If You Can’t Measure It, You Can’t Manage It

I am a big numbers gal. I like data. I like to see facts and figures. I like to operate off actual numbers and not perceptions, assumptions or opinions.   I had a brilliant manager tell me years ago, “If you can’t measure it, you can’t manage it.”   Meaning how can you tell if you’re successful or if you have opportunities for improvement if you’re not measuring the progress?

It’s a common practice in business to send out survey’s to poll your peers employees and supervisors how they perceive your performance. It’s also a wise business practice to do it in direct sales.   Survey your downline to see how they perceive their upline’s performance.

This is certainly not a practice that anyone should fear or loathe.   Typically, those who are not fans of having their downline (or employees) polled are afraid the survey is being sent so they can be criticized. That paranoia is only in the minds of those who are being evaluated. The purpose of requesting feedback is for continuous improvement. None of us are above improvements in how we manage our business.

Measures, grades, surveys, matrices, dashboards – are all tools to facilitate Relentless Positive Action.   How do you know if you’re succeeding if you don’t collect data?  It’s a way to recognize success. It’s not a negative; it’s a positive. So we measure it.

It also gives us an opportunity to focus attention in areas where improvements are needed and not focusing efforts on areas that are working well.

If you find yourself one who is being measured, embrace it. Don’t fear it and don’t view it as a negative – that is unless you are doing something unethical that you don’t want anyone to find out about – but that is an entirely different topic.

If you can’t measure it, you can’t manage it. In God we trust –  all others bring data!

About the Author: Laurie Ayers is a Michigan work from home mom and a Superstar Director with Scentsy Wickless Candles. She enjoys helping men and women start and maintain a home based business in the US, Canada, Mexico, Australia, New Zealand, Puerto Rico, Germany, Ireland, France, Spain and the UK. To download a FREE Start Up Guide which provides more details about how to start a home business as well as to learn about our compensation plan go to www.thrivingcandlebusiness.com/how-to-start-a-candle-business/ or for updates on Facebook LIKE www.facebook.com/ThrivingCandleBusiness and twitter @directsalesblog