Jun 13 2005
I Hate the Cliche, But…
Side note – for my regular readers out there, sorry for the lack of updates the past week or two. Busy would be an understatement to describe my workload. But I’m back on track and will be posting near daily as usual..
I really, really hate clichés – I also usually hate metaphors. I am all about saying exactly what you mean and (ideally) meaning exactly what you say. So, begrudgingly I present today’s topic:
Making Lemons Into Lemonade.
Ugh, it makes me wretch just to say it. I am always looking for better ways, and if someone has one please post a comment. But as a concept, it is an invaluable business practice.
In any job you are going to be faced with obstacles. Some small (the boss wanted Sweet-and-Low in their coffee, not Splenda) and some large (the entire shipment of 45,000 CDs went to Las Vegas, New Mexico and not Las Vegas, Nevada)… We are all going to make mistakes or at minimum have to clean up someone else’s. What is important here is how well you can turn a negative situation into a positive one.
Quite often, the difference between success and failure is as simple as how adept one is at damage control. Being able to correct a problem is equally as important as being able to do the task at hand. It is essential to spend time both learning your craft and developing ways to deal with the inevitable issues that will arise.
Definitely! Flexibility in approach is key. (And I think I can help out with the metaphor bit, too. I often say that “When life gives you lemons, you make lemonade … and lemon chicken, and lemon sorbet and lemon merengue pie, and lemon cough drops and …”)