Arnold is launching an Internet Company.  It is a terrific idea.  He has a partner.  He contacted me for advice.  He said that he called an important new Client yesterday.  It turned out that his partner spoke with the same Client earlier in the day about the same topic.  And they didn’t present the same information.  They didn’t contradict each other.  They didn’t support each other either.  It is not the impression they want to make.  And it is a sign that he and his partner are not communicating regularly.

I told him to do what Chava and I do every day.  Meet.  His partner is in Florida.  He is in New York.  No problem, speak on the phone.  Use e-mail, text messaging, GoToMeeting, Skype, and any number of other simple tools to conduct the meeting the same way as you would conduct it in person.

Schedule it for just 15 minutes so that it is not a burden.  Take longer if needed.  Schedule longer only when necessary.  Make it at the same time each weekday.  Have a simple agenda/outline of topics to cover so that there is consistent structure to it.  This structure stimulates creative thought.

If you miss it, no biggie, recommit and make it the next day.  If you miss it for a week or weeks at a time, no biggie, stay committed to it.  Eventually, it is so much the right thing that you will do it consistently and right. 

WAIT!!!  No biggie if you miss it for weeks at a time, but that sucks.  That’s mediocre.  That lacks integrity.  It is also perfectly normal for a human when you are building a new habit, even a very valuable important habit before it takes hold. 

My life and my work continue to teach me that when you berate or belittle yourself you will stay stuck.  But, when you stay positive and committed, you advance more quickly, correctly and creatively. 

We talked about hiring good people too.  I’ll save that for one my next posts.