One of the things that gets in the way of making good business decisions is simply not seeing what is right in front of one’s eyes.

When I pass a store that has a poorly designed window layout, it registers in my brain. It’s probably because I like design and I work with design.

But why doesn’t it register with the store owners? Is it because they are so busy with the problems of the day that they fail to raise their heads and see the problem. Is it that they have seen the same layout so often that they fail to ’see’ problems any longer.

Of course this extends to any aspect of one’s service, from letter-headings, to invoice layout, to business cards, to dirty marks around the finger plate on the front door.

I recall walking into town early one morning to watch the town wake up. I remember the cleaners polishing the brass finger plates and handles on the front doors of various offices.

It is that attention to detail thats create a subconscious impression in the mind of visitors, customers, and clients about how much the business cares about ‘getting it right’.

On the other hand, it is also important to know which are the essential bits that one needs to get right. Some of the best small, cheap restaurants in which I have eaten in France had had very run-down frontages. However, with clean tables and lovely food, the frontage seems more like a mask that hides the beauty behind it.

Of course the owner of a business is not always the best person to see what is wrong with some aspect of it. Perhaps it is time to call in someone who can offer a fresh point of view.

A professional should be able to tell you what ought to improve, but how about asking your customers? Actively asking customers for feedback is part of cultivating customer relations. In the long run it is an essential part.

‘Seeing’ familiar things comes down to seeing with fresh eyes, and here is an example, not from the world of business, but from nature.

Did you ever look at a giraffe and wonder why their necks don’t get tired from sticking out an angle of 55 degrees all day?

Do you vaguely imagine it gets tired holding its head up? Do you mentally empathize with the giraffe and ‘feel’ the strain in your own neck?

Well, in fact giraffes have a huge, elastic muscle that runs from the top of their heads all the way down their backs and this means they can hold their heads up comfortably.

In fact, when they lower their heads they have to contract another large muscle under their chests in order to stretch their long back muscle.

Then when giraffes lift their heads, they simply relax the muscle under their chests, which causes their necks spring up because the back muscle is no longer being stretched.

If you ever get a chance to see a giraffe lift its head, you will see how it does indeed spring up rather than rise sedately.

From that, you may wonder why giraffes don’t get dizzy when their heads spring up. Why doesn’t the blood rush from their brains and leave them lightheaded? Well that and other facts about giraffes are explained here in our article Giraffes at a Glance.

In a nutshell, ’seeing’ often comes down to clearing the mind of preconceived ideas and looking with fresh eyes, whether one is looking at one’s own business or at giraffes.

{ 3 comments }