GETTING HELP FROM OTHERS
This entry was posted on 7/30/2007 2:54 PM and is filed under Entrepreneurial Philosophy.
Just Make Sure You Want Their Advice!!!
While sipping on my Starbucks coffee, I overheard a conversation between an entrepreneur and some friends. The entrepreneur was asking for advice on how to measure his sales people for his technology business. The only reason I overheard this conversation was that they were speaking very loud and did not appear to care who heard. What I found interesting is not that they were discussing things others should not hear (i.e. profit margin, costs,etc.), it was that the advice they were giving him did not make any sense. The people he was looking for advice from were making sales people out to be the lowest form of scum on the planet. They were having a great time telling about their worst sales person experience. The advice is that all business is done through relationship, not through professional sales people.
Finally, after 30 minutes of this bashing the entrepreneur thanked his friends, called someone on the phone and stated with total confidence "Sales people won't do it for us...we just need to establish more relationships." That being done, the entrepreneur turned to his friends and asked one of them how their medical practice was doing and asked the other how his law firm was doing! Hopefully by now you have figured out that the advice the entrepreneur received from his two friends was misguided. Sure they hate sales people those good looking medical reps that take the doctors to expensive diners!
It's not wrong to ask for advice, it's just that you must realize who you are asking. If you only go to trade conferences and listen to what the gurus are telling the other 1,000 attendees (also known as your competitors) to do, then you are just becoming a me too company or maybe even worst, a client of the speaker! I'm not saying not to attend these conferences, and I am not telling you to ignore their advice, or anyones advice for that matter. All I am saying is to know who it is that your listening to and take the advice for what it is worth.
There are many good consultants and many qualified friends and family members, just be careful and don't take everything you hear at face value.
