The driveway to my home has a small section where there is asphalt. The other part of the driveway has loose stones. A few months ago a hole appeared in the asphalt. Not too long after another hole appeared. Now these are relatively small holes we are talking about. In size they are each six to eight inches in diameter tops, at least in the beginning.
A neighbor stopped by one day and he said these may have developed because there were small tunnels underneath the asphalt that were dug by chipmunks or squirrels. This might be true or he was pulling my acorn, who knows. What remained is there were two holes.
As we all do – our lives get busy and we are off in a hundred different directions every ten seconds. But here is the thing about holes…The holes get bigger. This is especially true for holes in asphalt when there are large swings in temperature combined with rain and cars and heavy delivery trucks, bringing the Amazon orders, driving over them.
A lot bigger!
Unfortunately as the holes get bigger – the holes get bigger – faster. A lot faster!
Here is the thing – where do we, any of us, willingly and knowingly look the other way when there is something just not right in our business?
This might be in the overall strategy or plan.
It might be due to the lack of either a strategy or a plan or the lack of both. This might be in the marketing language or methods utilized. Every business needs an online presence – does the one utilized reflect the business in the way it should?
Do you have a team?
People who work with you. Do you overlook certain things from some of your team members? Maybe deadlines are always missed or they are not responsive to feedback.
Think about it. Go ahead and post in the comments area some of the holes you are able to identify right now – in your business. How will you start to repair these – now?
Just like the holes in my driveway, in the asphalt, the best course of action is once the holes are identified in your business, begin to take action to repair them immediately.
Otherwise these holes will get bigger. We all know what happens when the holes get bigger, right?
The holes get bigger. Then they get bigger faster!
Consider one example – the team member who misses deadlines, does not take feedback in a positive way and goes missing for periods of time – not responding to phone, emails or text messages – even though these are part of the job. If this team member is not handled in an appropriate manner and the behavior described is ignored, other team members who are impacted will either begin to behave the same way or potentially seek positions in another organization to distance themselves. Overall this will eventually disrupt a good team and a good culture through not conducting leadership qualities and mentoring, coaching or potentially dismissing the team member.
In summary, when you identify an issue do not wait for it to just go away. It won’t go away all by itself. Scope it out and begin to fix it right away.
Need assistance identifying gaps or in how to fix the holes in your business you have identified – contact Mitch Tublin for a consultation.
Mitch Tublin runs a boutique consulting firm where adding value to individuals, teams, organizations and companies is the mission. The main focus is typically on establishing effective communication, setting clear and concise goals and strategies and developing leaders throughout all levels
