But the Time and Effort Are Worth It in the Long Run
For the past several weeks, we’ve been discussing how bullheaded contractors can be and how so much of it comes down to making choices. And making those choices can be hard.
I talk with a lot of self-employed people in the construction business, and I hear the same thing over and over. They struggle with the business side of things and want to do better. Then when it comes down to doing what it takes to make things better… they go back to their old ways. They get stuck in their rut, and nothing changes.
I understand this because I was there once, too. I did the same thing in my business.
Nothing is going to get better if you don’t do something different.
Most of us don’t like change. We’ve been doing things the same way for a long time, and we’re comfortable in our ruts. It’s hard to change and do something new and different.
Then, the other day, it hit me upside the head like a board. I was doing it again. I was putting off doing something I knew I needed to do.
For the past couple of years, I’ve been dealing with storage issues on my smartphone. I removed some things that I didn’t use very often, and that helped a little. Then the battery stopped staying charged all day like it used to.
A couple of months ago, I noticed the screen was separating from the back. I’ve been told that can happen when the battery starts to swell.
This past week, my Pandora sleep timer quit working. I tried uninstalling and reinstalling it, but it still didn’t work. Over the past few days, my signal strength has been really weak, and I’ve even had some calls drop.
I’ve had this phone for a long time. Probably longer than I realize. It seems like two or three years, but I suspect it’s closer to six or seven.
So why don’t I just go get a new phone?
As I was thinking about this question earlier this week, it hit me. It’s just like my old bad habit of not wanting to change how I ran my business.
It’s going to take an hour to drive to the Verizon store and another hour to drive back. Then I’ll have to spend an hour or two figuring out which phone is the right phone. After that, there’s the time spent moving everything from the old phone to the new one.
Oh, and don’t forget the time it will take to learn how to operate the new phone and figure out where everything is.
This all sounds a little pathetic, doesn’t it?
In the end, I have a choice to make. I can keep struggling with my old phone because I’m used to it, or I can go get a new one. Sure, there is going to be a cost in both time and money. But I’m already spending time and money trying to hang on to the old one.
I go through this every time I need a new phone. It’s not like I would be more productive if I were still using my old bag phone. The same thing is true with my current smartphone.
I know that some people will stand in line for hours to get the newest phone, and sometimes that new technology will have unexpected problems. I think there is a balance between acting too quickly without thinking things through and waiting too long to make a change and becoming less productive.
Making changes in your business is the same way. You can keep doing things the old way because it’s comfortable and familiar. Or you can take the bull by the horns and make some changes.
It’s going to take some time and effort. It may even cost some money. But in the end, it can be worth it.
Sometimes the hardest part of making a change isn’t figuring out what needs to change. It’s deciding that you’re finally going to do it. And just like getting a new smartphone, once you get through the hassle of making the change, you may wonder why you waited so long.