inProcess
One and Done
It doesn’t work that way for most of us. At least not when it comes to producing something worthwhile and with lasting value. To do that requires thoughtful preparation, regular practice and continuous improvement in the product or service being offered. The same holds true for the “value” of individuals to the organization they lead or support.
“One and done” certainly sounds catchy, however. The idea that you can knock something out quickly and move on to something else sounds appealing, especially when we all have so much in front of us to do each day. It might even work for very simple tasks, but even those tend to be repeated over time; done differently, could they be performed better and perhaps less often as a result?
The “Hail Mary” pass in sports is exciting to watch, mostly because we know it’s a last-ditch effort and the odds of scoring are low. When it connects, we are appropriately amazed. But if you step back and consider what led to the effort in the first place, it’s usually because the game plan up to that point wasn’t effective enough to get the results needed in the time available.
The same can be applied to Sales. To pitch a sale from a Lead to Closed in one step is highly unlikely; in fact, if that wild pass gets completed, there’s good reason to wonder what got overlooked! Consistently moving worthwhile sales steadily down the field requires focus, discipline and appropriate action each step of the way.
It’s fairly easy to visualize sales as a multi-step process, but in reality this concept applies equally well to operations and administrative activities. Careful thought and planning around the activities involved in the overall business process will result in consistently better outcomes. So as you plan your day, week, month and the year ahead, consider replacing “One and Done” with the winning feeling of “Well Done”.
“One and done” certainly sounds catchy, however. The idea that you can knock something out quickly and move on to something else sounds appealing, especially when we all have so much in front of us to do each day. It might even work for very simple tasks, but even those tend to be repeated over time; done differently, could they be performed better and perhaps less often as a result?
The “Hail Mary” pass in sports is exciting to watch, mostly because we know it’s a last-ditch effort and the odds of scoring are low. When it connects, we are appropriately amazed. But if you step back and consider what led to the effort in the first place, it’s usually because the game plan up to that point wasn’t effective enough to get the results needed in the time available.
The same can be applied to Sales. To pitch a sale from a Lead to Closed in one step is highly unlikely; in fact, if that wild pass gets completed, there’s good reason to wonder what got overlooked! Consistently moving worthwhile sales steadily down the field requires focus, discipline and appropriate action each step of the way.
It’s fairly easy to visualize sales as a multi-step process, but in reality this concept applies equally well to operations and administrative activities. Careful thought and planning around the activities involved in the overall business process will result in consistently better outcomes. So as you plan your day, week, month and the year ahead, consider replacing “One and Done” with the winning feeling of “Well Done”.
