STAND FOR SOMETHING

As small business owners we have to stand for something in order to grow. A few benefits of our standing for something will include:

• Building trust
• Help in making your daily decisions
• It gives your mission direction

We can’t be like all our politicians who stand for everything that they think will please someone. The result is that they stand for nothing at all. The evidence of their lack of accomplishments year after year is proof.

In business one can’t be everything to everyone. You can’t provide the most exclusive product or service and at the same time be the low price leader. You can’t let any dishonest action, no matter how small or how urgent the matter, slip into our business life.

You must make the difficult decision to stand for what you believe even when the result may lead to the loss of a customer. You can’t tell anyone only what they want to hear if it isn’t the truth. 

In today’s business world privacy has disappeared. Everything you say or do, even in the privacy of your office may one day go public. In other words, if you have to change your story because your audience is different, you’re going to get caught.

Not only from politicians have we heard “the right words” to make us believe something, but also from so very many business owners who promise results, either in a time line, or as a  result of purchasing a product or service. What do you think of that person when the results don’t turn out as promised?

In the real world the most important decisions are mostly about the things you should not do; You don’t ship bad products;, we don’t stand for employees that don’t have your values, etc.

Because your future audience is now unknown to you,  and since everything is public sooner or later, and if you want to build a brand that will stand the test of time, you need to stand for something today and tomorrow and every day.