Are We There Yet?

Four simple words that have frustrated and entertained us along many voyages. If you are a parent, you’ve probably heard that line a hundred times from you children as you venture out on road trips or vacations. As children get older they continue to ask the same question – somewhat tongue and cheek to get a laugh. As adults, the joke continues and this time when we ask “Are We There Yet?” it really isn’t a question anymore. It is a statement that the journey has been long and there is an anxiety about reaching our destination.

As business owners and entrepreneurs, we often ask ourselves the same question. This time the question relates to how much more time, money and energy must we put into our endeavour before we achieve our goal.

Often, the question may seem rhetorical. Are we there yet! It doesn’t have to be. Let’s deal with the question one word at a time.

ARE:

“Are” speaks to measurement. You cannot know if you “are” without some form of comparison, yardstick, benchmark or measurement. Ensure that your progress towards your target is measurable and tracked. Track your progress in every way that makes sense. Just as in a road trip you might measure average speed, to calculate your probable arrival time, use milestones to calculate your progress towards your goals.

Communicate these goals to your team. Ensure accountabilities are understood and being met. Use your team and business coach to assist in making tactical moves where necessary.

WE:

Speaking of team; as with the “are we there yet” car trip, in business, it is important to remember that everyone is in the car together. One person can not arrive alone – it’s an all or nothing deal.

To the entrepreneur, this means building a strong team and trusted alliances. With clear directions (your vision and mission), you can “share the driving”. In order for people to share the driving, the destination and map to follow to get there needs to be clearly drawn out ahead of time. Each person on the team needs accountability for their tasks or leg of trip. They need to understand the purpose of that task to reaching the destination. Use your business plan to align tasks with business values and objectives. A clear understanding of why you are asking people to do things will build a stronger more effective team. Ultimately, a stronger “We”.

THERE:

A colleague recently related a business challenge he was faced with. He took on a new role accountable for overall customer service in a 150 year old risk averse company. Customer satisfaction was non-existent, moral was low, systems were inadequate and there was an overwhelming resistance to change. “That’s not how we do things” was a mantra.

Large changes were necessary and there were challenges. A technology implementation created process inefficiencies as the technology team and the workforce learned how to use it properly. Where a cash infusion was needed to centralize and mobilize the customer service front line, not enough money was available. The short term results were predictable. Instead of customer service increasing – it decreased.

At a management meeting my colleague outlined the challenges and stated he was confident the business could get there. One astute team member in the audience spoke up and said: “we are buried so deep in this mess that we don’t even know where ‘There’ is!” That was his “Ah ha” moment.

Although he personally understood the issues and was confident about what needed to get done, he had not laid out the roadmap and destination for everyone else to see, understand and believe. He needed a clear and concise business plan that others could see and embrace. He needed to define the “There” in a way that meant something to those who needed to share the driving.

To succeed, “There” needs to be clearly articulated in a way that will have meaning to others. One way to accomplish that is through a concise business plan that includes a vision, mission, performance targets, strategies and action plans.

If you have ambitious goals, one of the first steps in achieving them is to articulate them in a way that will have meaning to others. Clearly define your “There”.

YET:

The “Yet” is the amount of time it takes you to reach your destination. One key difference between the “are we there yet” on a road trip and the “are we there yet” in business is the control over time. In the car, you are limited to speed limits and rules of the road. The only real control you have is the amount of time you might spend in rest stops. The only way to get faster is to drive more, rest less and maybe alter your route slightly. That is not true for business. With your business, the “Yet” timeline can be anything you want it to be. Make sure it is reasonable and that all possible routes are considered.

One common mistake is to try and do everything in the first month or quarter of a business plan. Spread the effort out over the entire year. Choose the highest gain or highest priority objectives first. Make your timeline aggressive but realistic and ensure everyone on the team understands the purpose, the timeline, the objective and the importance of their specific role.

So, the next time you hear “Are We There Yet?” think about:

Are:	Established measurements to track progress and success.
We:	Everyone who is responsible or capable of assisting with achievement.
There:	The Goals: concise, measurable, realistic, relevant and time sensitive.
Yet:	Aggressive and well balanced milestones.

Happy travels.



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