Hoping for a good outcome is fine, but action in that direction, along with a strong skill set and proper preparation, is a better strategy
As we begin the new year, we want our aging in place services businesses to do well. We want to be successful and we want to serve our clientele effectively. The best way to accomplish this is through some type of business strategy where we identify what we stand for, what the scope of our services are, who we are intending to serve, and how we are going to position ourselves in our marketplace.
Regardless of how we approach the coming twelve months, if we are going to be happy with what we have to show for ourselves by the end of the year, we have to commit ourselves to a plan of action. We could just let things happen and figure them out as we go along, but a stronger, more dependable course of action is to have a plan and be intentional about our business direction.
By having a plan and giving some thought as to how we are going to position ourselves in the marketplace, how we want people to perceive the work that we do, what types of projects are well-suited for us and which ones are not, and how we want to work with other professionals in our marketplace as well as our clients will determine how successful we are this year – and beyond.
One thing that cannot be part of our strategy for success this year is hope. We should be optimistic and be positive that we can create the solutions that our clients need, that we are knowledgeable and experienced enough to suggest and create the improvements our clients need, that we can find people in sufficient numbers who need and want what we offer to have a successful business, and that people will appreciate the work we are able to provide for them. This comes from being prepared and not just from wishful thinking. To be hopeful that we can find our place in the market and that people will engage us to help them is fine, but hope alone will not make us successful. It takes action on our part.
Hope is a nice motivator. It keeps us going. It is a pilot light that triggers our success, but we have to apply ourselves and deliver the action to be successful rather than just hoping or wishing that everything will turn out well.
Hope is not a strategy, but an applied business plan is. We cannot go through life just hoping for or wishing for good outcomes. We want to have a positive outlook, but have to apply ourselves and put in the effort to make things happen. Hope is fine, as long as it is backed up by action.
If all we’ve done is hope for something to happen and not done anything constructive to bring about or cause that outcome, then about all we can do is wish that it happens. Usually, that’s not the case, and it’s not a predictable strategy. Creating strategic relationships, finding potential clients, and making sales don’t just happen. Sometimes referrals seem to – but there’s actually a lot of behind the scenes work, our reputation, and a quality work product behind that referral.
Anything that we can do to impact or have an effect on the outcome we desire, we should do. We can’t just hope for quality outcomes. We have to work to make them happen.
Hoping that we get to meet some people whom we can help, hoping that we can create a solution that they will like and that will work for them, or hoping that we can create strategic partnerships or referring professionals that will allow us to expand and strengthen our business won’t get us there. They require our action. They require effort – sometimes lots of effort. However, it never hurts to hope that we’ve done enough and be reasonably confident that we have.
The “wishing for” hope is not a strategy, but the “believing in” hope is a core principle of the successful life. When we are prepared to deliver the services that we believe our clients need, when we have identified the client base that offers us to use our abilities to their fullest, and when we play to our strengths, we can have a very strong, successful business that serves the aging in place needs of our clients whatever they might be.
This year has a very strong potential and good upside for us as long as we apply ourselves where we can do the most good for our clients – with a business delivery model that is based on confidence in our ability and not on a wishful hope that we are good enough to meet the demands of the marketplace.