Run your Business: Buck the status quo to conquer BHAGs

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Over the years, I’ve run my share of treadmills into the ground. Usually, it’s very obvious when they break down. They start to make some horrendous screeching and groaning noises that you know can’t be good.

My latest treadmill to bite the dust was not so obvious. In fact, for the longest time, I didn’t even realize something was off. The motor began to ever-so-slightly run less efficiently. Looking back, I believe this began at least a year before I finally realized what was happening.

The changes at first were miniscule, which is why it took me so long to catch it. If you were running at 6 mph, the machine speed was just a little slower than that. Nothing you would really notice. It wasn’t until the final week that it took a big drop-off. For a 6 mph run it was running at about half the speed. The treadmill was moving at a slow walk rather than a comfortable run.

What I found fascinating during the gradual decline was that part of me could tell something was changing. When I ran at higher speeds or intervals, my runs kept feeling easier. It never occurred to me that the treadmill might be breaking down. I assumed I was getting stronger and faster.

You would think that if I was getting stronger or faster, I would have begun to increase my speeds as the runs got easier. But I never thought that. I was so set in my ways and knew what paces I used for each run that I never changed them. I just kept running at the easier, slower speeds.

Big, hairy, audacious goals

Numbers can be tricky. They can help motivate us, but sometimes, numbers can hold us back. On a recent car drive, my wife and I listened to a podcast on setting “Big, hairy, audacious goals” (BHAGs, pronounced “bee hags”) that really grabbed me. It motivated me to take a close look at my business and create much bigger goals than I would have normally attempted.

I decided to set a BHAG to significantly increase our sales this year at a much higher rate than we have typically grown.

One of the biggest numbers we look at in the pest control industry is our increase in yearly sales. Many of us have set percentages we like to see our businesses grow each year. And just like I got stuck running the same speeds on my treadmill even as it got slower, I realized that I had been too comfortable with the steady growth of our sales in recent years.

Most years, we can increase our sales by between 10 percent and 15 percent. The bulk of our sales come from commercial accounts, so as our customers grow, they bring us along with them. We found our comfort zone at this rate.

But, what if we ignored the comfortable numbers and tried to go bigger?

That would mean upping our usual goal. To reach these goals, we need to come up with new ideas and new ways. We can’t just rely on the self-generated growth we’ve had throughout the years.

Taking action

I’ve decided to take two steps so far toward conquering my BHAG:

1. We increased our sales team in an effort to bring in new customers and to network with industries outside of our current customer base. Since so much of our business is commercial, this required a team effort to get the new members up and running. We have to make sure they can not just sell, but identify active pest issues and put together our service program. If we inspect five different locations that are the exact same size, we might come up with five completely different service programs based on the construction, sanitation and existing pest issues.
2. We’re also looking into possibly acquiring another company, if the right opportunity arises. It’s gone from “maybe someday” to “let’s start talking about this.”

In other words, we’re looking at different solutions than we have in the past in order to meet this big, hairy, audacious goal. I have two last tips for this strategy that I’m learning along the way:

1. Don’t settle for your usual speed. Just like you need to push the speed button to run faster on the treadmill, you need to lean into your sales and push harder to increase them beyond past expectations.
2. Don’t get stuck in place by the numbers. They’re helpful, but they can keep you stuck in place. Think outside of the box for solutions and put everything you have inside of you to reach your BHAG.

Have a great run!