When I started out in the home service industry as an electrician, I wanted to succeed. I worked ‘round the clock to build my business. I was busy, I had lots of work coming in, but the problem was: I struggled with the “hamster wheel” problem that you hear me talk about from time to time: basically I struggled with doing the same thing day-in and day-out and even though I tried to work longer hours (and run faster on that hamster wheel), I never really got ahead. It was so frustrating!
When my business partner said he wanted to quit because he was burning out, I was close to the edge as well. I could have very easily quit. But that moment was a life-changing moment when I presented a different option: Rather than trying to go on without him or trying to quit (two options – neither of which were ideal) I recommended a third option: Let’s change what we’re doing.
It was the start of a DRAMATIC shift that changed our business and our lives.
But what really happened that day? It wasn’t just a flash of insight that made me suggest a third option. The most important factor was that we made a decision. We decided. We decided to change the business.
Decisions. It’s what really makes the difference in our lives. All too often we desire things (a better business, a nicer car, a bigger house) but wishing and wanting and hoping and dreaming will not make them so. The only way to turn a desire into reality is by deciding that you will have it.
Re-read that sentence: “The only way to turn a desire into reality is by deciding that you will have it.”
When you wish or dream or hope for something, you leave open the possibility that it might not come true, and you make its fulfillment dependent on something external – kind of the same way that people play the lottery (“I hope I’ll win… if the numbers come up for me.”)
But decisions come from inside of you: When you truly decide something, you commit to yourself to change everything to make that particular decision come true. Your decisions are made around crystal-clear visions of what you want. You accept the responsibility for their success or failure and you work to create the environment where that decision becomes reality. And the best decisions happen when you make the decision and leave no room for an alternative.
A true decision is a 100% internal commitment to one course of action.
So, do you want to improve your service business? Stop wishing, hoping, dreaming. And right now you need to DECIDE that you WILL do EVERYTHING in your power to improve your business. Commit fully to that improvement and leave no room for retreat.
When you make that decision, you’ll have taken the first critical step toward a profound change in your business and life.
