Short Term vs Long Term

Image via WikipediaI am perplexed. Quite commonly people put off long term investments for short term ones. These investments can be in health, relationships, money, or whatever. Why? I am of the opinion that our society places the highest importance on urgent matters. In fact, very important, long term activities typically get the lowest priority. Everyone knows the importance of eating healthy and exercise but when inundated with urgent matters eat fast food and forgo their workout.

Case in point. I have a friend that eats, drinks, and smokes too much by just about any measure. A few months ago he had a health scare which caused him to change his eating, drinking, smoking, and exercise habits. Why? Because it was urgent and he was concerned about his longevity. Once he got comfortably out of the woods he fell back into his old ways because his health concerns were no longer urgent, no longer important. Short term one, long term zero.

When I was in my early 20's I knew many people who had decided to not go to college. I would ask them why and the most common answer I would hear was it is too difficult and time consuming. I use to think to myself working long hours at a low paying job for fifty years sounds more difficult and time consuming to me. Short term two, long term zero.

We have all heard that making a $10,000 investment today can turn into $1 million in 30 years. I know someone who came into some cash. They live paycheck to paycheck and have little to no savings. Nor are they putting money away for retirement. So did they make an investment with their windfall? No, they went on an expensive vacation that left them empty handed in less than a month. Check mate long term.

Why do we tend to be so near sided?

Tim Symchych

One simple step to being Great

I have filled many roles in my professional life from software developer to business owner. I have been a jack of all trades and master of none. Sometimes I have felt like a guy sitting on a beach and running with what ever washes up on shore. Think "Wilson" from Cast Away.

For almost a year now I have been trying to be intentional about my direction. It has taken me quite a bit of introspection before I could draw any definitive conclusions. I suspect this is true for most people as few people are fortunate enough to identify desire and aptitude early in life.

I have come up with several things that are intertwined and represent different aspects of my life such as husband, father, community member, business leader,etc. During this process I tried to distill down to the absolute essence of how I could be great for these different roles. Over an evening glass of wine last week it hit me. Complete dedication to a single endeavor is Greatness.

I wanted to see how my epiphany measured up. After weeding through various quotes from "great" people about greatness I came across Fortune:Secrets of Greatness by Geoffrey Colvin. It seems that I may be on to something-- the relentless pursuit seems to be the defining factor. So why doesn't everybody become great? Because it is difficult. Have you ever spent several hours every day over a ten year period trying to be the best at something? Few people have and that is precisly why greatness is in limited supply.

Perhaps the hardest question each of us faces is not whether or not we pursue greatness but what endeavor will we dedicate ourselves to.

Anyone can be great so choose your greatness and choose to be great everyday. What's stopping you?

Tim Symchych

I'm going to catch a whale

Should you make small incremental improvements to your business or should you always be on the hunt for Moby Dick? A lot of people might say both, and I agree, but if you had to choose one which should you pursue? Does pursuing one distract you from seeing the other?Image via Wikipedia

I have been working on some projects lately that have really got me thinking about this. Where do I stand? Throw out Captain Ahab. He's only looking for glory and is willing to destroy the ship and lose a limb to boost and protect his ego.

If I chase a million dollar deal, whether it is cost savings, operational improvement, or whatever, but I waste $50k here, $125k there on small projects because I can't be bothered, "I'm going to catch a whale." I may destroy the ship and lose my leg and never catch the whale.

Think on it this way. A house is built brick by brick considering all costs because there is an anticipated sale price. If I'm looking to build and sell a house for $250,000 with a worthwhile margin I can't spend $300,000 on materials and $200,000 on labor. This is exceedingly true if comparable properties in the neighborhood go for $250,000 where a $500,000 home would be unheard of. You have to manage the build and probably install a toilet yourself.

Know any Ahab's?

Tim Symchych

Who do you trust?

Image via WikipediaIf possible I choose a small businesses over a large chain. I have spent some time trying to identify my attraction. On the surface I just feel good about giving my business to the little guy-- why? Maybe I feel like I'm getting something special that I can't get in Anytown, USA. Maybe I think the service will be better because they are hungry for my patronage. Maybe it is more straight forward.

My wife and I received a cow as a wedding gift (it's a Texas thing) and we needed a place to process it so that it would fit nicely into our deep freeze. The place we settled on is unique and is hidden in a tiny town just outside of San Antonio. We chose this place because we have heard more than once that they are honest. If you have a healthy grass fed cow you want to be certain the steak you are eating is just that.

Now that my wife and I are past the expense of our wedding we have gone full force into updating our 30 year old house. Our first big project is our landscaping, specifically our curb appeal. Part of the project is a new sidewalk. Our neighbor who is head of grounds at a local university recommended a contractor that the university uses because they are overwhelmingly honest.

While all of this is going on the transmission on one of our vehicles started to go out. I have no desire to learn the ins and outs of auto mechanics-- I have to find someone we can trust. Turns out that the mom and pop by the house go out of their way to insure you understand the problem they are going to fix for you, they are building trust.

So do I feel like I can't trust a business because it is large? No. But I do recognize that many large businesses make it easy for the individual to absolve themselves of personal responsibility-- in essence, their integrity. "I'm just following orders/policy/procedure, I'm not hear to rock the boat."

So how do you empower the individual to have integrity and build meaningful relationships with your customers regardless of the size of your business?

What do you think?

Tim Symchych

Human Connection

Image by Getty Images via DaylifeI watched a few minutes of CNBC's Big Idea last night. Howard Schultz, CEO of Starbucks was the guest. He was asked what he attributes their great success with. He essentially said it was the human connection that is felt in their stores. "We are in the service business that happens to sell coffee." He stated in today's society of Internet and instant communication we have lost some of that "human connection" that people crave. This reminded me of my "Automation is killing my business" post in May.

There is no slowing down the Internet. In droves we are seeing services go digital on the web. Companies that are able to translate the "human connection" on the web are going thrive. Why? Because human connection is one of our basic needs, right up there with food and shelter. This explains the wildly popular social networking sites-- for many people this puts a face on the otherwise faceless super highway.

There are many ways to add the "human connection" to your on-line presence:

• Blog
• Forum
• Actual pictures of you/your staff/customers
• Address and phone number on your site
• Testimonials
• Email newsletter to your customers

These are all easy to set up and do. Can't write-- hire a freelance writer to write your blog for you. Engage with your customers and audience and they will engage with you.

Comments Welcomed,
Tim Symchych