1/11/10

Who's Your Utility Man?

Every Business Owner Should Have a "Utility Man."  

"You will never maximize your potential in any area of life without (help). It is impossible. You may be good. You may even be better than everyone else. But without outside input you will never be as good as you can be. We simply do (everything) better when someone else is watching and evaluating." 
Andy Stanley

Lew Smallwood says, in one of his Strategies for Success entries, that we need advisors to overcome our internal Performance Thermostat settings. We have learned behaviors and patterns that can hold us in place. Therefore, assistance is required before we can successfully reach whatever goals we've set. Inertia will tend to keep us and our business performance right where we are, UNLESS an outside force causes us to move.

Here is your $64K, or even $64 million question:
Who is YOUR Utility Man?
Where will that outside force come from that redirects your practices, or that of your staff, toward change -- and winning the game? 




The term "Utility Man" has commonly been used in the auto industry and baseball. It's defined as: 
  1. Business / Professions: a team member who is expected to serve in any of several capacities.
  2. Baseball: a player who is not a regular and whose value lies in an ability to play several positions.
Micro business owners, by their nature, wear a lot of management hats -- Sales Manager, Marketing Director, Operations Manager, Chief Strategist, Quasi Accountant... Yet, no one can be great at everything! At the very least, you need a mentor who can listen to your woes and provide feedback. Ideally, every business owner would have a board of advisors and/or a corporate board of directors to provide guidance and input. 
The most successful business owners, those who thrive even in challenging times, have external sources that help them to reach their objectives. 


What are the characteristics of a good Utility Man? 
  • Experience. This person has performed in the role. You feel comfortable that they know first-hand what you have to solve. 
  • Skill. Experience, talent, and practice have given that person an edge. That edge could be the ingredient that helps your business get to the next level. 
  • Creativity. Because this person plays in more than one position, and in more than one business and industry, creativity becomes second nature. They can easily see things from more than one perspective. This virtually guarantees that solutions, and results, will not be one-dimensional.
    Your Utility Man could spell the difference between almost winning the game versus having a game-winning RBI.
What is keeping your business from reaching the next level? 
Would you like to know that answer -- and the solutions that go with it? Then you should click the e-mail link below to get started! Let thinkVAULT be your Utility Man. 





Utility Man definition sources [1], [2]
E-mail us for help and solutions for reach your business goals.  



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