Weight loss and business building

Like most people, there are days when I find myself loafing on the couch, sucked into a day-long marathon of cop-show reruns I’ve already seen a hundred times. I get up about every other commercial break to rummage through the cupboards for … well … something. Half the time I’m not sure what I’m in the mood for, so I go back to my post on the couch empty-handed. Sometimes I go back with a handful of chips to “test” and see if that’s what I am, in fact, craving. And sometimes I park it back under the blanket with a bowl overflowing with ice cream.

I inevitably hit a point where I think “Hmmmm. These jeans are feeling a bit snug.” After a sufficient amount of denial and blaming my too-tight pants on dryer-shrinkage, I eventually face facts. “Maybe I should get my arse off the couch and drop a few pounds.”

I go through this routine usually in the spring, after hibernating all winter and recognizing that it won’t be long until I pack up my bulky sweaters and pull out my shorts and t-shirts.

So, I vow to watch what I eat and walk the dog not only more regularly, but more briskly. But what I’ve always refused to do was buy a scale. I always told myself I didn’t really care much how much I weighed … I just wanted to feel a little better in my jeans. The closest thing I’ve ever had to a weight-loss goal was seeing if maybe I could fit into a size-smaller pants. Although, my declaration was sort of half-assed, and ended up being more “fleeting thought” than “goal.”

But an epiphany struck when I went through this process this spring. I’m not sure if it’s because I’m running a business, or finally wise enough to know what needs to be done.

As it turns out, my theory about buying a scale is … and always has been … a load of hooey.

In business, in order to know how you’re doing, you have to test and measure. Watch your numbers. Know what’s coming in and going out. If you don’t, you’ll have no idea if you need to focus on finding more prospects, or if you need to work on turning your current prospects into customers, or if your money is better spent on magazine advertising or a trade-show booth.  You’ll have no idea if your revenues aren’t keeping up with your spending.

You also won’t know that it’s time to paaaaahhtaaaay! when you hit your goals.

Without a scale, how am I ever going to know if I need to thinking about cutting a few more calories than usual?  Or tack an extra 10 minutes to the run/walk with the dog? Or know when it’s “safe” to go to the mall to see if maybe I can, in fact, fit into a smaller-sized pair of a jeans?

In business, I learned very early about the importance goal-setting. Sometimes they’re small goals, like sending a certain number of follow-up emails a week. Sometimes they’re bigger goals, like increasing revenues a certain percentage by a specific date. If I hit the goal, fantastic! If not, I simply go back a few steps to see where I veered off and determine how to get back on track.

I think my aversion to buying a scale or setting an actual weight-loss goal every spring stemmed from a fear of failure…I was afraid that if I wrote down, “I want to fit into pants that are one size smaller by this date,” and didn’t hit the goal, then I’d feel like I failed. My guess is that it’s that fear of failure that probably keeps quite a few people from setting goals.

But, I’ll tell you what’s happened because I’ve never written down “I want to fit into pants that are one-size smaller by this date.”

I’ve never been one size smaller.

So, what have you got to lose? You don’t set the goal, you probably won’t achieve it. You do set the goal, there’s a pretty good chance you will achieve it. And, I’m here to tell you that even if you don’t hit the goal, it’s no biggie because, chances are, you’re probably closer to it than you think. A few tweaks to the plan and you’ll be right back on track.