Table of Contents Fix This Next…………………………………………… 2 The Pumpkin Plan…………………………………… 65 Clock Work…………………………………………… 103 Profit First…………………………………………… 177 Surge…………………………………………… 217 The Toilet Paper Entrepreneur…………….. 258 Excerpt 01 02 03 04 05 06 07 INTRODUCTION 08 09 10 11 “I OWE YOU A BEER!” 12 The subject line of Dave Rinn’s email caught my attention. I 13 read on. 14 “I was just sitting here buried. I recently lost one staff member 15 to a lateral move and another is in Key West. Instead of three of us 16 carrying the load, I was here alone, crushed under it. We used to 17 just do everything that came our way, but with two people out, it 18 was clear that our approach of putting equal importance on every- 19 thing wasn’t working. We need to do the right things, not every- 20 thing. Yet I was feeling paralyzed by the multitude of choices. It 21 was like trying to go down every path at once. I didn’t know what 22 to do next.” 23 Sitting here buried. Feeling paralyzed. Don’t know what to do next. 24 Yup. That sounds about right. Some business owners feel this way 25 from time to time. Most business owners feel this way all the time. 26 That relentless weight of being buried by all of the problems that S27 need to be fixed affects business owners of every level of experience N28 xiii 9780593084410_FixThisNext_TX.indd xii 1/21/20 4:01 PM 9780593084410_FixThisNext_TX.indd xiii 1/21/20 4:01 PM 01 ▼ and 01success. Whether you just started out or your company is the 02 ▼ industry02 leader, whether you’ve struggled to make payroll or are 03 ▼ rolling03 in profit, that urgent need to fix everything, like now, can 04 ▼ cause04 you to freeze up. Which problem should you tackle first? 05 ▼ Dave05 runs a successful coaching and cash- management firm. 06 Most06 days, his solution to overwhelm was an instinctual response: 07 get more07 people doing more things. Yet when he was down two INTRODUCTION 08 staff 08members, he was blessed with the new awareness that not ev- 09 erything09 is of equal importance. Suddenly, he was dealing with all 10 aspects10 of his business: intakes, bookkeeping, scheduling coaching 11 calls,11 making the coaching calls, chasing down data from clients— “I OWE YOU A BEER!” 12 everything.12 Down two employees, weak links that were always The subject line of Dave Rinn’s email caught my attention.13 I present13 were amplified and became crises. read on. 14 So,14 why did Dave say he owed me a beer? “I was just sitting here buried. I recently lost one staff member15 “I15 have always just gone with my gut in the past. I believed that to a lateral move and another is in Key West. Instead of three16 of us every16 problem was a problem to be addressed. Every opportunity carrying the load, I was here alone, crushed under it. We used17 to was an17 opportunity to be exploited,” Dave explained in a follow- up just do everything that came our way, but with two people 18out, it phone18 call. “In moments like these, I would have just gone into was clear that our approach of putting equal importance on 19every- ‘ fire-19 extinguisher’ mode and put out the fires that were burning my thing wasn’t working. We need to do the right things, not 20every- ass. I20 would have responded to whoever screamed the loudest. And thing. Yet I was feeling paralyzed by the multitude of choices.21 It when21 the team returned, I would switch from ‘ fire- extinguisher’ was like trying to go down every path at once. I didn’t know22 what mode22 to ‘ emergency- dispatcher’ mode. We had the same problems, to do next.” 23 except23 now I told my team which fires to put out. Beholden to the Sitting here buried. Feeling paralyzed. Don’t know what to do24 next. never-24 ending stream of urgent issues, we had no specific pathway to Yup. That sounds about right. Some business owners feel this25 way growth.”25 from time to time. Most business owners feel this way all the26 time. But26 now Dave had a secret weapon. A simple tool, not in his That relentless weight of being buried by all of the problems27S that toolbox,S27 but printed out and taped to his wall. need to be fixed affects business owners of every level of experience28N N28“This time, though, I looked over at my wall and saw the tool xiiixiv Introduction 9780593084410_FixThisNext_TX.indd xii 1/21/20 4:01 PM 9780593084410_FixThisNext_TX.indd xiii 9780593084410_FixThisNext_TX.indd1/21/20 4:01 PM xiv 1/21/20 4:01 PM you gave me last time we met. It reminded me to slow down, step ▼ 01 outside instinct, and ask, ‘Okay, instead of doing little bits of every- ▼ 02 thing, what is the one thing I should fix next to move the business ▼ 03 forward?’ ” ▼ 04 The tool taped to Dave’s wall is something I call the Fix This ▼ 05 Next (FTN) analysis, and I’d given it to Dave as part of a beta- 06 testing group years back. Using it, Dave discovered that he had four 07 issues related toINTRODUCTION his current problem— two related to sales and cli- 08 ent commitments, and two related to overall efficiency, what I call 09 order. In just minutes, he was able to figure out which problem he 10 had to fix next in order to make progress that sticks, and how to 11 approach“I OWE YOU it. A He BEER!” quickly identified solutions for handling the sys- 12 temsThe problem: subject adjust line ofclient Dave commitments Rinn’s email and caught adjust my his attention. company’s I 13 workflow.read on. 14 Dave“I was told just me,sitting “Just here thinking buried. through I recently it was lost a one calming staff memberprocess. 15 Ito was a lateral no longer move spinning and another out isof in control. Key West. I thought, Instead ‘Iof can three handle of us 16 this.carrying Now the I have load, a pathway.’I was here It alone, pulled crushed me out ofunder my sense it. We of useddrown to- 17 ing,just doand everything I was able tothat pause came and our consider way, but what with we two were people missing out, and it 18 whatwas clear we could that ouraddress approach to fix ofit. putting equal importance on every- 19 thing“The wasn’t fix Iworking. came up We with need wasn’t to do just the forright the things, moment,” not everyDave- 20 continued.thing. Yet I“It was was feeling a realignment paralyzed ofby thethe businessmultitude so of that choices. I could It 21 straightenwas like trying out andto go not down have every to go path into at that once. buried I didn’t mode know over what and 22 overto do again. next.” The fix helped me now and it will help me next year. I 23 am Sittingable to here address buried. my Feeling business’s paralyzed. current Don’t issues know in whata way to that do next. will 24 serveYup. Thatmy company’s sounds about future. right. Now, Some when business I find owners myself feel questioning this way 25 whatfrom timeto do, to I time.pause Mostmomentarily, business evaluateowners feel what this to wayaddress all the with time. the 26 FTNThat analysis,relentless and weight then offind being myself buried back by in allcontrol of the and problems my business that S27 movingneed to beforward.” fixed affects business owners of every level of experience N28 Introduction xiiixv 9780593084410_FixThisNext_TX.indd xivxii 1/21/20 4:01 PM 9780593084410_FixThisNext_TX.indd xvxiii 1/21/20 4:01 PM 0101 ▼▼ and success.When entrepreneursWhether you reachjust started out to out me, or it’s your typically company to isask the for 0202 ▼▼ industryhelp to leader,make a whetherbig change you’ve or solve struggled a big problem. to make Some payroll have or hitare a 0303 ▼▼ rollingsales plateauin profit, and that no urgentmatter need what to they fix everything,try, they can’t like level now, up. can Or 0404 ▼▼ causethey youcan’t to dig freeze themselves up. Which out problem of a financial should hole. you tackleMaybe first? you have 0505 ▼▼ someDave of runsthe same a successful problems coaching with your and business. cash- managementMaybe you’re firm.fully 0606 Moststaffed days, and his still solution dog- tired. to overwhelm Or you’ve was lost an your instinctual passion forresponse: the busi - 0707 getness more because people you’re doing not more seeing things. the impact Yet when you hehoped was todown make. two Or 0808 staffmaybe members, you’re helooking was blessed for a way with to the leave new your awareness mark for that generations not ev- 0909 erythingto come, is butof equal don’t importance.know how to Suddenly, make it a hereality. was dealingWhether with you all are 1010 aspectsin crisis of hismode, business: simply intakes, want bookkeeping,to grow your schedulingbusiness, or coaching want to 1111 calls,make making a lasting the impact coaching on ourcalls, planet, chasing Fix down This Next data findsfrom theclients— critical 1212 everything.issue you need Down to resolve—two employees, wait for it—weak next! links When that youwere are always in “fire- 1313 present extinguisher were amplified mode,” FTN and givesbecame you crises. the pause necessary to pinpoint 1414 theSo, core why issue. did DaveWhen say things he owed are moving me a beer? along but just not moving 1515 forward,“I have FTN always points just goneto your with true my north.