Years ago, in the 1980s, I was considering opening a laundromat. The company I researched was a franchise so many of the logistical decisions were inherently made by the franchisor, the parent company. Still, I had much flexibility when it came to the actual business decisions.
Many of those I lean on for advice, my "kitchen cabinet," advised me NOT to make the decision I eventually made. You see, I have a rigid personal inclination - some may call it a compulsion - to conduct business only through relationship cultivation and management.
It was simply contrary to my uncompromising mantra and instincts, and against every fiber of my being (at my age I really hate using that particular f-word) to open up a laundromat that didn't have a personality, a way to connect with customers, a feeling that this one laundromat, above all others, was homey, was someplace special.
Differentiating From The Competition
Conventional wisdom says that people are very goal oriented when it comes to washing and drying clothes...that they do not need to pay extra for bells and whistles (I did charge 10 cents a load more)...that they have a one track mind: to get in and get out, their chore completed.
Unconventional wisdom says that every customer that walks through the door, even the doors of a laundromat, is a relationship-waiting-to-happen. I invested more in my laundromat for specific, seemingly small things, like nice carpeting, a pool table, arcade games, "things" that I knew other competing laundromats strategically did not have. I invested in comfy sofas in a large living-room type atmosphere with a big screen TV. I envisioned people literally doing their laundry and hanging out. I called this mundane experience of washing clothes " having good clean fun."
Punctuating Your Signature
The cherry on top of it all was my excellent staff, who were trained to help our customers carry their baskets of laundry to and from their cars, to help fold their laundry, and to wipe down each machine when one customer was done and the next one was ready to wash and dry. My staff smiled, made conversation and grew to know - by name and face - their regulars.
Business boomed.
I look back with so much fondness and warmth on my days in the laundromat business. I had a vision and goals. And I stayed tied to my message no matter what. Because business is about opportunities.
What Obstacles Are In Front Of You?
And it led directly to my decision to become a Life Coach. I now help people like you clarify their visions and goals, whether those goals are business or personal. I can help you decide when to stay on or off message and help you remove obstacles in your way.
That's what coaching is all about. That's what I do. That's how I help. My focus is on your vocational or personal well being, how to help you do your job better, how to attack specific challenges or struggles in front of you. My focus is on your agenda, an agenda that you set.
And just as any agenda or strategy can be refined and re-envisioned, so can yours. Which brings us to the blind man.
A Matter Of Perspective
He was sitting on the steps of a building with a hat by his feet and a sign that read: I AM BLIND, PLEASE HELP.
A woman walked by and stopped to observe. She saw that the blind man only had a few coins in his hat. She dropped in a couple of coins and, without asking his permission, took the sign and rewrote it. She returned the sign to the blind man and left.
That afternoon after work the woman returned to the blind man and noticed that his hat was overflowing with coins and bills. The blind man recognized her footsteps and asked if she was the one who had rewritten his sign, and if so, would she tell him what it now said.
The woman responded, "Nothing that is not true; I just wrote the message a little differently." She smiled and went on her way.
The new sign read: TODAY IS SPRING AND I CANNOT SEE IT
Sometimes we need to change our strategy, because if we always do what we've always done, we'll always get what we've always got.