Everyone thinks I never forget or miss anything. Boy, do I have them fooled.
I have a terrible memory. In the earlier days, I propped it up with a pocket notepad. Today, it’s my iPhone. I send myself an email every time I think of something that needs a look, an action, or a follow up. I send myself, on average, ten emails per day.
Now it’s important to point out that I don’t send myself a text. Everything revolves around my e-mail and the way I manage my inbox. If it’s in my inbox, it’s not handled. So every time I open my inbox, I get all my little reminders. If there’s a common thread to my stories and success, it’s the evolving use of technology and constant learning. You will find stories about how I have adopted and adapted the tools of technology to reach my goals in many of my articles.
Sometimes, I use my iPhone to take a picture of something, like an advertisement for something I am interested in, or I send myself a web link when I find an article on a business topic that I want to read later. Sometimes I point my phone’s camera at a clothing tag for a shirt I want to research or buy or I grab a picture of a marketing piece that I want to copy. I might send a dozen emails of things from a trade show, including pics of business cards to save. Today, I use an app that reads the picture of the card and puts all of the information in my contacts, after I add key words so that I can access the card when I need it.
I forget when or where I stumbled on this little trick, but I am sure it was at a seminar or convention. You simply must have a mantra of openness to using technology to improve the processes that are part of making you a successful businessperson.
Even if your memory isn’t perfect, a good system and good tech can make you the guy or gal who seems to never miss or forget anything.
Remember only you can make business great!
Ron Sturgeon, Mr. Mission Possible, has been a successful business owner for more than 35 years. As a small business consultant, he can deliver wisdom and advice gleaned from an enviable business career that started when he opened a VW repair business as a homeless 17-year-old and culminated in the sale of several businesses he built to Fortune 500 companies.
Ron has helped bankers, lawyers, insurance agents, restaurant owners, and body shop owners, as well as countless salvage yard owners to become more successful business people. He is an expert in helping small business owners set the right business strategies, implement pay-for- performance, and find new customers on the web.
As a consultant, Ron shares his expertise in strategic planning, capitalization, compensation, growing market share, and more in his signature plainspoken style, providing field-proven, and high-profit best practices well ahead of the business news curve. Ron is the author of nine books, including How to Salvage More Millions from Your Small Business.
To inquire about consulting or keynote speaking, contact Ron at 817-834-3625, ext. 232, rons@MrMissionPossible.com, 5940 Eden, Haltom City, TX 76117.