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| Volume 8, Issue 7 - July, 2009 • The Recession Strategy Fail Free markets go up and they go down. Downturns have historically been a way to flush the excesses out of the economy and get the economy back to “normal” once again. During these cycles, we get bombarded with messages of doom and gloom. When this happens, it is good to revisit the story of the Hot Dog Vendor... A Man lived by the side of the road...and sold hot dogs. He was hard of hearing, so he had no radio. He had trouble with his eyes, so he had no newspaper. But he sold good hot dogs. He put up a sign on the highway, telling how good they were. He stood by the side of the road and cried, "Buy a hot dog, mister!" And People bought. He increased his meat and bun order, and he bought a bigger stove to take care of his trade. He got his son home from college to help him. But then something happened. His son said, "Father, haven't you been listening to the radio? There's a big Depression on. The international situation is terrible, and the domestic situation is even worse." Whereupon the father thought, "Well, my son has gone to college. He listens to the radio and reads the newspaper, so he ought to know." So, the father cut down on the bun order, took down his advertising sign, and no longer bothered to stand on the highway to sell hot dogs. His hot dog sales fell almost overnight. "You were right, son", the father said to the boy. "We are certainly in the middle of a Great Depression." Moral of the story -- The admonition to “KEEP SELLING” is always valid, but the part about “Stop reading the newspaper, turn off the news on the radio and television” could prove fatal. This downturn is different and ignoring the news is a sure way to fail. If you are not following what is happening with the money supply, you will fail. If you are not following the proposed “Cap and Trade” legislation, you will fail. If you are not following the proposed “ Health Care” legislation, you will fail. The future of your business depends on your selling effort, but how do you know what to sell, how to sell and where to sell if you do not keep up to date with how the world is changing around you. “P.E.S.T.L.E.” is an acronym that stands for Political, Environmental, Social, Technical, Legal and Economic factors that have the potential to affect your business. Now more than ever, it is critical that you are aware of how your business will or may be affected by these factors.
Tough economic conditions mean we all
have to tighten our belts. Training is one of those areas that will
feel the pinch, but it doesn’t mean that you have to eliminate
training all together. Now is the time to train people and gain
a competitive advantage when the market rebounds (See points 3 &
5 above.) Emerging Leadership Circle is a new online approach to
training featuring a number of recognized experts augmented with
special guests to provide current training at affordable prices
that you can access from your computer, when and where you want.
Click
here to get your free trial and learn more about Emerging Leadership
Circle. If you need a speaker, facilitator or trainer for an
Have a subject you would like to see covered in future issues of “Taking Aim”? Please send me an email at aim@CannonAdvantage.com.
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Robert E. Cannon "Best
Practice" Sales
Force Development Change
Management Customer Service Assessment for ISO Requirements • Words of Wisdom
~ Pericles (430 B.C.) “No man's life, liberty, or property is safe while the legislature is in session.” ~ Mark Twain “Mr. Obama was going to be about promoting young guns with new ideas seeking risk capital for the next big thing. Instead, it looks as if the Obama years will be about managing soft landings for mature industries and old unions in the American autumn.” ~ Daniel Henninger (WSJ) "The best minds are not in government. If any were, business would steal them away." ~ Ronald Reagan Taking Aim © 2008 Bob Cannon, The Cannon Advantage Newsletter. All Rights Reserved. The Cannon Advantage visual branding by Zarney Creative. For contact information, click “Resources.” |
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