| Teaching Notes & Study Guide | ||
| Key Ideas.
Key Idea #1 .There is no substitute for long hours and hard work. Charlie thinks he is lucky because his parents always worked hard, and he learned from them that hard work is good. Charlie is up early, and during his one hour commute from his home to his office, he talks on his the car phone to his customers. He listens to their problems and to their suggestions about the products they buy from him. By the time he arrives at the office, he already has a list of things to do for those customers. During the day, he supervises the 30 employees, then in the late afternoon and early evening, he phones to his manufacturers in the Orient. (Don't forget, when you do business around the world you must be available in many time zones.) Charlie works on Saturdays -- he always has and probably always will. With physics as his hobby, Charlie keeps up by spending some time with other physicists. You think back: Charlie seems like an all-work-no-play kind of guy. Is this bad? Answer: Like Charlie,
some of us may have grown up with parents who taught the virtue of hard work.
On the other hand, little or no relaxation time can your shorten life. I wish I
knew how many tons of paper are now filled with advice about how to achieve
balance in your life. What I believe is: people are doing what they would
rather do than not do. Tere Zubizarreta told me, "When my husband asked for I
divorce I confessed that I had a lover and it was Zubi Advertising." This is a
great example of how small business owners often think of their businesses. We
are passionate about what we're doing so it doesn't seem like work. When you're
in love you spend time with the person or thing you love. People who work 9-5
think we're crazy but we're having fun. If you're having fun and your family is
OK with how much you work, you will probably live longer than all the people
writing the books about how to work less. Key Idea
#2 Take control of the the entire process. What do you think? Do you think the fact that Charlie almost completed his Ph.D. in Physics helps him run this business? Answer: Most entrepreneurs are not highly educated. However, the discipline of research accounts for his thoroughness in his business. Charlie told me that Physics remains his hobby but that he finds making toys fascinating and fun. What do you think? Why
are all the steps of the process important to Charlie? Answer: Because he can see his own profits increase with each step he controls. When you use middlemen they have to be paid. Charlie speaks the language, has been in the toy business for years and with his skill and knowlege, he doens't need representatives or distributors. He can do it all and because he does he makes more money for Mega Toys. Key Idea #3 Don't be greedy. Charlie Woo has a sharp pencil. He prices all aspects of the production and shipping so that all of his customers can make a profit by using him as their supplier. His philosophy is important to understand. What does a product cost and what is a fair margin for each layer of involvement? For example, if he negotiates so hard with his manufacturer that the manufacturer barely makes a profit then he will not be eager to do business with Charlie in the future. The point is, when you help everyone in the process make money, then you have repeat business. You think back: Have you ever thought that business people either are greedy or need to be in order to build a successful company? Answer: It's ok to admit that
you have thought this. But, it is the exception, not the rule. The reason I am
confident in this statement is that most people are self-centered. And, as we
mature we find that to get what we want we help others get what they want. It
is human nature. Yes, we can be taught, as I was, that we are our brother's
keeper, and at the same time we feel deep down inside we can get more with
honey than vinegar. Marc Katz teaches this when he
tells us, "You only get to keep what you give away." Frankly, I have never
personally known a wealthy and greedy small business owner. It is usually the
opposite. All the wealthy business people I know are very
generous. You think back: What is greed and what is fair profit? Answer: If you buy a fountain drink in a paper cup with ice, the direct cost to the retailer is less than a nickel. You probably pay anywhere from $.89 cents to $1.20. Is this greed or fair profit? When you consider all of the costs that increase overhead, it is probably a fair profit. A market economy imposes price and quality standards which makes pricing very dynamic. Every business deserves fair profit if it serves the needs of its customers and keeps its processes efficient. Key Idea #4 Demonstrate trust by sticking to the facts. Ron Willingham says we should refrain from hyperbole in the selling process. You think back: Why do sales people tend to exaggerate? Answer: I consider myself a sales person and I'm proud of it. I am optimistic about life and when I see something that I think is great, I will enthusiastically tell my friends about my own experience. If they go buy what I recommend and don't like it as much as I do, they might say to themselves, "she is such a sales person." What they mean is I painted a picture of the product that the product couldn't live up to. So, Ron is telling us not to do that. Ron says to stick to the facts. The problem is I could recite the facts with energy and a sparkle in my eye and later I might be accused of hyperbole. Bottomline: it's better to be cool than hot in the selling process. |
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