Make Success a Steady State with the Power of Routine
As companies grow, a whole bunch of things change.
Businesses get more complex. Their costs go up, they find economies of scale, they build out their functions, they enter new markets, they see new possibilities…
But one thing that never changes? The need for routine maintenance.
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Suppose I wanted to improve my flexibility (this would be a reasonable goal for me).
To do that, I start stretching. I stretch every single day.
And you know what? It works!
After 2 weeks, I feel more flexible. After a month, I’ve made significant progress.
I keep going, and I stretch every day for 6 months.
And then, because I’m human, maybe something happens. An idea starts to creep in.
I have my newfound flexibility. So, do I really need to keep stretching? I achieved my goal. I did what I set out to do.
My stretching has started to feel routine, maybe even mundane.
So I start skipping a day, just here and there. At least, that’s what happens at first.
Before you know it, I’m skipping a few days, stretching once or twice a week.
The first couple of months, I don’t notice a difference.
But a few months in, I start feeling tighter again. My muscles are stiff and tense.
My stretching routine has backslid, and with it, most of the progress I made.
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You might already see how this applies to your business, but let me make it really clear.
When things are going well, we tend to discount the work that got us there.
If your company is running smoothly, you might start to take your eye off the ball.
But you can’t. Because the only reason you’re where you are is because of the work you put in to get there.
That work doesn’t stop. It can’t.
Because success isn’t a one-time milestone. It’s an ongoing state.
Ironically, I see this happen most often with my clients who ARE the most successful.
The Quarterly Meetings that we do with our clients are great checkpoints for them, but after years of doing these meetings, they don’t always have the same thrill as those early days (when we were uncovering mass problems and having major “aha” moments).
After a while, they sometimes become a bit more routine.
But companies only run smoothly because the people who run them keep working at it.
Yes, it gets easier. Yes, it’s a little less exciting. Yes, it’s more predictable.
But isn’t that what you want from your business?
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In this scenario, I think of a quarterly meeting as a turnstile a team needs to pass through.
You must pass through it, because if you don’t, you’ll start taking shortcuts.
You’ll start tinkering unnecessarily with what’s already working.
Routine is the foundation of every healthy habit.
Look, I am not the poster child for consistency. My “steady” score on a DISC personality profile is literally 1 out of 100.
But I have learned (the hard way) that when something is going well, you need to go with it. And you need to keep doing all of the things that made it go well in the first place.
So if your quarterly meeting is shorter than usual? If you’re only working on a few focused goals? If your team is already aligned the minute you walk through the door?
Great news.
Don’t take it as a sign that you can slack off.
Take it as encouragement to keep going.
