It’s that time of year. Nature’s greatest weather prognosticator will have its day!
The Groundhog will officially tell us if Spring is coming early, or if we are looking at six weeks more of Winter. Where I live (New Jersey), I look out my window and see plenty of snow on the ground. I’ll be focused on Winter for a bit more.
Regardless of the Groundhog’s forecast, Spring is coming. Whether you feel it in the climate, or it is the first day of Spring (March 20).
What if the Groundhog were to come into our business, and give us a prediction where our business is so far in 2015? How would we react to that prediction?
January is a weird month. Everyone is trying to get back in the groove after a lengthy holiday break. Some have even spent time setting lofty aspirations (perhaps too high) on what they plan to accomplish for 2015. We hit the ground running full of excitement. A week goes by and we’re still busy, productive, and it doesn’t quite seem like the first week. Next, activity starts to wane off, and we get discouraged because we don’t see immediate results.
This would be the equivalent of the Groundhog seeing its shadow, and running back to the burrow (six more weeks of Winter). I would encourage you not to do that. I am not saying throw out your goals altogether, rather, start looking at some smaller accomplishments that will create a win for you. You will feel better about yourself as you accomplish things bit by bit.
I am a big fan of baseball. I have attended well over a thousand games in my lifetime. I have seen countless times where the opposing team scores five or six runs in the first inning, and when the top of the first is over: it’s quiet, and you see depressed fans. My attitude is: what kind of fans are these? All we gotta do is get one run baby! We’ve got nine more innings to go! Score one run an inning, and we can catch up! I can also tell you that I have received many looks from fans that roll their eyes at that comment. I don’t let those non-believers bother me. They’re probably leaving in a couple of innings to avoid the traffic anyway.
Maybe 2015 has started off like gangbusters for you! That’s great! The Groundhog hasn’t seen its shadow, and Spring is coming early!
Your biggest challenge is remaining focused, and staying consistent; don’t rest on your laurels. There is still plenty of time left in this year. Just because you had a great month to begin 2015, doesn’t mean that you get to take the remaining 92% of the year off!
Regardless of whether today in your business it looks as if Spring is coming early, or if there are six more weeks of Winter, take Dale Carnegie’s advice and live in day tight compartments.
My philosophy is to work hard, give value, and be nice to people. Live it day by day. By the end of a year’s time it really adds up to something. Try it.