We always hear works like, “Compound Interest,” and the “Cumulative Effect,”“Leverage,” and “Exponential Growth.” How does this apply to YOUR business? How can we benefit from this principle of multiplication that is available to all of us, yet is seldom used?
Jeff Olson, in his excellent book, The Slight Edge, tell tells the amazing story of the water hyacinth, one of the most productive and beautiful plants on earth. It grows all around the world. Its reproductive rate astonishes both botanists and ecologists. It grows by doubling itself; this is how it colonizes an area. It sends out short runner stems that become “daughter plants.” (Like a joint Venture.) If a pond surface is fairly still and undisturbed, the water hyacinth may cover the entire pond in thirty days! On the first day, you won’t even notice it. In fact, for the first few weeks, he says, you will have to search very hard to find it. On Day 15, it will cover only about a single square foot of the pond. On Day 20, it will cover about the size of a small mattress. On Day 29, it will cover half of the pond’s surface! On Day 30, the entire pond will be covered by a blanket of water hyacinth. No water will be visible.
The same is true of the bamboo plant. These occur naturally in nature. Very slow, hardly visible growth in the beginning, followed by fast, exponential growth. Why do most of us fail to use and benefit from these principles? Laziness, lack of understanding, no consistency, impatience, a sense of entitlement, no persistence, it doesn’t matter. What does matter is that it is never too late to start over with the right information and the right strategy.
We see giant skyscrapers fly up – one new story stacked on top per day – but the hard work that takes time and shows no height above the ground is the pile-driving and the foundations; the underground work. Most entrepreneurs quit long before the foundations are done. They look at the single square foot of hyacinth on the surface of the pond and say, “That will NEVER cover the pond! Look how long it is taking!” Their knowledgeable competitors know better.
There is another reason why the average business owner never benefits from the cumulative effect of reciprocal, collaborative marketing: inadequate comprehension and no systems. Reading a book or attending a seminar isn’t enough. That’s the “quick fix,” microwave mentality at work. Attend a seminar and immediately hang up a shingle that describes you as the President and an Expert. Cookie-cutter solutions and a “one-size-fits-all” approach doesn’t work to put your bottom line on the fast track. You need experience or the guidance of someone with experience to make it work.
The article I wrote titled The Most Powerful Business Tool You Can Use – Understanding Leverage got an exceptionally good reception because it provides real example and solutions. Too many wanna-be “Consultants” roam around parroting catch phrases and terms they heard or read somewhere without a remote understanding of what they mean and entail in the real world. Here are some things that need to be in place in order to experience hyacinth-like growth:
1. The right environment
2. The right product or service
3. The right target market
4. The the partners
5. The right systems
6. The right guidance
7. The right management of the systems
8. The right attitude towards real growth
9. The right expectations
10. The right team
11. The removal of cost and risk
If any of these eleven component is missing, the thing simply won’t work.
While I coach business owners from a variety of industries, my niche market and specialty is the beauty industry. See FirstClassHairSalon.com.
Comments(3)