Blank Sheet of Paper
Well, 2014 is here and I wish you a happy new year. Let’s get rolling...
What if you could relook at all parts of your organization as a blank sheet of paper? Good analogy for this industry, huh? This means you can engage in “as if” thinking. This means thinking in a manner as if you could make the changes you need in your company right away.
We all know that with a new year comes ideas and dreams. However, the difference in the company with an idea and the company with a plan is the latter one has a strategy. I see far too many print related companies, most family run, that live in what I call “someday aisle.” They say someday I’ll do this or that. They say that they are “running ragged” and just don’t have time. They say they are not satisfied with where they are but maybe once they are not slammed in late 2014 or beyond they will do, review or get around to (you fill in the blanks)
Sorry folks this is no good. Top companies in this industry have two to three specific and well-defined goals they seek to accomplish. They know there is never a perfect time to work on bigger picture things. So, they allocate time to accomplish what needs to be looked at with the same matter of importance as a press going down. They are both important, albeit the press must be fixed first, just different in terms of focus.
The late Stephen Covey spoke of four quadrants of time we must review. Click here to read more about these quadrants. The premise is we need to spend our time on things that are important but not urgent. Planning, talent assessment, sales training, customer surveys, marketing research, social media connections, team building, coaching and more are all examples of very important things to your printing company but they are not urgent. And, thus many companies let them sit year after year.
- Categories:
- Business Management - Marketing/Sales
Ryan T. Sauers has spent nearly 30 years running, leading or consulting with printing, graphics, promotional and visual communications-related organizations. Sauers is CEO of two companies, Sauers Consulting Strategies LLC and End Resultz Inc. that among other things, owns magazines and is a media firm. Key areas of focus of the firms include sales training, marketing strategy, personal branding, leadership development and organizational change.
Sauers is a frequent national speaker and columnist. He has been recognized as one of the top 80 CMOs globally and achieved the top designation of Certified Marketing Executive through Sales and Marketing Executives International.
Sauers is an adjunct university professor teaching leadership and communication courses to current and aspiring leaders. He is a Certified Myers Briggs, DiSC and Emotional Intelligence Practitioner (one of few in the U.S. to achieve all three rigorous certifications related to human communications, personality and behavior).
Sauers has completed his doctoral-level coursework in Organizational Leadership and is now (ABD - All But Dissertation) working on his dissertation on why some entrepreneurs and small businesses achieve initial and long-term success, whereas countless others do not.
Sauers is the host of the Marketing Matters radio show in Atlanta that later becomes a global podcast. He also is the host of the Community Connections TV show that comes out in video and podcast form. Sauers is the author of the best-selling books, Everyone is in Sales, and Would You Buy from You? More info at RyanSauers.com or call (678) 825-2049 or email Ryan@RyanSauers.com
