Remember when Ford Motor Co. used the slogan, "Quality is
Job #1"? Every business leader must be clear about their
Number One Priority. And they must know that everything else
is secondary. Important perhaps, but not as important as Job
#1.
In sales, Job #1 might be "making calls." It may be
literally making phone calls and "dialing for dollars." In
other situations, it may be writing proposals or doing sales
presentations, but in sales, being in front of customers and
showing them that your product or service is the best of all
available alternatives is always Job #1. Everything else is
and must be secondary. "Making calls" is Job #1.
For a carpenter, Job #1 may be pounding nails, or reading
blueprints or doing estimates, or it may be supervising sub-
contractors, but in the end, there is one and only one, Job
#1.
For many busy professionals, performing the specialized task
they have trained for is Job #1. This week, I had a
colonoscopy and while I greatly appreciated the time my
gastroenterologist spent explaining the procedure, and the
clarity his staff provided about insurance payments and lab
work, in the end, he was paid a tremendous amount for one
and only one job: doing my colonoscopy. I imagine he was
paid several thousand dollars per hour for that. Talking
with me, while much appreciated, paid him zero. Big
difference!
What is your Job #1? Be clear about it! Know what you, and
only you, can do with expertise, with precision and with
tremendous value-added. Then do more of it and hire staff,
or delegate, or simply delete everything else.
Many of those secondary tasks need and should be done. The
time and care Dr Markowitz' staff spent with me was much
appreciated! But only he could do the procedure and time
spent doing anything else was time (and money) wasted.
Be clear about Job #1.
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