Pumpkins, pumpkin spice, pumpkin decorations…it’s October and pumpkins are pervasive. There is even a business book about pumpkins by Mike Michalowicz called The Pumpkin Plan.
Since many of my readers are business owners or operate as such within a larger company, here are three quick ideas from this very popular book.
- To grow a super-sized pumpkin, specialty farmers snip off all the pumpkins except for the healthiest looking one. Then, they feed and pamper and water the heck out of that one pumpkin in hopes of growing the prize-winning gourd. The business takeaway (and main theme of the book) is to fire all of your low-margin, pain-in-the-butt clients so you can focus on your best customers and find more customers just like them.
- Pick your Area of Innovation and stick to it. This is what makes you stand out from the crowd now and what you will continue to improve upon in the future. To get started, know that your business/product/service falls within one of three categories: Quality, Price, or Convenience. You may think that McDonald’s competes on price. Not really – you can buy groceries and make hamburgers for your family cheaper than buying a meal from McDonald’s. No, the McDonald’s schtick is convenience – no grocery run, no cooking, no cleaning up. Just easy greasy food in minutes.
- Keep up with the weeding! Step back and observe your business. Weed out business processes that don’t move you forward. Yank out those customers that take too much time and drain your energy (even the profitable ones!). Spray RoundUp on networking tactics that don’t build your skills or business (yes, I know, RoundUp is not healthy). Dig out the marketing that doesn’t produce quality leads.
There is lots more to the book, but there is the ultra-Cliff Notes version. Happy gardening!
