While driving back from Florida a few weeks ago, a critical distinction because apparent to me. I was most captivated by the mountains of Kentucky and Tennessee, as I am every time I drive up and down the longitudinal parallel. It doesn’t matter how many times I’ve seen it, I’m always in awe. I make sure that I am awake to see it (when someone else is driving). I find it captivating and interesting. It provides vividness to the landscape that I certainly didn’t get driving across the state of Florida, aka flat land.
On the contrary, when we drive long hours across flat terrain, I find myself fighting to stay awake. Hmmm, this led me to think about what is going on in the business world these days. I hear conversations on the street all the time about how tough business is. I get it. It is definitely more challenging in this environment (or in this Valley). The cool thing about my drive is that I knew once I was in the valley, I could look forward to the next mountain to climb. Was it easy to climb the next mountain? No, especially in a 40’ rig towing a car. But it sure was worth it when we got to the top again. The view was amazing. It made me alive and awake again. And with each valley we hit, I knew I had another mountain to look forward to.
As you can imagine, I am going somewhere with this analogy. There are always going to be peaks and valleys in business. It is what makes business thrilling. What makes anything thrilling? The risk. The anticipation. The wonder of how high can we go. As a financial advisor, you know that markets fluctuate – they go up and they come down. Unfortunately, we go unconscious when we are in the valley, our site becomes limited – we can’t see the far landscape of where we are headed. We are only able to see where we sit today. Then we dwell on where we sit today which prohibits us from effectively ascending up the next mountain. We complain about the view. We fantasize (or catastrophize) about how deep the valley will go. We consume all of our limited attention on how bad things are that we don’t give ourselves a chance for recovery. Recovery takes effort and focused attention on where we are headed next – not dwelling on how bad it will get.
Let’s go back to driving through the plains. You have probably had the experience of driving back from a long trip through the flat lands of America, fighting to stay awake. You may use tactics like turning up the radio or sticking your head out the window for a nice blast of cold air. You may notice that the easier the terrain to drive, the more your mind slacks off. You become less responsive. But you fight to stay awake because your life depends on it.
It’s kind of like the last economic cycle we just came off of. We hit a valley right after 9/11, then we started ascending up the mountain. Things were tough at first, but the ride and view became so thrilling that we were energized and built a level of success. A few years of that, we hit the plains and began coasting because we could. Because business was flowing in as a result of the effort we put forth while ascending up the mountain. The problem was many of us fell asleep at the wheel. We sat back as business rolled in. Wow, business is so easy! We stopped working the very systems and relationships that got us to the height of the mountain. Then as the terrain changed again, as it always does if you drive long enough, we spent so much time coasting and then standing in the valley in shock because our businesses had suffered great losses, we lost the opportunity to seize the next opportunity. Because with every valley is another mountain.
How well is your business poised to withstand another valley. The key to making it through is the strength of the relationships you have with your clients. How well have you done in giving the right amount of attention to the right clients? Or, are you too busy shopping for new ones that you have ignored your existing relationships?
Now is the time to wake up and become more conscious about your business again before it is too late. Now is the time to provide greater value and greater attention on the products and services you offer. Now is the time to set up the systems in your business that help you adjust to a changing landscape to create a more predictable level of income. Now is the time to stop throwing a pity party and wallowing in your sorrow, get off your duff and work harder and smarter at your business today. Because if you don’t, your competition will and they’ll leave you in the dust of the valley.
Lauren Eichner’s firm, Getting Results Coaching helps average producers become million dollar producers. The integration of psychology with business systems allows them to get the most from each individual. To learn if coaching can help you or your business, go to: https://gettingresultsinc.com/personal-assessment, and complete the short Personal Assessment.
