So, I took on a new product line (something that was very dif- ferent but seemed to have a lot of potential). Eight months later I realized that I was spending 80% of my time on the new product line, and hadn’t made a single sale. Something had to change. I decided that I had two choices 1. Drop the new product and go back to the basics. 2. Drop all my old products and focus on the one product line that had the most potential. What ’s the worst thing that could happen? I asked myself what was the worst thing that could happen if things didn’t work out. Choice #1- Drop the new product and go back to the basics:This was the safest choice as my short-term income would stay the same and expenses would be reduced. But it felt like I would be getting back on a treadmill with little hope of long-term success. It would be a slow and lingering decline, but the end seemed fairly certain. Choice #2- Drop all my old products and focus on the
one new product line that had the most potential:That idea scared the hell out of me. If it didn’t work out I was definitely going out of business. I had enough money in the bank to finance operations for 3-6 months, but that was it. Trust your instincts “What would you do if you were in my shoes?” As a business coach, this is a question I’m often asked. The reality is that ninety-nine percent of the time our clients know what they should do. They feel it down deep. But faced with making a choice that has the potential to change their life, they get scared. I decided to go all in with the new product line. Two months later we made our first major sale and never looked back. We sold millions. It was a gut decision. Decide to do something I made a big change and got big results. But the same prin- ciples apply, even when we make smaller changes. If you don’t know what to do,just do something. Stop trying to second guess every possible outcome. The risk of doing nothing is probably much worse.
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JUNE 2018 • SPOTLIGHT ON BUSINESS MAGAZINE
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