Friends of Dave #337: eat more beans please
The Problem with Putting All of Your Eggs in One Basket
You may not have realized it, but this newsletter you get every week is like a lounge act.
Yes, Friends, it turns out I do take requests…..mostly it’s from my Mom or my wife, but I do occasionally get a call or text from FoDs that triggers a preamble topic.
That is the case this week.
Giving credit where credit is due, this one came from someone deep in my network. Like a relative of a high school classmate of mine deep.
The guy, we'll call him John, called me out of the blue recently to catch up and do a bit of networking. After I filled him in on what I have been up to since we last spoke, he started talking to me about someone from his network — turns out this person's company is going through a rough patch and is starting to let lots of people go.
Of course there was a story attached — and John teed it up by prefacing it with “it’s so juicy you’re going to want to write about this one for the Friends of Dave.”
“David, you want to know the reason the company is hitting the skids? It’s because they were stupid enough to put all of their eggs in one basket.”
Turns out the company made a huge bet on landing business from a single large technology company — they thought they had multiple deals of theirs in the queue for this year and, as a result, mismanaged their finances. They thought the projects were a lock.
As you may have guessed, they weren’t.
The economy hit the skids, there were a number of factors that impacted the previously made decision like people not returning to the office and the deals were cancelled.
The company made a huge aggressive bet, put all of their eggs in this one basket, and it is likely going to sink the business as a result.
A day later, I was having a conversation with one of my sons — he was fortunate to interview for a decent job for the summer and received a verbal offer from the company. He was so excited — he was looking for praise and to see if his mother and I were proud of him.
Of course we were proud of him, I said. But then I heard John in my head, and I followed it with “Well, just don’t put all of your eggs in one basket.”
Side note: this is where my wife gets really pissed at me. She hears me say this and can’t understand why I can’t just shut up and be happy for our kid for taking the necessary steps to secure employment and act like a responsible adult. And I probably should do that…..but I can’t help myself…she knows I’ve seen “Glengarry Glen Ross” like a thousand times and quote just about scene in the film…and she wasn’t the one with John’s voice in her head.
Fact is, we all do it. We think we have something closed and wrapped up and we let our foot off the gas. We relax. We start to count the money (or in some cases, spend the money), do the victory lap and imagine the success story we are going to be able to tell.
But a deal ain’t done until it is done — talk is cheap and, as most of you in sales know, usually you can only count on it as “Closed - Won” when you have a signature on paper and the money is in the bank.
Until that happens, you have to keep the pipeline and your options open.
You have to put eggs in other baskets — otherwise, you will put yourself at risk of having nothing. That’s not being negative or not believing in yourself — that’s just being smart.
And, frankly these days, with a rough economy and companies being skittish about headcounts across every industry, you need to keep yourself vigilant and prepared even when you think you are on solid ground.
That is what I explained to my son. Until he got the offer letter, went to work that first day and earned that pay check, this is a “Most Likely” deal. I told him to keep looking for other opportunities and to fill his pipeline with options. You never know what can come along.
Thankfully, his offer letter came earlier this week — the job starts a little later than he expected, but he also landed another part time gig that will help fill his compensation gap. He should be fine — and hopefully now understands that putting all of your eggs in one basket is seldom a safe bet.
I know he was a bit put off that I pushed him on this. He just wanted me to give him a big hug and say I was proud of him.
I get it. I reminded him that I was proud of him. But I also told him not to blame me — and told him to call John. After all, it was his bright idea in the first place…..
Remember this as you charge into the second half of the year. Hear John’s words in your head. Don’t be stupid enough to put those eggs in one basket. Stay frosty my Friends!
XOXO
Dave
Think on This…
In the beginning it’s okay to go faster than comfort dictates; faster than feels prudent; faster than you think you can. In fact, it’s not just okay; it’s optimal.
Sometimes, caution is the riskiest strategy of all.
For Your Day Job…
Your sales strategy may be sending the wrong message; if you send the right one, customers won’t even feel like you’re selling.
Your Weekly Dose of Randomness…
Beans are protein-rich, sustainable, and delicious. Why doesn’t the US eat more of them?
Had the game of baseball developed differently, perhaps we’d all be wearing big straw hats with our favorite club’s logo written across the front.
Companies are taking away your ability to actually own the stuff you buy. Modern software allows manufacturers to tether users to them, forever. That means you may endlessly pay for stuff you already bought.