I truly hope the inside of your fridge doesn't look like this.
But in business, especially as a business owner, there can be times when work is a little harder to find.
When times get tough, what happens when you find hunger influencing your client meetings and decision making processes?
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Cannibalism: You feed off other people
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Diet: You take whatever you can get
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Poverty: The vicious cycle
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Self Respect: Where’s your identity?
There is an old cartoon of a pair of shipwrecked souls sitting on a very small island. The skinny one looks longingly at his mate, a little larger than he, and pictures a huge, juicy hamburger. Likewise, the more portly fellow gazes at his slight friend and imagines him as an appetizing, steaming hot dog. Hunger had made these two see their friends as sources of food. Everywhere they look, they see food. Networking is vital, but not everybody is ready to buy right now. If you see every single person as your next meal ticket, you will push them away instead of being willing to build a relationship with you. Be friends with your friends – don’t eat them!
You know what’s good for you and what isn’t, so when you haven’t eaten for a few hours, you know that pulling over at the next 7-11 is not going to fit into your diet. Your business plan and branding are supposed to be the ones dictating the kind of work you take, not your hunger. If you are so desperate that anything that might put cash in your pocket is a viable option, then you will lose track of the plan. When you stick to what you know, others will see you as a professional in your field instead of an odd job/handyman (unless you really are a handyman, in which case it could be a good thing). But even those with a wide field of expertise have a boundary somewhere. Your business card may state that you take care of ‘all needs’, but does that mean you would walk your clients’ dogs, or pick up dry cleaning? Think of extremes that you would not go to, and then back up a little to the point that meets your job description – now stop there!
Mmm chocolate. One is never enough… and I’m sure that’s where addiction lies. But it always starts with one, and the cycle begins. You take one job ‘just for the money’ and before you know it, that one little job is all people call you for. Things might be ok for a little while, but how do you break out and expand your business when the quick and easy jobs just seem to come so easily? Bread and Butter jobs don’t sustain growth, and they are a difficult cycle to get out of. Think bigger, think long term, and ignore that tummy growl. For now.
I’ve heard that you become what you eat, which I’ve always thought was a bit of a stretch. However, any business is going to be identified with it’s output or product. So if you are simply taking jobs as they come because of the need to eat, you are missing the long term plan. Once that rather questionable job is complete, it sits there on your roster/client list/portfolio, like a bad apple. Obviously, you get the chance to choose which jobs go in your portfolio or resume, but if there aren’t enough respectable jobs to brag about, how will anyone know you are capable of greater things? Your brand dictates what your business does, so don’t go dragging its good name through the dirt. Respect the brand.
Hunger makes you look at the short term, where good, smart business planning makes you look further into the distance. With a correct view of your business and careful handing of clients, you won’t be hungry much longer.
