ASK YOURSELF THE HARD QUESTIONS TO GET AN EASY LIFE!
ASK YOURSELF THE HARD QUESTIONS TO GET AN EASY LIFE!
Mark and Alex looked at each other dumbfounded. Both men had
been far too busy in their first six months trading together to
sit down and ask themselves the four key questions vital to
business success.
At first, the two partners - each with more than ten years
experience in the financial services sector - had been
exhilarated with the amount of lucrative business their new
venture was attracting. Six months down the line however, was a
different story. Both men complained of feeling "burned out" and
disappointed with the discovery that running a company wasn't as
much fun as they had first hoped.
My first question to the pair - which had been met with a blank
look - was "What is the purpose of your business?" Their
immediate response had been that they had decided to work
together in a bid to share costs and earn a higher income. I
repeated the question, and as our discussion ensued, Alex began
to realise that they had never questioned the venture's purpose
- and had mistakenly believed that their short term objectives
of making money was the company's purpose.
In order to discover the company's purpose, there were three
more vital questions that needed to be posed and I decided to
approach them in one hit. "One of the seven habits of highly
effective people (as Steven Covey expressed in his book of the
same name) is to 'Start with the end in mind'. So - what is your
vision for the company; when will it be achieved - and what will
you do when the vision is accomplished?"
Mark started to laugh nervously and said that with the company
in its infancy, surely it was too early to start planning for
the future. "But what better time to plan than now?" I asked,
adding that failing to plan at this stage was tantamount to
planning to fail in the future.
Alex could see the validity of the questions, repeating for
Mark's benefit that it would be very hard for the pair to
"arrive" if they didn't actually know where they were going.
With a little more gentle probing, Mark began to realise that he
had never taken time out in his life to plan for anything -
instead just hoping that his natural charm and optimism would
get him through life.
"You know how successful you are now?" I asked Mark. "Well,
imagine just how much more successful you could be if you were
to have a vision, some SMART (Specific, Measurable, Achievable,
Ritten & Timed) goals together with an action plan."
Mark acknowledged the truth of my statement and, turning to Alex
suggested that the pair use the rest of our time together to
plan for the future. This aim however, was not easily achieved -
not least because Mark and Alex had different dreams for the
future. Having never discussed the matter between them, Alex
hadn't realised that Mark envisaged ultimately selling the
business. Worse, Mark wanted to retire at 55 and sail the world
with his new wife - a dream he had kept firmly to himself. In
reality, this meant that Mark wanted to build - and sell - a
successful business within a ten year timeframe.
Alex however, had a completely different view of the future. He
wanted to leave a legacy - not only to his children but also to
the community in which he had grown up. One of Alex's key
drivers was that he wanted to show that he was capable of
success - proving not only his parents wrong but also his
teachers! While Alex wasn't planning on creating a huge
conglomerate, he did want to continue - in his retirement years
- to be involved with a thriving business in the capacity of a
consultant.
As the discussion continued, it was clear that both men did
agree that they wanted to build up a going concern within a
decade. However if they were to realise their future visions,
they would need to start thinking laterally now. One solution,
for example, would be for Alex to buy out Mark's share of the
company in ten years time - thus enabling both men to live out
their personal dreams in retirement.
Earlier in the session, Mark had been complaining how fast time
was flying - remarking that the first six months of trading had
"gone in the blink of an eye". "Well," I smiled, "if you want to
build up your business within ten years - you have only 20
blinks of an eye left!" The point hit home, and Mark - with a
nervous laugh - sank back in his chair and told Alex in no
uncertain terms that they had better start working on their
goals immediately!
Agreeing that we would all meet again in a month's time, Mark
and Alex said - to my delight - that the session had been very
worthwhile as it had forced them to think about the really
important questions that both had spent most of their lives
trying to avoid. Finally, as he was walking through the door,
Alex quipped, "I guess that if you ask yourself the easy
questions you get a hard life - but if you ask yourself the hard
questions you get an easy life!"