Foot surgery recovery continues to go well. In fact I am way ahead of last year’s timeline.
The tough part is the mental struggle of not being able to workout.
But, this too shall pass, soon! 🙂
If nothing else, it’s a great time to reflect on some of the questions I get asked repeatedly.
One question that comes up over and over is, “Where do I cut back when times are tough?”
It’s a fair question in any business, and there are many things to consider, depending on your unique situation.
I was once recruited and hired by a Montessori school to turn things around. When I interviewed, I asked what gave them faith in me. They answered that they had seen what I was able to do with fitness businesses and they were certain my skill set applied to their situation.
They were correct, business is business and it was “Game On.”
I inherited a financial mess. They were out of money, spending beyond their means, being evicted by the landlord, and had developed poor relations with the politicians in the community.
I had a real challenge on my hands, yet I was very confident in where we were going.
The first step was to stop bleeding cash.
In my first staff meeting, I outlined Step #1, “No more paperclips.” No, we were not buying any more paperclips, until we could afford them. The response was in one word, shock.
Then we discussed our strategy. In short, every buying decision was under scrutiny. Did we really need it? Could we get by without it, even temporarily? How could we save even more, where could we save even more?
We had everyone in the same boat, thinking along the same lines, and we had fun with it. One report from an admin showed up on my desk wrapped in a hair band because we were out of staples. I laughed, we all laughed and we were on a mission.
It’s not about the paper clips. It’s about the attitude. We were all on the same page and it was truly amazing what the team came up with.
As the saying goes, every little bit helps.
Ask me how to cut expenses to this day and my answer is paperclips.
Then we have a discussion and lay out a plan everyone can get behind. That’s leadership in tough times. I’ve used this technique more than once and every time we get the same result.
Three years and 1 day after I took the job, the school moved into its own building that it had financed with a local bank, based on the strength of our finances and the management team.
This technique works with every business.
Two years after opening that new school, we were still watching every expense, even though we no longer needed to. We did it because it had become our culture and it was working so well.
Plus it’s a lot of fun to be successful
Feel free to schedule some time with me to discuss your situation without strings attached.
Remember: You only get results if you take action on your ideas. Do it now!
