at the age of 16 to be a millionaire by the time I was 30 was in fact the wrong goal. My personal BHAG has really been to stay self-employed forever. That’s it.

Simple as that sounds, I’ve had to shut the business down once and go back to collecting a paycheck. I’ve had to face, embrace and confront my own personal demons that threatened to destroy everything I’d built with the help of some pretty awesome people. I’ve faced near financial ruin multiple times and enjoyed a few really good financial runs.

About three and half years ago at what I now realize was a low point in my life, my father passed away. I was already on a downward course and that event pushed me to the brink of failure. The rut bottomed out in the summer of 2009 and, from that moment on, I’ve had my eye on never working for someone else again because with that freedom I can strive for goals that change the world.

Finding my way and recognizing the BHAG

It has been the obstacles in my life that have guided me to understand the goals I want to achieve. Now that I clearly understand not working for others is important to me, I’m reenergized and am treating ColorMetrix like a startup again. A few days at SOBCon have helped identified the BHAG for us and I’m excited to share this goal with the team.

So don’t ignore your problems. Embrace them and use them to help you understand what you really want to be doing and who you really want to be. The path to success lies in owning your own problems and working through them.

{

Continue Reading 0 comments }motivation, personal development

Selling and a sense of urgency

by JimRaffel on April 25, 2012

image of shipping it

If you read the title and thought you’d find information about how having weekly, monthly and annual sales goals keeps you pushing and working, that’s not this post. I’m talking about the sense of urgency you have to instill in your own team.

There are always three sides in a sale

I suspect you’re thinking there are not three sides to a sale and that there are two: a customer and a person or company selling the product or service. Stop and consider that the first person (or side) I have to convince of the value proposition I’m presenting is me. That’s side number one.

Then you have to work with the prospective customer to agree on a value proposition that works for both sides. Depending on what you are selling, this part can takes months or years. So while successful selling requires a constant sense of urgency, it must be tempered with patience and perseverance.

The last, and often times most difficult party to instill urgency in, is your own team. These are the players who have to deliver the agreed upon value proposition on time and on budget. Because the customer is energized and excited once the value proposition is agreed upon, your own team often ends up being put in the difficult position of staying fired up and feeling the same sense of urgency.

While it may not be perfect …

Here’s the crux of the issue: While the solution your team has built by deadline day might not be perfect, it’s certainly better than what the customer has. If for some reason it’s not, your business has deeper issues than we can solve in this post. While I respect the pursuit of perfection, I’ve also seen it close the doors of far too many businesses in my time.

“Good enough” can be an elusive term to define. I’ve come up with this simple definition for our own business.

  1. We’ve consumed all the resources allocated to the project.
  2. The promised due date is upon us.
  3. The solution is functional and better than what the client now has.

It’s as simple as that. Put what you’ve created in the hands of the client and let them work with you to make it better. Who knows? They might even start asking for more features and functionality that increase the size of the ongoing value proposition.

Delivery matters

If you are not consistently delivering your projects on time, on budget and meeting specifications, then it’s time to reassess your team’s internal sense of urgency. There is not a private sector job or business I am aware of that stays in business long without constant and consistent productivity. Coast when you must to regain perspective, but make sure you don’t coast right past a promised deadline.

Photo Credit

{

Continue Reading 1 comment }motivation

How a hiatus helped me get my groove back

April 23, 2012

It’s been about four weeks since I published a post here. I’m just going to spill why and hope it makes sense to you and that you can take a nugget or two away to use in your own life and business. At the end of March, I was overwhelmed. I’d bitten off more than [...]

Continue Reading7

Zero in on your bullseye

February 17, 2012

What are you best at? If you are having trouble answering that question, your lack of an answer is holding you back from your ultimate level of success. Worse yet, if your answer is “multi-tasking,” then you’re quite likely a jack of all trades and a master of none. You’re a handyman of sorts; not [...]

Continue Reading0

How making decisions polarizes your audience

February 15, 2012

How many of the people around you actually make decisions? I’m not talking about the small decisions like what to wear or what to eat, but the big decisions that matter. Political polarization In the White House, we have a president who made some big decisions since he was elected. The Governor of my state  [...]

Continue Reading2

How to remain relevant like Madonna

February 6, 2012

Why are folks so impressed that Madonna at “her age” has remained relevant for the better part of 30 years? Sure, audiences in the entertainment industry can be fickle, but don’t we all face the challenge of remaining relevant in our chosen careers? Last night, I watched her performance during the Super Bowl and then [...]

Continue Reading1

The 2012 Plan

January 2, 2012
Thumbnail image for The 2012 Plan

Planning works. A year ago, I shared The 2011 Plan and last week I shared the success story of that plan when I wrote “How to make what you write come true.” Finding a planning method that works for you is, unfortunately, not so easy. I’ve settled on a method that combines Chris Brogan’s three [...]

Continue Reading3

Urgency

December 9, 2011

As another year comes to a close… Stop to ponder where you are compared to where you wanted to be. You’ve accomplished a great deal, right? Yet, it doesn’t feel like enough. You had bigger plans for this year. Now what? It’s simple really. The year is not over … not yet. Face what’s left [...]

Continue Reading0

Be like the Badgers – stick to your game plan and play in the Rose Bowl

December 5, 2011
Thumbnail image for Be like the Badgers – stick to your game plan and play in the Rose Bowl

This past Saturday night, the Wisconsin Badgers defeated the Michigan State Spartans in the first ever Big 10 championship game and secured a coveted spot to play in the Rose Bowl. If you’re not a college football fan, just trust me that this is a big deal for the team. This was not an easy [...]

Continue Reading0

Use your experience

November 25, 2011
Thumbnail image for Use your experience

The other day I was watching our cat, Patches, as I started to grind some coffee. She froze and looked around. It was a far cry from the reaction she had a dozen years ago as a kitten in this house. Back then, she would have taken off running. It would have likely ended with [...]

Continue Reading0

← Previous Entries