As a youngster in Kansas City, I learned early on the importance of being prepared. Whether it was my endeavors in school or in our family business, there were no short cuts from long hours and work. What stands out the most was working in Dolgin’s, the family business. This was a relatively small store, on today’s comparison – 10,000 sf. My mother Dolly was a “driver” and, during the holiday seasons, she wanted us to be ready for the customer when they walked into the door at 9:00 a.m. She wanted the shelves “flush and full” with merchandise that we were attempting to sell. I can remember after one very long day, 9:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m., she wanted to make sure all the shelves and displays were just right. She came to me and asked for my key to the exterior doors, and she went to my manager Rich Whalen and made the same request. She then locked the doors and told us to get busy. We worked until 2:00 a.m. to prepare the store for business the next day.
You have to do what you have to do to be successful. There is no tomorrow. My father, David Dolginow, use to say, “You go hunting when the ducks are flying.” To say it another way, you take an opportunity (from your SWOT) and you work it. Sometimes the opportunity is only for a moment and, if you procrastinate – if you do not react to the opportunity, you lose it.
Harvey Mackay said in yesterday’s Star Tribune, “The more you put in, the more you get out.” When asked by one of my current clients why I work long hours, I had to say I am not sure you can call my daily activities “work”! I enjoy helping clients move their business to the next level, and I know the elements that move one to be called successful.