Laid off? Could be the best thing that ever happened to you…
From AC: “I turn 32 this year, just got laid off from work, and I feel stuck. Making a new start seems so far out that it’s got me quite depressed. Should I begin by reading your Ready, Fire, Aim, or is there some other book to read?”
My Response: First of all, don’t let “making a new start” bum you out. This could be an opportunity in disguise.
My guess is that you were not what I would call a “superstar” employee. Why? Because superstar employees are never “laid off” unless the business closes. I’m assuming your business didn’t close. Therefore, your being laid off indicates you are not an amazing, super-valuable, super-hardworking, and super-conscientious employee. You are probably “ordinary.” You get to work on time. You leave after eight hours. You do what you are told to do competently. And you think that should be enough. It’s not. You are ordinary. And performing as an “ordinary” employee is a 95% guarantee that you get nowhere.”
So the first thing you must do is to desist from being ordinary. That requires admitting to yourself that you are not extraordinary. The next thing it requires is to create a plan that allows you to become the best employee at your next business. And the third thing you must do is stick to that plan even if it feels like you are not progressing.
You can accomplish all three of the above by purchasing a copy of The Pledge, the book I wrote in 2010, to help people in the very situation you find yourself in now. The Pledge is not a book of big ideas. On the contrary, it is a book of smaller pieces of common sense. But if you commit to it, you will become an extraordinary employee, which is the first step towards becoming a successful wealth builder.
In 52 weeks, you will have changed a good deal from who you are now. You will be smarter. You will be shrewder. And you will be a much better worker. You should also be making a good deal more than you are making now. And you should have a saving account you can use to start your own business.
If you’ve accomplished all that in a year, then you can decide whether you want to start your own business. And if you decide you want to, then you should not just read Ready, Fire, Aim, you should use it as your business plan.
Re my piece in the May 17 issue on the Pareto Principle
From SJ: “As someone who ran a fitness business for 30 years, I can tell you that you’re right on the money with your version of the Pareto Principle. You wouldn’t think it would apply to my industry, but it does. Once I figured out that 80% of my revenues were coming from 20% of your customers, it didn’t take me long to realize that 25% of those 20% are the people that are giving you a bottom line. Treat them like gold!”
This Has Gotta Be the Best Business Ever!
MP recommended this article to me on the way to Courtomer. It’s another example of two continuing facts about entrepreneurship: 1. If there is a clever new way to make a profit, there’s a good chance it will be an American who figures it out. 2. Life Insurance is the Buddha of financial strategies. It has a thousand reincarnations.
