Man, this has been an interesting week, with my home town New Orleans blowing up with corona, and my friend’s circle catching it as well. One is a pilot, not the best profession for these times. 😢
So what do you do?
Sit back and lament or chin-up and look for the opportunities ahead?
Last week I spoke to an esteemed contractor and client, Matthew Wagoner, President of Landscape Consultants in Kansas, and I happily noticed how truly upbeat he sounded about this coming year, (at least the second half of the year).
For the past two years he has been working on growing his leadership team, and he was also figuring out who might become his General Manager.
This crisis has made things very clear for him – a couple of his core team leaders have stepped up, and as a group they are taking over the “GM” responsibilities. They are making decisions as a team, and quite effectively. Gotta love that!
Matt has sudden clarity. He has a solution that is working better now than before. And he has increasing momentum that will lead to even better team performance in months to come.
How about you?
Are you leaning on your team; asking them to step up and handle more?
It is a perfect opportunity to see who on your team is a “crisis worthy partner” as my friend and long time client Paul Fraynd (CEO of Sun Valley Landscaping, Omaha, Nebraska) calls them.
With an empowered team, it is time to sweep out the bad habits that have accumulated over the years.
Simple ones include:
- Stopping every day to pick up lunch
- Taking 10 smoke breaks
- Clocking in and hanging around at the shop
- Wasted time driving to the yard, when you could direct report
- Etc, Etc.
And what further cost-cutting do you need to make, that you were previously not focused on until this crisis exposed your balance sheet?
For example:
- Have you been adding on cushy perks over the years that you can no longer afford?
- Have commissions become too fat or not tied to results?
- Do your assistants have assistants?
It’s time to pivot, sweep out the bad habits you have accumulated over the past 10 years, and engage your team to make bigger changes for the greater good.
YOUR CHALLENGE: While you are dealing with the constant change of government policies and the new SBA loans (here is a handy link), also take the time to keep the second half of the year in mind, and what you want your new normal to become.
