I wrote this piece about change in the OPE industry on January 15, 1995. I believe it is just as pertinent today as it was in 1995. What do you think?
Each morning, over your first cup of coffee, you cringe at the thought of what you will hear this day about more changes in an industry where change seems constant. You feel comfortable that you’re running your business fairly well. While there’s always room for improvement, you try to take care of your customers extremely well. You provide them a service or product that’s good enough for them to pay you a profit for providing it.
You also realize that nobody “owns their customers anymore. And that you are only as good as your last performance was. If it was lousy, your customer will simply turn to someone else. So you always try to exceed your customer’s expectations. Today you’re confident about your business abilities, but you have some fear about tomorrow and the changes that will most certainly affect you in the future. How should you respond to them?
In past years a strong and stable company was one that never changed. Today, a strong, stable company is one that constantly changes; that takes advantage of every opportunity that change presents; and uses every opportunity to move forward in a positive manner.
Alexander Graham Bell best stated what our normal reaction to change is, when he said: “When one door closes, another always opens; but we often look so long and so regretfully upon the closed door that we do not see the one which has opened for us.” You can’t keep your eyes shut, or have tunnel vision. You have to see and recognize the opportunities as they are presented to you. And that may take some work on your part.
You recognize opportunities by staying informed about what is going on in your industry. You read trade publications. You talk to informed, knowledgeable people. You attend industry meetings and trade shows. And you listen better than you ever have before. Informed knowledge gives you the opportunities; opportunities give you options; and options give you choices. Then it’s up to you.
Don’t worry, as you ponder your choices, that many may seem of little consequence, or too complex, or that you might make the wrong decision. One of the most important things in the world for you to know is not where you stand today, but in what direction you are moving for tomorrow.
See your opportunities and make your informed choices. Then with a passion you didn’t know you had, focus yourself and your associates on relentlessly pursuing your vision. Only you have the power to make it happen in your business. Don’t ever get caught looking so longingly and regretfully on the closed door, that you can’t see the opportunities presented by the new door that opened!
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