Plan B - Your Backup Plan for Wealth

In helping entrepreneurs develop their businesses, we often get talking about what you would do once the business is up and running without all the time commitment; once everyone is doing it for you and cash is rolling in. I refer to it as Plan D. It's the Plan D, for Dreams. If you had unlimited time and money, what would you do?

I also talk to people about Plan B because sometimes our business or career doesn't roll the way we want it to. Sometimes we also recognize that the current operation or current role doesn't give us the cash we are going to need to live like kings and queens into our 90's. Plan B is the idea that no matter how good things are today (or more likely not as good as it was) that you need a second backup plan. What if your business went down? Would it take all your wealth or do you have enough stashed away in real estate and investments? What if you career ended tomorrow? Do you have any other passive income? Seems pretty obvious doesn't it.

My experience is that most people don't have a Plan B. I have had clients making $400,000 annually but realized they needed to work every year until death because that just covered their expenses. Living large but no Plan B. This could be a second company or little business like a MLM or a vending machine business that requires a couple hours a week. It can be real estate or cars. It needs to be something that you can generate cash out of or hide cash in for the long term. As so many people in large corporations are discovering you need to plan for zero income and those people that even have $2000 a month coming in from somewhere else are far, far ahead of the pack. This is true of business owners too. Find a way to get some income going from somewhere besides your main business.

Don't have a plan B? Get started on one today. Not sure of what it can be? Maybe I can help you define it. The point is, self-sufficiency in good times and in bad is based on a strong plan A ... AND plan B.

Since When Is Service a Reduction of Words

I was down in Montana and had an opportunity to visit my favorite breakfast place. It is famous for its breakfast. Unfortunately my service experience was something different. It was the experience of minimal speech! "Two?" "Coffee?" "Ready?" Can you see it? We walked in and in a word she confirmed how many in our party. In another word she had covered off the drinks order. Finally she got things ordered with one more word. Efficient.

One of the keys of service is the idea of hospitality. Hospitality is communication. When did, "Good morning. How are you today? How many people in your party?" become "Two?" Sure I go out enough that I understood her meaning and I got through it without injury. But her elimination of words made communication impersonal and at times confusing. We were definitely a number not a customer.

Whether it be through service training (http://evolvebusinessgroup.com/training/serviceTitans.php) or just through systematic reminders for your team to talk to your customers and make it an experience for them. You have to ensure that common place never takes the place of service. This is a common pitfall of any staff who talks to customers. It becomes commonplace for them and they forget its new for each customer, everyday. Service scripts are a first step and hospitality is the next step. Establish plans for both in your operations.

Keep using the right words and remember the words create the experience for customers.