Wise words from Coach Nick Saban, Football Coach, University of Alabama
Are you in danger of becoming irrelevant? It’s easy, you know? Countless organizations have achieved this dubious distinction.
Here are the warning signs:
- Facilities are outdated and tired looking
- Staff are disengaged, marking time and unmotivated
- More time is spent whining than doing
- Customers just aren’t like they used to be
- Preoccupation with the past
- No time spent on the future
- Expectation that tomorrow will be just like today…and it is
- No one exploring the big issues like:
- Where do we need to be?
- What do we need to do?
- How do we change?
- How can we be better?
- Feeling of being trapped
- Absentee ownership
Recently, I heard Nick Saban share one of the ways he motivates his Alabama Football Team, “We didn’t come here to be irrelevant!” he tells them.
It’s a wake up call. I don’t know about you but I didn’t come here to be irrelevant and I don’t think you did either.
Admittedly, things in DeathCare have been trending negatively for several years now, but when I listen to a lot of us it sounds like we think it’s hopeless. I vigorously disagree. Nothing is ever so bad you can’t do something. Maybe it’s time to sell. But…maybe it’s time to decide you don’t want to sell. Maybe it’s time to admit you aren’t a great leader and find a mentor to help you learn to be a better one. There are lot’s of things we can do but the first step is to:
LOOK BEYOND YOUR CIRCUMSTANCES
You see, if you only look at your circumstances, your circumstances are in control. The burden of the present is simply too much. Research shows that those who candidly face reality but never stop believing that the future can be better have a much better chance of succeeding than those who give up. Kinda makes sense, doesn’t it? When we look beyond our circumstances we start seeing things as they could be instead of the way they are. We gain a sense that it isn’t the beginning of the end… but only the end of the beginning.
Here’s the take-away: Dying is one thing that will never go out of style. People will always die. How they choose to interact with that event or process is the only thing in play. Right now we have the “Home Court Advantage”. What will we do with it? So far not much. But that can change. And if history is any indicator it will. Stand up, get back in the fight, learn to think for yourself and stay away from depressing people…you can’t afford to let them bring you down.
Excellent. Applies to all businesses and organizations, not just those in
the Funeral Industry. Everyone would no doubt agree with this, it’s just that most will probably need some help in transitioning their attittudes becasue they are so deep in their “funk” they can’t see the way out.
We have countered this industry-wide negative trend two ways.
First, we made a big commitment to staff training. Last year we created two full-time Directors of Best Practices positions. These mentors work with all of our funeral director, family service, and guest relations staff members. Their positions are outcome based and measurable.
Our second endeavor has been the expansion of our Private Label casket distributorship. We are not only seeing dramatic positive impact to our own bottom line, but we are now able to help other funeral firms see the same kind of savings.
Alan – you made some excellent points on “warning signs” and the potential of becoming irrelevant. Out of curiousity, I decided to research the use of the word irrevelant in the business workplace. Irrelevant relates primarily to not connecting to the the focus; not producing an intended effect; incompetent and not producing results. Not sure if irrevelant expresses a clear understanding of the “as it” state of deathcare/funeral homes. There is far greater awareness and understanding, by funeral home owners, of the market and trends impacting deathcare business today than the past. Success stories documented, state and national deathcare associations and networking have narrowed numerous gaps of the past.
Perhaps what might better define the current state of funeral homes is ineffectiveness with new ideas and leading practices. Much of the ineffectiveness is based on the high level disengaged and actively disengaged employees. These employees represent roughly 74% of the workplace in any given business. It’s not a lack of awareness or understanding that produces ineffectiveness. Instead, it’s the inability to engage the head, heart and hands of all employees. Today’s workplace should be an ongoing challenge to employees: Learning new skills, capturing the emotional levels of the creative mind, the practical application of skills learned followed by recognition. The challenge produces a workplace where employees know more, do more and willingly contribute more to the success of the business.
Alan – you were spot on with the warning signs, however further penetration leads me to believe that it is all about how leadership effectiveness and crafting a desired state of employee engagement.