Have you ever caught yourself saying:
“We can’t do that, we’ve always done things THIS way.” or perhaps
“Uh uh, that won’t work, I’ve tried it before.” or even
“Are you crazy, that won’t fly in this organization, they are too stuck in their ways.” or
“Nice idea, but I don’t have time to even think about it.”
If any of these sound familiar– you may be missing an opportunity! With the pace of change in the world sometimes good ideas come at the wrong time — or with the wrong people in the room. They may derserve a ’second look’.
If someone says ‘I tried it’ and it didn’t work — perhaps it was their context – not yours! Perhaps their effort wouldn’t be the same as yours? Perhaps they don’t know their ideal guest as well as you do. Always take this kind of advice under advisement — its good for reflection, but then think about your company, your opportunity, today … and more importantly for tomorrow.
Stuck organizations — think of your snow tires spinning in a fresh snow fall (as we had in Victoria BC over and over recently) … what happens? Well, first you try and don’t make it … then you may gun it and go wild and try again and dig a deeper hole (that could equal throwing resources at a bad idea) … or you may get some tools such as sand, salt, a shovel and dig your way out and move gently forward (that could be ‘easing into a new idea so it may be better accepted) or you may simply retreat, back up and wait till later to get out of your driveway (that is about stopping and reflecting).
No matter which option it may be, remember that no idea is a bad idea. Ideas generate enthusiasm, insterest, positive thinking and are feul for the passionate. Not all ideas however are destined to ‘make it’. If at first you don’t succeed — assess the reason, risk, check if the environment has changed, ensure you have enough info to make a good decision — then decide if it is worth it to ‘gun it’ ‘ get some new tools and try again’ or simply ‘retreat’.
Innovation is essentail to growing your business, reflection, risk management and good decision making are partners in success.
Good luck with your tourism business in 2009!
