I've never been one for blindly following orders,
and quite frankly, it earned me a reputation as
a pain in kiester in a couple of sales organiztions.
But sometimes the marching orders you are
given are tantamount to shooting yourself
instead of your competition.
There's a good joke that illustrates this
phenomenon well.
A young married couple moves into a new
apartment and decide to repair the dining
room. They call on a neighbor who has the
same size dining room and ask, "How many
rolls of wallpaper did you buy when you
repapered your dining room?"
"Seven," he says.
So the couple buys seven rolls of expensive
paper, and they start papering. When they
get to the end of the fourth roll, the dining
room is finished. Annoyed, they go back to
the neighbor and say, "We followed your
advice, but we ended up with three extra rolls!"
"So," he says, "that happened to you too."
Which is why I ask a lot of questions.
Sometimes when you ask a lot of questions
you find answers to things you didn't even
know needed fixing. Or you find out that a
project you assigned to someone doesn't
really fit their skill set, and would be better
off in someone elses hands.
You might even find out that your own brilliant
idea has serious flaws that you couldn't see.
Ask a lot of questions, and encourage your
people to do the same.
There will be a time to put an end to the
questions and get moving, but that decision
is yours, and with a little practice you'll know
when that is.
From the big saddle,
Jim Whelan
The Chairman of the Board
P.S. Why haven't you contacted the fastest
growing ad agency in the country? Are your
sales as good as they could be? Could you
stand to make a little more dough?
thejamesrwhelanagency.com
206 407 3124
Leave a comment