What Actually Moves the Dial?
Originally sent exclusively to The Letter subscribers on January 12th. Want to be the first to get my personal newsletter in your inbox every Monday at 7am? Subscribe for free here.
I’ve lost a month. Absolutely diabolical.
When you factor in the lull over Christmas, then add me playing the character of Hop-along, spending more time on crutches than in my businesses… it’s driven me to despair.
No, I don’t want to Netflix and chill.
I want to get up and go.
Having to ask for help just to sit down isn’t exactly my favourite meal.
Truth is, I haven’t been able to think properly until today. Getting off the morphine and opioids has been essential for that.
So today I grabbed my notebook and wrote down what I call *dial movers*. The things that actually take you forward.
Here’s the tip:
Limit yourself to five key tasks.
I call these the milestones you want to hit in the next 90 days. They should consume most of your time and focus.
Then make yourself accountable to make them happen.
Here are mine:
1. Hire a kick-ass FD
Someone better than me at finishing deals, who knows more about tax and structure, and frees me up to do the work that grows the business rather than operating it.
(I wrote a killer job description for this. If you’d like a copy, email my team info@jamessinclair.net)
2. Raise £10m of funding
So we can buy more profit and strengthen the balance sheet.
3.Complete the three deals I’m currently working on.
Nosy parkers, you’ll have to wait to find out what they are… but they’ll add around **£1.4m profit** to the group.
4. Build a new structure of MDs for each brand
Less portfolio, deeper accountability.
Because if you give people too many balls, they’ll drop them.
5.Complete on another deal
Which I can’t mention yet.
All of the above will solve constraints in our company.
And remember this:
"Constraints on talent and capital stop you from growing."
Here’s the funny thing… I’ve known a dream FD for years. They’ve watched from the sidelines, never really put themselves forward.
I sent them the job description.
They replied... “I’m in. I’d love to meet.”
And that’s something I’ve learned:
Talent, like capital, is attracted to the leader. The better you become, the better people want to be around you.
Which leads me to the truth of truths:
The better you become, the better everything becomes.
The more you up skill and grow your thinking, the more the business can grow.
This individual has seen what we’ve done in 18 months and is keen to be part of the journey.
We became more. Becoming more has allowed us to attract more.
**You, the leader, are always the biggest constraint.**
So ask yourself:
What have you done lately to sharpen your saw?
What have you done to get smarter?
How many books have you read recently?
How many seminars have you attended?
It’s so easy to read a book and get better.
It’s also so easy not to.
It’s so easy to write your goals down.
It’s also so easy not to.
It’s easy to put off an awkward conversation…
but it feels incredible when you finally get it done.
It’s easy to do.
It’s easy not to do.
I want to be so effective that I make up for this lost month of illness.
I’m promising myself I’ll act on awkward conversations quicker. And if I don’t have the right people in the right seats, I’ll move quicker to fix it.
I want to retrain my brain away from this lie:
“Some is better than none.”
It’s not.
And while we’re here, let’s kill another lazy phrase:
“If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.”
That saying was created by people who want the status quo.
Because the truth is: If it could be better, it’s as good as broken.
Think about your team.
Maybe you’ve got a salesperson doing “OK”… and some months they’re great. But could they be better? Could you train them more?
Maybe you’ve got someone with all the skillset… but a stinking attitude.
You’re desperate to keep the skill, so you tolerate the sub-par attitude because “some is better than none”.
Greatness doesn’t accept that. Even “very good” doesn’t accept that.
The best schools, sports clubs, and businesses only accept the best, and so the best breeds more of the best.
Just like gossip breeds gossip.
This period of recovery has given me absolute clarity:
We accept mediocre too often… and we mustn’t, if we want to move the needle. That might mean more awkward conversations than you’re prepared to have.
But here’s what I know:
The receiver will respect you.
And they will sharpen up.
A student being challenged by a teacher for not doing well enough, when the teacher knows they can do more, might feel awkward in the moment… but long-term, the student respects the teacher and improves.
Education leads to motivation.
Then congratulations for all are in store; seeing an apprentice improve drives bot the teacher and student to go again!
So if you’ve got team members or advisers delivering B+ results, a few awkward conversations and the right training can turn them into A-star students.
Get to it.
And one final point:
Don’t take a student who’s brilliant at art and force them to do the maths.
Right people. Right seats.
And remember: The best teachers never stop learning.
And lastly…
Do you ever get that moment when you’re halfway through eating a horse and you think to yourself, “I’m not as hungry as I thought I was.”
Comfort is the most expensive addiction on earth. Work harder on yourself than you do your business.
To your continued success,
James
PS. Fancy coming to see me on stage teaching transform your business from price competition to customer obsession, click here for more information.