Its been almost a year since I became a Filta franchisee and the experience has been nothing short of superior. But I believe that my thoughts of joy have been created and did not happen by chance. Anything in life takes time, determination, and a will to succeed. Although that may sound a bit cliché, its true. Over the past year I have accumulated what I believe to be a few secrets to a successful franchisee and I want to share the wealth. Here we go!
- Set Goals. Life is not life without some goals. Think about it, if you are planning a trip from Seattle, Washington to see a friend in Virginia Beach, VA a bit of planning must take place. Sure you could just say “ Im gonna head east to where the sun rises” but that wont work. Reason being, there’s a lot of east coast and “VaBeach” is a small speck on the coast. So, best bet is to look at a map (Paper, Internet, etc..) and chart your coarse. Although you may take a few scenic routes along the way, you ultimately know your final destination. Well guess what, our live’s are no different! Question is: how do I get started? Yearly I make a list of 10 goals. I then take each and work backwards. That’s right, backwards. The idea here is to determine what things must be set in place in order to get as close to that goal as possible. Take for instance; I want to add $10,000 per week to my FiltaFry business. WOW! That’s a lot! But if you break it down its not so bad. 10k divided into 52 wks is about $192 per week. If your average weekly account is $75 that tells you that you would need to add 2.5 new accounts per week. Right now you may be saying, “JJ, there is no way I can do that”. Well, if that is so, then change your end number to 5k or 3k or whatever you think you can obtain. Remember, be creative. That’s your job, you’re a business owner now.
- Just do it!. Yeah, that’s Nike’s, not mine, but is absolutely true. If you have to go do sales calls; Just do it! If you need to email a customer; Just do it! Don’t wait til some day, do it today!!!!! Its easy to get wrapped around the axle doing things that provide no true benefit to your business. Benefits to your business include, but are not limited too: sales calls to net-new clients, current customer interaction (referrals), reviewing technicians service, and Im sure you could add a few more. Bottom-line: If you have a goal know that the only way you will obtain it is by doing the things that are necessary to make it a reality. Just do it!
- Let go. One of the hardest things I had to learn quickly was that I can’t do it alone. A close friend and very successful businessman told me when I was getting started “JJ, a time will come when you are going to have to lay down the MFU, vacuum, and oil and become a business owner”. At first that didn’t make sense, but it sure does now! In order to have a successful growing business I need a team. As the owner (Leader) my job is not about being in charge and doing the work. It’s about proper training and then letting go of that service and watching my employees run it for me. I know to some that may sound ludicrous, but its true. Let me give you a tidbit of info. Statistics show that upwards of 60% of Americans hate their job. Why’s that? Not enough money? No. Its about lack of growth opportunity and mostly about having meaning and purpose. If you try to do it all, your employees find that you just don’t need them. There is no reason for them to stick around, no purpose. If you let go your techs become your greatest asset. Its because of them that you will have the freedom to sell, meet with customers, and grow your business. Train them on what you know, empower them, and then let your employees play a vital part in the growth of your business, they won’t let you down.
I think that’s a good enough start. Too much and you might pop!
Take a deep breath……….. now dive in. The water is fine! ?
