On the third edition of PT’s Pointers, Paul discusses the importance of role models.
Last week we talked about the importance of mentors, however they are only one tool to succeed.
Another key which I could argue is even more important is role models.
A good role model differs from a good mentor in the part they play in your business journey. The role model should act as an example of how a star performer operates in that field. Afterall the word itself is the role you wish to model, so you would not want to model success not failure!
Another difference is the contact you have with your role models compared to mentors. Whereas you should have regular contact with your mentor and their reflections on how you and your business are performing, the use of a role model is quite different. A role model can be observed with and without their knowledge of you emulating their strategies. Some role models often perform better if they don’t know you’re learning their tricks to the trade! Others however will give you all the inside information if you ask. So vary your approach to your role models to suit their personalities, you don’t want to offend a potential ally in your quest for success!
At William Adams CAT, prior to founding Super Signs, I had two key role models, one of which was the local parts managers. At the end of each day I would reflect on how he went about his work happily in what was a stressful environment, how he treated customers and how he conducted himself when work wasn’t “busy” he was always busy. In the eight years I worked with him, I never heard him say a bad word about a customer. Considering they were all people with broken machines and were losing money, this is a modern miracle.
My mum was a role model for her work ethic, determination and persistence. I worked with her briefly at Kiwi during my high school days. She never complains about the things they have to do, she would say just do it and it's done. When I started Super Signs, I had a daughter and soon after a son. If I thought about all the things I should do, I just did them, I would never have ended up with the business I had today. Don’t get me wrong there are times where planning is invaluable but to start something you just have to start. Now my two role models were completely different. One was an Australian manager, who I would work with and emulate in the workshop. The other was a Welsh factory worker, who gave birth to me!
But they both had the traits and work ethic I wanted to have in my life, so I emulated and learnt the ways of these two productive people.
The best bit about role models is that they don't even have to be people! One of our best customers Mattioli is a role model on how to treat people. One of our installers Harry had to go in and stick three stickers on a car, it was a quick and short job. At reception he was greeted with a smile, a kind hello and an offer of refreshments, perfect way to start a job! From the front to their back factory Harry was bombarded with smiles and various greetings, he was even twice offered a coffee while working on their car! When Harry came back to our factory he was blown away and ecstatic, isn’t that the way you would want everyone to feel when visiting your workplace. Sure enough smiles and hellos quickly became the norm at Super Signs.
Lastly, a great thing about role models is you don’t have to emulate everything about them, pick and choose what you want. Remember you want to model their successful habits to build your own success!
My parts manager from CAT was someone I emulated, his customer and coworker’s care was the best I’ve seen in forty years of business. But I didn’t go and do everything he did, like buy a lottery ticket every day, otherwise I might have gone broke!
Take the positives of your role models and apply them to your processes. If you pick the right ones and have the right attitude you will build a pathway to future success.
Next week I will be talking about how to obtain new customers, the key steps that can help you turn referrals into sales!