Last week, I posted the first part of a list of rules for you to take with you for your business practices. It was based off a similar list from the Immaculate Heart College Art Department (see below), which I modified.
The original list is geared towards artists and writers, and while I believe there should be artistry in everything you do, I made it more relevant to the telecom industry. Here’s part II
6. Nothing is a mistake. There is no win and no fail. There is only make.
It is not productive to bring up old failures and past successes. Technology, and especially telecommunications, is an industry in constant flux, so what worked in the past or didn’t will not matter. William Polland says, "the arrogance of success is to think that what you did yesterday will be sufficient for tomorrow."
What matters is striving towards improvement. What steps do you need to take to serve more customers in the best way possible? To be the most efficient with your time? To be the most effective with your spending? To improve your product or service so that it works the best? The more you do, the closer you get to answering those questions.
7. The only rule is work. It will always lead to something. Those who do all the work all of the time are the ones who catch on to things.
As a writer or marketer, this means generate content. Even if that content is horrible, the more you generate, the more likely you are to create something brilliant.
Working is more than just showing up on time and doing what you are assigned for eight hours a day. It is more than meeting a quota. You have to do those things, but they are the bare minimum. After all, a wise salesperson once told me that meeting 100% of your quota is just doing your job.
When you go about your daily tasks and responsibilities, you have to think about why you are doing them. What do they do to further your business? If you are doing something, it has an important purpose. Focus on that purpose and get your work done. Set your bare minimum and then do your best to surpass it.
8. Research. Create. Implement. Analyze.
These are four separate processes that must be in constant cycle in order to achieve any modicum of success.
- Research: read blogs, keep up to date on industry news, look at marketing campaigns.
- Create: from your research, design the product or services that best fulfill the industry needs and create a campaign to market in the most effective way possible.
- Implement: use best business practices and services to run your business.
- Analyze: get customer feedback and use it to improve their experience, track the success of your marketing efforts and figure out which methods generated the best leads, fix all the bugs in your system.
Do not go through these processes at the same time; you’ll be revising constantly and not focusing on creation. While creation and implementation are going to be the daily procedures of your business, research and analysis are an extremely worthwhile use of your time. Do not skip these stages.
9. Be happy whenever you can manage it.
Every once in a while, take time to acknowledge your business’s successes and the successes of individual employees. Boosting morale goes a long way, so celebrate when you can.
10. Always be around.
Have a presence at industry tradeshows and conferences. Constantly update your social media pages and engage with your audience. Go to webinars and training classes. Host webinars and training classes. Form partnerships. It pays off eventually, so don't be discouraged if the results aren't apparent at first. Every interaction should be used as an opportunity to build a relationship.
To Conclude
There is one last rule: throw the rules out. Make up your own. Ultimately, it is up to you which pieces of advice you take to heart, and which ones you reject. Andre Gide says, “You cannot discover new oceans unless you have the courage to lose sight of the shore.” The businesses and people who have become the most successful are the ones who threw out the rules, ideas, and business models that had become traditional and safe. Your experiences and the intuition you develop from them will guide you, and, with the right combination of risk, innovation, and rebellion, they could lead you to change your industry.
