About the articles on this blog

As of April 9, 2011, the articles on this blog are reprints of columns I originally wrote for Avnet Advantage, a customer newsletter for the IT distribution industry. In some cases, this means HTML links don't work (I hope to get these cleaned up in time) and there are references to terms (like RESS) that are specific to that industry and that client. The bulk of the content, however, is applicable to any industry.

There are two series of articles here. The oldest one covers performance improvement and the newer one covers change leadership and change management.

Please feel free to contact me for further information.

ErycEyl@gmail.com

Friday, May 7, 2010

Chapter 1: There Is No 'Try': Yoda's Business Advice

Isn’t it funny how Yoda’s words to young Luke Skywalker ring as true in today’s competitive, ever-changing IT landscape as they did in the swamps of Dagobah?

Remember the scene? Master Yoda encourages whiny Luke to use the power of the Force to pull his wrecked x-wing fighter out of the bog. Finally, Luke decides he’ll give it a go – as much to quiet the little green guy’s lecturing as anything.

“I’ll try,” he says.

“Try not,” Yoda snaps back. “Do or do not. There is no ‘try.’”

As a value-added reseller in the exciting-but-hardscrabble world of IT distribution, you’re probably trying to figure out what it takes to achieve and maintain success. You might be trying to deal with the nonstop changes that seem to hit your business daily. In the meantime, you’re trying to offer your customers and suppliers better value by leveraging your resources, expertise, services and specialties.

Well, take Yoda’s advice. Stop trying right now and DO.

No, this isn’t another pep talk about how a positive attitude and the law of attraction are going to get you what you want. In the dynamic business environment of today, you don’t get credit for good intentions. Results are the only currency.

Over the next few weeks, Avnet Advantage will bring you a series of articles containing ideas and tactics that will help you add value and achieve more than you might have thought possible, without adding cost. We’ll talk about winning customers (not just deals), the most important mathematical formula you never learned, how to make your business indispensable to your customers, and more.

But no article will transform your business. As you read this column, don’t think about what ideas or tactics you might try. Think about what you’ll DO.

Then go wipe that swamp goo off your x-wing fighter.

/ Freelance Writer and Business Consultant

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