I’ve been noticing a worrying trend of late. Despite the economic forecasts of ‘recovery’, the business community seems to be doing it tougher than ever before. I’m noticing in particular, small business owners scrimping and cutting corners – looking for the ‘low-cost’ solution rather than a cost-effective solution.
“It’s unwise to pay too much, it’s worse to pay too little. When you pay too much, you lose a little money – that is all. When you pay too little, you sometimes lose everything because the thing you bought was incapable of doing the thing it was bought to do. The common law of business balance prohibits paying a little and getting a lot – it can’t be done. If you deal with the lowest bidder, it is well to add something for the risk you run, and if you do that you will have enough to pay for something better.’ – John Ruskin (1819 – 1900)
Sure, VistaPrint can deliver you some charming business cards for next to nothing … but how does that affect your brand? Doing your own bookkeeping may save you a couple of hundred dollars a week … but can you be sure you’ve tracked everything for maximum tax benefit? Not investing in a quality accountant, business advisor or mentor might ease the pressure on the bank account … but are you making robust strategic decisions that enable your business to put its best foot forward? There is no doubt that every business owner needs to make the right purchasing decisions for their business – decisions that are in line with their overall strategic objectives. And maybe VistaPrint is the appropriate solution for you in the business card department so you can invest in a quality bookkeeper – that’s your call. My concern is that an increasing ‘notion’ of ‘sucking-in’ and ‘holding-on-to-the-cash’ is driving a new business culture of mediocrity – ‘near-enough-is-good-enough’. On the surface that might be true – so what if the business cards aren’t as ‘glossy’ as last time? However it’s the mental and emotional shift that worries me. As soon as we, as business owners, start ‘settling’ for ‘less’, then it’s easy to settle for less in our business as a whole … the standard we settle for now when things are tough becomes the new standard … excellence fades into average and our aspirations fade into survival. The ‘curse’ that I speak of is mediocrity is self-perpetuating. You start ‘talking’ about survival … and other people chime in … and all of a sudden you’re having daily conversations at that level. This couldn’t be truer in the age of social-media where we gravitate towards people who are like-minded and are willing to share their experiences. So the distinction I’d like to draw today is one of ‘keeping it real’ vs ‘lowering the standard’. It’s a mental and emotional space – one where while you adjust your strategy to meet ‘reality’ you maintain an appropriate level of excellence, a meaningful level of aspiration. If you start feeling the ‘pull’ of mediocrity – of ‘settling for’ check who you’re listening to, reading or hanging out with (real or online). Reconnect with those who inspire you and keep you striving ‘up’ … and disconnect from spaces that invite you to stay small. This quote from Ella Fitzgerald sums it up nicely …
“Just don’t give up trying to do what you really want to do. Where there is love and inspiration, I don’t think you can go wrong.”
Rise above the mediocrity … be ‘the tall poppy’ – the view is better from there anyway :-)
