Author Article

Psst…wanna know a secret? There are no secrets. Oh, wait, you thought this book had the next quick fix, flashy guarantee, and easy solution? Nope. In my book, the ideas may be “simple” to follow but achieving success is not necessarily quick, flashy, or easy. It comes from doing three things right: focusing on what you do, delivering the value people demand, and selling and leveraging what you have and do like crazy to grow your business. If that sounds like a secret then so be it, but there has never been a better or more important time for businesses of any size to get back to a no-nonsense approach—one that balances both common sense and innovation.

What this means is while we can’t expect business-as-usual approaches to work, we also can’t expect technological innovations or financial gimmicks to get us out of our messes either. After all, they’re a big part of what got us into the most recent economic mess. Too many people got lazy and sloppy, relying on flash and gimmicks to create the illusion of success. We all looked for an edge, but too many of us got consumed with greed and built seven-figure-plus on over-extended credit lines and a seemingly never-ending wave of consumer spending that delivered fat and unsustainable (and often fake) profits. Promises? Value? Best practices? Gone.

And here’s the kicker: We’re going to do it again. People will look at my ideas and processes and say, “I know I should do that…” and then not do it, abandoning our principles and making the same mistakes we have made before. Or they’ll dismiss me for believing in things like the power of print as a business tool, ignoring the fact that I also exploit the power of social media. (Still think print is dead? Think about this the next time you sign a contract. Think about it when a child’s eyes light up from a postcard from far away. Think about it when you get a thoughtful thank you card for your gift. Text me a thank you for my Christmas present, and I’m sure your gift will be smaller next year. We still love to see, feel, and touch things.)

Think of The Mirror Test as sunscreen: You might dismiss that you need it, forget to apply it, or just refuse to use it—when you need it most—but if you do, you will likely get burned once again.

But here’s the good news: Small businesses have never had better chances to thrive. If they are willing to look at what’s working and what isn’t—and take the necessary steps to fix things no matter how drastic, difficult, or different—they can succeed. Remarkable opportunities exist for any company willing to change the way it does things—or should I say, change back to what really matters. And what happens to those who can’t or won’t change? They’ll end up the “last dog”—the slowest animal in the herd when the lions are chasing. The luckiest ones might settle for the middle of the pack. But the view from there is like the view my wife Tami has from the back of our tandem bike: Not pretty. In business, the middle means mediocrity, not safety. Eventually those businesses will fail the basic mirror test. If they are not already dead, they will die.

The Mirror Test offers another way: Proof of life.