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I recently learned about Dr. Janice Dorn, M.D., Ph.D., psychiatrist, futurist and brain specialist, via a Genius Network Interview by Joe Polish, and she made this excellent point that all of us in franchising (and business) need to hear and apply:
Perfect practice makes perfect.
She said, “One of the great rules of life is to do more of what’s working and less of what isn’t working.”
Do More Of This!
So if you’re _____________ (fill in the blank, selling franchises, coaching franchisees, buying houses, cutting hair, etc.), Dr. Dorn said, “You always want to do more of what’s working and less of what isn’t working.”
Simple advice, but the problem for many is this:
We don’t know what’s working, or what isn’t working!
Dr. Dorn didn’t provide the answer to that basic challenge, but the answer is just as simple.
Measure!
Franchising Requires Best Results
A good example: Franchisors that commit most/much of their support to franchisees that produce the least results. And . . . franchisees that commit most/much of their time to customers that produce the least results.
Happens all the time.
Why?
When I ask that question I get these answers: “Well, we want to help all of our franchisees.” . . . “We believe in treating all customers alike.” . . . “It’s our obligation to provide support.”
Sounds great, but too often it means doing more of what’s not working!
Why do that?
Mistake: Not Measuring
I’ll tell you why it happens. For both franchisors and franchisees it’s because they have not measured. Consequently, they don’t know what’s working.
If you’re a franchisor, do you know who your best franchisees are? Franchisees: do you know who your best customers are?
Measuring for Best Customers & Franchisees
How do you measure for “best”?
Here’s how: It’s the one that pays you the most money in the least time.
That might not be the measure you’d like to use, so come up with a better one. Please use Comments to tell us what it is.
Back to my point. Or, Dr. Dorn’s point: Do more of what’s working and less of what isn’t working.
Once you know how to create a best customer, best franchisee, you’ll know what to do. Every time. When to do it and how much of it to do.
Practice begins with measuring. Once you get it perfect, then perfect practice makes perfect . . . such as, perfect franchisees and perfect customers.
Gratefully, I know a few of them!
Photo by aussiegal
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Good point about ‘Franchisors that commit most/much of their support to franchisees that produce the least results’ – it’s such a temptation to focus on what’s not working & fix it, but much more useful to focus on what is working & strengthen it. Like the book ‘Discover Your Strengths’ that talks about how much more cost & time & results effective it is to focus on what you do well & build that, than try to overcome weaknesses. Thanks for the thoughts.