9 Hard Lessons I Learned About Freelancing

free·lance (ˈfrēˌlans/) – working for different companies at different times rather than being permanently employed by one company.

This is what I have spent the majority of my time doing for the past few months. My plan is to turn freelancing projects into longer-term sustainable income, add salespeople, add designers and freelancers of my own, and continue to grow the business. But right now, I’m just doing a lot of freelance work.

I am creating websites, managing organizations’ social media accounts, and I am using my knowledge of content marketing and SEO (Search Engine Optimization) to get people as close to the first page of Google as possible. It’s a wide array of work, but it’s taught me very valuable lessons as I weave my way through these unique projects. In no specific order, here are 9 lessons I learned about freelancing.

Always Get Paid

What was the last thing you got for free? Did you enjoy it? Did you savor it? Or did you just think, “Well this is nice….” and took it for granted.

People do not value free services. So when you work for free you are A.) Showing that your value is $0 and B.) Your opinion/work/expertise will not be valued like it would have been if someone had to pay you for your time.

Everyone wants something for free, but that’s because it’s free, not because they actually want it. Find the people who need your services. You won’t have a hard time getting those people to pay you.

Pricing: Err on the High End

One of the most important things I used to tell people when they were learning to sell furniture was to start high when quoting a price. You can always go down, but it’s almost impossible to go up.

The first price you quote will be the best possible scenario. Make sure it’s planned and calculated, not just randomly tossed out there. The same rule applies here: make sure your first price is the one you are comfortable with, even if there are still some details to work out.

Over-communicate

Most customer service issues are not caused by people being treated poorly. Most customer service issues arise from customers perceiving that nobody is taking care of them. This perception comes from a lack of communication.

Communicating effectively shows customers that you are working on their problems. It shows them that you care about them and you acknowledge that they are paying you for services. When people are confident that you are working on their issues, they are more lenient with you, even if something is going wrong.

It’s when you ignore them that you will find major problems. Ignorance is not bliss when it comes to customer service. Customers want to know what is happening every step of the way, even if it is simply to say,

“Hi Mr. ______, I am working on your project today and I’ll send you a complete update by the end of the week. Have a nice day.”

A note like this can go a long way, especially IF something does go wrong. You have proven to be trustworthy and they know that you will tell them what’s going on as you fix the problem.

Keep Great Records

Since my ultimate goal is to turn these freelancing gigs into a long-term sustainable business, I need to keep track of what I am doing so I can replicate it or teach others. I cannot do that off of memory alone, I have to document my processes. When I can show someone how I work, I can show them how to work for me.

Every time I take on communication with a customer, I try to do it the same way and tweak it when I see opportunity. Every time I work, I document my time so I get used to billing people by the hour. Every time I gain a new client, I record how I gained their trust.

I do not document just because I am going to scale this, it is because practice makes perfect when it comes to making sales. Here are some more insights on how to close more sales.

Make Sure YOUR Goals Match THEIR Goals

I made a website for someone recently and when it was finished I had my chest puffed out and I was strutting around thinking I did a pretty good job. *pats myself on the back*

Until I talked with my customer. He didn’t have the same aesthetic goals that I did. He did not like what I did whatsoever, and that was because our goals didn’t match going into the project. He wanted the shortest amount of copy possible and I wanted to draw it out longer to keep people on the site and stuff it with keywords.

In the end, it didn’t matter what I wanted because it is his website and he is paying me for it. I learned that I need to do a much better job of clarifying objectives in the beginning to make sure my goals match customers’ goals before I spend a bunch of time doing the “wrong” thing for them.

Always Be Prospecting

I overheard a conversation about a business that would go through great spurts of work with clients but then they would dip because they didn’t have more customers lined up. They would have to shift gears and prospect hard to get a client or two. Then they would go back and focus all their energies back on those clients.

The cyclical work created dips in their business and made cash-flow difficult to manage. If you are always prospecting and working on potential clients, you will have fewer dips in your business. Just because your hands are full today doesn’t mean that they won’t be empty next week.

Freelancing is hard for many reasons. But because you have to do your technical work AND your sales/marketing at the same time, you need to be able to wear multiple hats. Being able to work on the technical stuff as well as prospecting at the same time will help you avoid those dips in business.

*One way to help this is to ask for referrals or recommendations from your work. Written recommendations (from prior customers) can be very effective when courting new clients and referrals are the strongest leads known to man, these are two very effective ways to prospect.*

Up-Sell Your Current Customers

It’s not a surprise to read that it costs more to get new customers than it does to sell more to current customers. But it’s so obvious that we often forget it. Your current customers know you, trust you (hopefully), and are used to how you work. You have to work for all those with new clients.

How can you offer more value to your clients? If you offer logo design, can you offer business card creation services? If you offer social media marketing, can you offer email marketing services? If you offer sectionals, can you offer rugs to match?

Find what compliments your work and ask your customers if they need those services/products. The worst thing that can happen is they say, “No thanks, but I’ll keep you in mind when I do.” But if they do need those services, put together a package and offer it to them for a reasonable price.

Continuing Education

When you continue to learn, your bag of tricks expands. You can now offer that client twice as much value (see above point). Which means you can charge for new things OR you can charge higher prices since your skills (in theory) are in higher demand.

Education helps us to gain more knowledge. More often than not, experience shows us what not to do. Pair those together and you’ve got a leg up on every competitor out there.

Some people think that they have to be the master of a craft to freelance. I whole-heartedly disagree. You just need to know a bit more than your clients, keep learning and keep expanding your potential client pool.

Expect the Unexpected

Back to the website creation example: I finished this website thinking it was great. The client didn’t necessarily agree. I thought he wanted to be as close to the top of search engines as possible, which is what drove many of my decisions.

In reality, he wanted the simplest-looking site possible. That was more important to him that being on top of the search engines. I couldn’t fathom that he would rather have less copy on his site, effectively putting him further down the rankings.

But he couldn’t fathom putting so much text on his site. And when we finally met in the middle, we were already 25+ days into the 30-day process. If that would have happened on a larger project with a firm deadline, I would have been in trouble. Everything worked out great and everyone is happy, but I did NOT see that one coming.

Because I wasn’t prepared, I had to spend more time on the project than anticipated. It wasn’t a bad thing, it was just a learning experience. I’m glad it happened because it taught me to do a better job of fact-finding when starting new projects.

As I said, freelancing is difficult. You have to be disciplined and stay on top of your game, even more so than if you have a manager looking over your shoulder. But at the end of the day it can be very rewarding and if you keep good records, you can find ways turn your freelance work into a sustainable business.

What other lessons have YOU learned from doing freelance work?

—

I’d love to hear what you have to say about freelancing and building a business from this process. Leave me a comment below or chat with me on Twitter: @mikemccann3

Have a great week!

Want posts send directly to your email?

Fill out the simple form below and check your email to confirm!

Veins in Weird Places: The Importance of Celebrating Progress

Growing up watching football with my Dad, a lifetime football coach, all I ever wanted to do was be a football star. Football is a sport that requires mental toughness, physical strength, and speed. I was fortunate enough to have 2 of those to make for a decent ballplayer.

When I first started training for football by lifting weights, I was 15 years old. My parents wouldn’t let me start any younger than that. They thought it might stunt my growth in the long run. But when I was finally allowed to lift weights, it was on!

I loved lifting weights and being able to compare myself to my peers. I also began to notice a change in my body, I started to see progress. Celebrating progress drove me to want to work even harder in the weight room.

The Need to Meet our Needs

As a company, it’s easy to get into the routine of showing up, clocking in, eating lunch, clocking out, and hitting repeat. There’s no excitement, there’s no celebration, there’s no real drive to want to go to work. We just do it for a paycheck.

Some of the second highest needs we have, according to Maslow’s Hierarchy, are achievement and self esteem. Some of the top needs are creativity, spontaneity, and problem-solving. We long for each of these to be met after our basic physiological and safety needs have been taken care of.

In any company, there should be some clear cut goals, or maybe a vision, or even a mission statement. Something that is the driver of the business. If it’s a good one, it’s measurable. It doesn’t necessarily matter what that goal is, it matters that you have something for people to work towards.

Now take that boring, clock-in/clock-out example and infuse it with some spontaneous celebration of progress towards your company mission! At that point you are praising your team’s achievements. This should be accompanied by telling them how proud you are of their work, which builds their self-esteem. On the way to that celebration they more than likely had to solve problems and use their creative powers to get that job done.

Now that the team knows that they are doing good things because their achievements have been recognized, this builds their confidence and this will get them excited to accomplish that big goal.

Intrinsic Motivation

Sports are amazing developers for children and I know that when I have kids someday, I will encourage them to play sports of some kind. I learned how to interact socially with diverse groups of people, I learned to compete, and I learned what it was like to come together for a common goal.

I also learned what it was like to push myself and not rely solely on the competition of others to drive me to work hard. Early on I realized that not everyone held themselves to the standard I did.

Learning to delay gratification for something you really want is a lost art. Sport makes you come to grips with the fact that the work you put in today won’t be realized until the season starts. Which, in some cases, could be months away. And even then it’s not guaranteed.

So you learn to celebrate the little stuff. For a 15 year meat-head football player, it’s getting that first vein that pops out of your bicep.

Don’t Celebrate Your Day Job

Now some people might take this advice to the extreme. This is not permission to rip your shirt off after every sale or do a touchdown dance after every customer service case is closed.

Celebrating what you are expected to do is frivolous. And if you get used to hearing, “Great Job!” every time you do something right, you may not want to do anything unless you are rewarded.

It’s kinda like giving every kid a trophy, even if they didn’t win. The celebration of mediocrity is rampant in today’s culture and that’s one of the reasons we had the whole 99%’er ordeal happen in 2011.

Instead, celebrate the milestones of your work. When a salesperson closes her biggest sale, make a big deal out of it. When a customer service rep handles more cases in a day than anyone has, celebrate his achievement. Or when your company makes a big leap forward, stop to take a minute and celebrate that little win.

Staying on Track

In a positive work environment, it’s hard not to like what you do. One way to keep things positive is to always keep the company mission, vision, or major goal in front of everyone and show them progress. Working for a common goal brings people together.

If you have a goal to do $1,000,000 in revenue, make an announcement when you hit every $100,000 marker on the way to remind people how close you are getting. This will show them that their daily work is being realized, even if they cannot see it. If gratification is delayed too much, people may begin to lose hope.

Seeing that progress helps us stay focused on what we are trying to accomplish. Seeing that we are just one step closer with every milestone is the best way to stay focused on a big goal that isn’t going to be realized in the immediate short-term.

If not, we tend to forget why we are sacrificing so much. It can be quite disheartening for someone to set their sights high and be let down when they don’t realize their goal.

But if we are measuring and celebrating progress, we know how far we have come and we can enjoy the journey instead of creating a “make or break” atmosphere for our objectives. And when that pressure comes off, people will perform better every step of the way.

So whether it’s finding that first vein in your bicep or celebrating your first $100,000 in sales, be sure to look out for the milestones of the journey. Make that path exciting and your people will work as hard as ever to be sure it’s realized.

—

How do you celebrate progress on the way to your goals?

Have a great week!

—

Want posts send directly to your email?

Fill out the simple form below and check your email to confirm!

Bigger Is Not Always Better

A number of factors play into what motivates each of us: our past, our goals, our socioeconomic status, who we surround ourselves with, and more. But are we pushing ourselves for the wrong reasons?

As with much of this blog, my personal experiences shape my writing. The idea that bigger is not always better has been rushing through my mind in many forms for a long time now.

When I stopped playing football I wanted to lose weight. When work gets complex, I always look to take away instead of add more. And now, it’s about doing something that matters instead of something to brag about.

FASTER

Last week I was making some grammatical and typographical errors and I realized I needed to slow down my writing. I was speeding through my work and not giving it the attention it deserves. I have started to accumulate more paid work and for a brief moment, my blog became a chore. I felt I needed to rush through that chore as fast as possible to get to the other work.

When I slowed down, I realized that I still love to write and that I should enjoy it rather than speed through it. I won’t be writing 5 days per week anymore simply because I cannot put out quality content every day like I used to. That’s hard to say, and it took some humbling of my ego to write.

But 2 or 3 days of high(er) quality work are better than 5 days of mediocrity. So I’m taking a deep breathe, stepping back, and I’ll be working on improving my writing.

One of the things I wanted to do when I started this blog was write for 90 days straight, and I did. I found “my voice” during that period. Now it’s time to work on my mechanics and bring up the quality of content I am providing.

Some readers might get the impression that I am burning out, but that is not the case. In fact, it is quite the opposite. I feel more passionate than ever about my writing, which is the reason I want to make these specific improvements.

BIGGER

Katie & I watched a documentary the other night about steroids in America. It followed 3 brothers that grew up in the same house, 2 of them regularly took steroids and 1 of them didn’t. It showed many sides of the argument for and against steroids and it was a well-rounded look at how we view performance enhancers in our modern day society.

Bigger, Stronger, Faster explores the “win at all costs” mentality that we seem to idolize here in America. The middle brother (the film-maker) went through an on-screen struggle of whether or not he should believe that he needs to be bigger (through steroids) to be happy with his life. You can see where his view of success is different than his brothers’ and how he starts to realize that being the biggest isn’t always what makes one happy.

Many of the people they interviewed were larger than life – literally and physically. But most of them had very real issues and they were not proud of who they had become. Some had to lie to spouses about their steroid use, others lived in denial about their obsessions to be biggest, and some justified their actions by saying, “Everyone’s doing it.” Whatever helps them sleep at night I guess.

It seemed as though most of the people were searching to fill a void in their life. The middle brother is the only one that realized whatever he was missing wasn’t going to be found by using steroids.

It’s sad to think how many people are like the other 2 brothers: obsessed with being the best, or the biggest, and the richest. We’ve all been there at some point or another, it is a hard to trap to get out of. And we’ve all seen people push family and friends aside because of one ego-maniacal pursuit. They forget who they are, where they come from, how they got there, and the people that mean the most to them.

STRONGER

Instead of being the biggest, richest, or the fastest, I want to be the strongest. To have the strongest relationships I can. To put out the strongest quality of work I can. To be the strongest learner I can. To be the strongest in the areas that allow me to help others.

I have realized that what I do with my life isn’t about how much money I make or what title I have. It’s not about being the biggest. Over the past few months I’ve been able to volunteer, spend time with my family, and work on who I want to be. I have had a much more fulfilling personal journey than I ever could have imagined when I stepped out on my own.

In other words, I have realized that life is about quality, not quantity.

In which areas of life or work can you improve the quality and focus less on the quantity?

—

Have a great day!

If you have signed up for posts by email, I have just switched services so you will be receiving emails from a new system each morning at 9:00 AM. Please check your spam folders and add me to your contacts list to make sure you are getting the messages.

—

Want posts send directly to your email?

Fill out the simple form below and check your email to confirm!

The Terrace Movie Theatre is the Embodiment of Locally-Owned

For a long time it seemed that big corporations were taking over the world. Wal-Marts popped up everywhere, you couldn’t go 2 blocks without seeing a Starbucks, and McDonald’s was more of a house-hold name than ever.Then we started to see a paradigm shift.

Small businesses began to fight back against “the man” and today we’re seeing more and more people that have their own small businesses. It’s great to see that there are still locally owned establishments that do things their own way. People still want to create community establishments.

The Differences

Since The Terrace Movie Theatre is not part of a large franchise, they can pretty much serve what they want. They are the true embodiment of locally-owned.They have a wide variety of traditional “movie” foods like popcorn and sodas. But they also carry over 50 varieties of beer and wine.

They don’t always show the biggest blockbusters out, but they always have the films that are critically acclaimed (such as Monuments Men). If they don’t want to show a film, they don’t have to. Nobody is pushing movies down their throat.

When establishments have more leeway to serve their customers, they are able to create better experiences. Think about it, when was the last time you walked into a Wal-Mart and thought, “This place is so unique!” and then got blown away by customer service. Odds are pretty slim. The more creativity an establishment can operate with, the better experiences it is able to create for it’s patrons.

Trust is Gone

Yes, the Terrace Movie Theatre is awesome. But the large companies are as much to blame for this shift. I’m not necessarily speaking about the movie industry and its big players, such as Regal. Rather, large companies in general have lost our trust.

A number of years ago, the American public was completely let down by huge companies ranging from Enron to Wells Fargo to GM and Chrysler. This is also the time we start to hear how bad McDonald’s really is for us. We couldn’t invest, go to the bank, buy a car, or eat anywhere that we trusted when it came to the “big brands” of the day.

People are getting tired of being screwed over by large companies they cannot trust. So many of us start our own establishments and begin to support more local businesses since we know how hard it is to make a small business thrive. Thus, the paradigm shift back to locally owned businesses.

Community Involvement

Yesterday, I wrote about a film I saw about a blind surfer. The Derek Rabelo touched me and I was inspired by it. That wouldn’t have happened without The Terrace Movie Theatre holding a private showing.

When we came to the movie there were some brief announcements about how the night was going to play out. First, the owner (who is there nearly every time I am) came out and introduced himself and said how excited he was to be able to house everyone that night and that he was glad to be a part of it. The house was packed and they nearly sold out 3 theatres for this screening, all for this single movie!

Then the guy who brought the movie to The Terrace (a local christian surf organization) came up and spoke about the raffle they were going to do after the show. Usually after a movie, everyone bolts as soon as they can. The Terrace even allowed the organization to raffle off a surfboard and 8 other door prizes after the movie was done. And did I mention this was on a Friday night? Usually on a Friday night, movie theatres want people in and out as fast as humanly possible to get the next round of people seated.

Not only does The Terrace get involved with productions such as this, it’s where I go to church. The Terrace rents out their main theatre to Seacoast James Island every Sunday so we can hold service (we don’t have a physical building yet). They are open to working with the community in many ways, some that most of us would never even imagine.

Local is better

I’m sure The Terrace benefits from both of these methods of community involvement, as any opportunistic business would. However, that’s what makes this place unique, the giant movie theatre at the mall would never do any of these things for the community.

When we support local businesses, like The Terrace, we encourage entrepreneurship, we keep more jobs in the community, we lower our taxes, and we even conserve the environment.* What local business can you choose over a big company this week?

—

Have a great week!

—

Want posts send directly to your email?

Fill out the simple form below and check your email to confirm!

*What Happens When You Shop Local

This Kid is a Blind Surfer… What’s your Excuse?

I am an avid movie watcher. I’m not a film critic or an aficionado, I just love to go to the movies. It stems from my youth, my brother & I love to take my Dad to action films. If something blows up, he’s in heaven.

Friday we (Katie & I) went to see a film that didn’t exactly go BOOM, but I was still blown away. I am a sucker for inspirational quotes, motivational sayings, and above all else, stories of triumph. Derek Rabelo has a story that is all of that and more. He left me in awe of what someone can accomplish when they set their mind to it.

The Story

Derek Rabelo was born blind in Brazil in 1992. He has never been able to see the water, but it’s always been part of his life. His father owned a surf shop and by the time Derek was a teenager, he was ready to start taking on the ocean.

His story was picked up by a number of people that were inspired by his determination, lack of fear, and love for surfing. The film documents Derek’s journey from Brazil to California to Hawaii in search of his ultimate goal: To catch a barrel at Pipeline.

Derek and Laird

Along the way, Derek gets to meet and surf with legends like Kelly Slater, Laird Hamilton (who’s 50 and still more ripped than anyone half his age), Bethany Hamilton, Rob Machado, and more. Each of these pros gives him advice on the way to his goal, and each of them are in awe of what he continues to accomplish.

The film has a plot-line that delves into Derek’s faith as a Christian. Like all of us, he goes through good times and bad. It’s how he deals with the adversity that enables him to accomplish what he has in life.

If you can’t tell, I thoroughly enjoyed this movie and I would recommend it to anyone, whether you surf or not. Beyond Sight is the name of the film. If you are in Charleston, we saw it at The Terrace Theatre on James Island.

Inspirational Surfing

Derek and Rob

As a Beach Rat and Lifeguard, I spent the first 18 years of my life in or around the water. I know how hard it is to hear the waves coming or to stay afloat when you are temporarily blinded by hair or water in your eyes. But permanently blind???

What Derek continues to accomplish is mind-blowing. He has completely thrown out the notion that he has a handicap. He does not want people’s pity, he does not want someone to make it easier for him. He is playing the hand he was dealt and he is making the most of his situation.

Goals are something I talk about a lot. And there is always adversity when trying to accomplish something big. If there’s no adversity, your goals are big enough!

A while back I asked what you would do if you knew you couldn’t fail. Derek has approached surfing and his life-long goals with this attitude, there is nothing too big for him.

Many of us, myself included, make excuses for not doing things. We let The Resistance beat us. Or we allow ourselves to get distracted. We give in and say, “It’s impossible,” or, “I don’t have the skills.” We take the easy way out. We can all use a little inspiration from Derek and his story.

This kid found a way to surf BLIND. What’s your excuse?

—

Have a great week!

—

Want posts send directly to your email?

Fill out the simple form below and check your email to confirm!

Baring the Burden of Leadership (& enjoying it’s Luxuries)

Leadership can be a luxury or it can be a burden… depending on who you ask. Some people are wired to be leaders and some aren’t. Some want to be leaders, others don’t.

Some people want to be seen as leaders, but don’t have the apathy for it. Other’s have all the intrinsic tools, but aren’t brave enough for it. And still some, think they are leaders when they are merely dictators.

In order to earn the “luxuries” of leadership, we must first be willing to suffer the burden of it’s hardships. Let’s take a look at what makes great leaders and why they do it.

Burden of Leadership

People don’t want their time wasted by someone selling them the idea of leadership. People want a leader that makes real sacrifices for them. And yes, you read that correctly, people want to be lead.

They want to follow someone that lives their life with character and cares about others’ well being all the times. Not just in front of the camera or when it is convenient for them.

All leaders have to sacrifice. Leadership is difficult and the title of Leader does not just get placed on anyone. It is earned through hard work. These are some of the things great leaders are willing to take on for their people and from their people.

Criticism – Their every move will be watched & judged, and it won’t always be nice and pretty
Transparency – They will have to be open or people will think they have false motives
Character – If they say one thing, but do another, they cannot expect respect
Expectations – They are the tip of the spear, they have to set the bar and be the first one to step out into the unknown
Tough (moral) Decisions – They are only as good as their last decision, what they stand for will constantly be challenged
Serving Others – Taking the focus off of themselves is the hardest thing many of them have to do
Giving Respect – To everyone, even the janitor: If they demand it but don’t give it, they will receive is a smile to the face and the bird behind the back
Being Selfless – Putting the needs of the group ahead of their own is where many people can’t make the cut
Accept the Blame – They accept responsibility for mistakes, even if it was not their fault
Deflect the Praise – They put the praise onto their team, they do not accept it for themselves because they know they are nothing without the people around them

It’s Not for Everyone

There is a reason that so many people study leadership, it is uncommon. If everyone had it, there wouldn’t be courses, books, and entire school dedicated to it. Think about it, there are not books on blinking… everyone can blink! It’s hard to lead. For some, that’s all they strive for. For others, they can’t run far enough away from it.

And that’s fine. Not everyone needs to or should lead. If you feel you need to lead out of obligation, you aren’t doing anyone a favor.

Some people think that they have to be leaders in every situation. These are often the ones that confuse control with leadership. Learning to follow is a part of leadership, and it’s one thing that requires putting pride on the shelf. If you cannot do that, you cannot be an effective leader.

If you struggle with that whole ‘pride’ thing, you probably won’t get the whole ‘admitting you are wrong’ thing either. If this is something you can’t do, leadership probably isn’t in the cards for you.

“Luxuries” of Leadership

The “luxuries” I’ve been talking about are not end goals that people look to attain, they are byproducts of leadership.

If you are the type of person on the hunt for these, your motives are petty and this should be your wake-up call. If you want to be a leader, your motivation has to be pure and you have to be self-less.

By definition, “self-less” means having little concern for one’s own interests. And if you want to be a leader for all the things that come with the territory, people are going to see right through you.

Real Payoffs

Yes, there are plenty of things that make leadership hard. In fact, I’d argue that in numbers, there are more things that make leadership difficult than there are payoffs. But that payoff it big and it’s sweet. And that’s what makes them so special to us!

My generation, Y (& X too), doesn’t have the patience that our predecessors do. We are not used to having to wait… for anything. And leadership is not something that produces instant gratification. Hence one of the reasons a lot of young people struggle with leadership, they aren’t willing to put in the time.

Nor does being a leader produce tangible things like awards, plaques, or titles. Sure, you may get some of those things as a byproduct of your leadership, but real leaders aren’t motivated by those. They are driven by the people that surround them.

The payoff of being a leader comes back in waves from your people. If you ask anyone that has received these, they will tell you the same thing. This is not what they were in search of, these just came. And they made all the hardships worth it in the end.

Earned Respect – Not to be confused with respect from fear or power.
Guidance – When people look up to you they will ask you to help them. There is no better feeling than helping someone pull through a tough time or helping them transform themselves.
Trust – If you are doing your job well, people will put their lives in your hands. That is all the motivation some of us need to get out of bed in the morning.
Serving Others – Leaders help people accomplish their dreams. If that in itself is not a reward, than you have some soul searching to do!
Humility – Nothing compares to the sensation of people working hard for you to make you proud. And when you realize what they sacrifice for you, it will bring you down a notch and make you appreciate them even more.

If you are willing to endure the hardships and bare the burden of leadership, you really love your people. Otherwise, those acts are torture and it will be written on your face. People see through false motives, but they also see when someone pours their heart and soul into others and into their work.

What do people see when they look at you?

—

Leadership is not a science, it’s an art. Who are some of the great leaders you’ve had the chance to work with or study?

Have a great weekend!

—

Want posts send directly to your email?

Fill out the simple form below and check your email to confirm!

Carpentry 101: Measure Twice but Cut Once

Sometimes when you write as often as I do, you feel like you are going to change the world with your words. And then as soon as you hit publish….CRICKETS. Other times, you think your words should have been trashed and somehow that gets more attention than you ever imagined.

Still other times, you get called out for one thing or another. This week I’ve been sloppy with my editing (I really hope I edited this well enough to talk about it) and the comments I’ve received brought me down a peg or two. Since Wednesday was a rushed morning, I decided to resist hitting “Publish” and wait another day until I could properly edit and proofread my work.

Grammatical Errors

Last week I received a comment from someone about some sloppy errors that I made while hurrying through a post I really wanted to get out there. It was important (to me) and I ~~knew~~ thought it had the potential to receive a lot of attention in the form of traffic to my site. As soon as I was called out, I went back and skimmed through my work. Sure enough, I found a number of simple errors.

Problem fixed, right?

Less than a week after that, I receive another message about sloppy mistakes. Again, I sheepishly went through and fixed the errors so my blog doesn’t look like an 8th grader penned it. The second time through is what it took for the error of my ways to really sink in.

When I first started, I used to thoroughly edit each post before I published it since I’ve been known to have simple, sloppy mistakes like these. But somehow I got too comfortable and I’ve reduced that editing process to a skim, thinking I’ve overcome my sloppiness.

Sometimes technology does that to us. We think that we’ve mastered a craft because we move faster on it. I can type way faster than I can write with pen and paper. But if I wrote long-hand instead of typed, I would make exponentially fewer mistakes. But you wouldn’t be able to read my handwriting.

Measure Twice, Cut Once

A guy I worked with for years was a carpenter in his previous life. He had lots of odd sayings and a temper that was as short as a candle wick. When he was doing woodwork he would constantly bark, “Measure twice but cut once. We don’t have time to go back and redo all this.”

I obviously forgot that saying when I was rushing through my recent posts. In carpentry, once you make a cut you’re stuck with it. You can’t go back and “uncut” wood, you have to start with a fresh piece or shave something down to fit. A good carpenter needs fewer pieces of lumber because he makes precision cuts.

In other words, it takes more time and resources than it would have to just measure a second time. Although I can hit the “Update” button on my blog, I’ve already shown sloppy work and probably lost some credibility.

Lean Startup Methodology

I have talked at length about The Lean Startup and just starting something, which may seem contradictory to this subject.

But allow me to clarify. When we look at lean management, we are talking about intentional experiments. We are not talking about final products, such as blog posts. When using lean management, we know the process/product/service will evolve from it’s current state, that’s the point.

When I’m writing a blog post or typing an email, nothing is planned once I publish it: that’s the end of the process. Nothing changes after I hit “Publish” (unless I get called out for having sloppy grammar).

With lean methodology, there are experiments that have desired outcomes and unknown consequences. Meaning we do something to find out what happens next and we plan on making adjustments after that experiment is run. This is not the same thing as rushing through a task and doing it sloppily.

If you don’t have time for a second look…

Then when do you plan on finding time to fix it? Too often, we are more focused on crossing something off our to-do list than we are on doing it correctly. We have driven ourselves to be infinitely productive, yet we’re losing our effectiveness.

One of the biggest areas in which we see this is the health industry. Everyone wants shortcuts and nobody wants to put the time into being healthy. There is no magical formula. Being healthy takes time and takes a lot of work.

It is not uncommon for people to have double bypass surgeries and tell their doctor, “I don’t have time to take 6 months off of work.” Well, that’s double the time it would have taken for them to just walk 15 minutes a day and eat healthier.

Slow it down this week and focus on quality. See how your work changes and see how those around you respond to the quality over quantity approach. It will save you time, resources, and maybe even a double bypass surgery!

Thank you to the individuals that called me out the past two weeks, you’ve helped me take a step back and focus on the quality of my work. This may mean a fewer number of posts from me, but I can assure you that the quality will go up!

—

Tell me about a time when you rushed through a project and put out a sub-par piece of work, I’d love to hear about it in the comments below.

Have a great day!

—

Want posts send directly to your email?

Fill out the simple form below and check your email to confirm!

Why Email is the Death of Customer Service

I recently heard a story about someone attempting to spend a moderate sum on invitations to a bridal shower. It was appalling to hear the type of customer service she received and the way the company communicated with her.

Although I’m all too familiar with a lack of customer service, this story is worth expounding on because it contains some valuable lessons. We have all sorts of ways of communicating with customers, but we need to be accommodating to them and not just do what is convenient for us. In a lot of ways, email is the death of customer service.

For Whom is Email Sufficient?

One massive, sometimes fatal, mistake I see many businesses make is their inability to put themselves in the customers’ shoes. Calling us when we are at work, or emailing us when we would prefer a call. Or faxing us… ever.

For example, someone I know needed some wedding invitations made. There was a very close deadline that was rapidly approaching due to a lack of competence shown by the company making the invites (not the customer). There were some changes made that needed approval the same day. The company knew the deadline was that day, and they just emailed the customer proofs without a follow-up call.

Now something that is not urgent doesn’t require a call, and if they called all of their customers instead of emailing them, that may increase their workload significantly.

But, when that customer has a same-day deadline they need to treat that customer with extra care to ensure the deadline is met. Especially after the company has dropped the ball and created this urgency. In this case, extra care would be a follow-up phone call to make sure the customer knows their proofs have been emailed to them.

It’s a Generational Thing

We, especially those of us that have grown up with email & instant messaging, think it’s OK to only communicate via written word. I have friends that I solely communicate with via text. If they call me I think they’re on their death bed or they are going through a quarter-life crisis.

That sort of communication is OK with me, but not for generations before us. They build trust and confidence through hearing people’s voices and seeing their faces, that is how business has been done most of their lives.

It’s actually quite ironic that we (as a generation) spend so much time on our phones, yet very little of it is actually spent talking with people.

I do fear that many of us (technically Gen Y, although I feel like Gen X) have become too dependent on electronic communication and we lack a lot of the people skills that the generations before us had to develop. Although this is an entirely different subject, where we grew up and our previous experiences play into how we communicate.

Email is Easy

Sometimes an email is needed (as with documents that have specifics and/or photos) but a phone call can set you apart from your competitors when it comes to customer service. This is not a justification that everything we send is that important. There are still plenty of times when we need to use the phone.

One major assumption many of us make is that everyone checks their email all day long, like I don’t. Have you ever had someone call you and say, “Did you get my email? I sent it 30 minutes ago and I haven’t heard from you, just wanted to make sure everything was OK.”

I check my emails once or twice per day unless I am waiting on something urgent or I am expecting something big (this practice alone has saved me hours of productivity).

Some people check their email all day long, which is wasteful and extremely time consuming, but even worse is that they assume everyone else does the same. Still worst of all, they get upset if you don’t check yours constantly, as if you have nothing better to do.

Scared of the Phone

I was very fortunate in that my first two jobs during & out of college forced me to be on the phone and out in front of people. Even if I had been the type to want to type all day (see what I did there?) I would not have been able to do so or I would have failed miserably.

A lot of Gen Y (particularly the youngest of us) is scared of the phone and think that only pissed off people lie on the other side of it. That’s not true!

There are tons of happy people on the phone, but we don’t know that because the only time we use it is when we are forced to. By that time, the person on the other side is definitely pissed. Which could have been avoided if we would have just called them in the first place.

Over-Communicate

The moral of the story is to find the right communication mediums for your customers and use it. If it’s an urgent matter, do not leave your communication up to email. Phone calls show urgency and show an extra level of care for your customers.

One of the things I always do for businesses when making their websites is suggest and email or phone call option to hear back from the business. If people don’t want emails, don’t email them. If they prefer to stay off the phone, oblige them.

It’s not about you, it’s about your customers. When we can all learn that, our customer service approval will go through the roof!

—-

Besides Comcast, have you ever had communication issues with a company?

What was the issue?

Leave me a comment below or chat with me on Twitter, I’d love to hear from you.

Have a great day!

Older Posts

Newer Posts