Well, that's not exactly true. We obviously want people who are talented in key areas necessary to operate a successful business. In our case, we also want people who are skilled at and capable of working with kids. However, there is a huge potential danger that comes into play when you accept that title of "expert". That danger is obvious. More specifically, it is the "obvious" that you start taking for granted.
In his daily morning leadership program, Darren Hardy recently discussed this and gave a great example of how that can look. For their organization, it took an outsider they were interviewing for an entry level job to point out some very obvious deficiencies in their systems that none of their top level (experts) people had even noticed. As you might imagine this caused a bit of embarrassment. Of course this person was hired and given the immediate task of evaluating everything from that perspective. What perspective? The non-expert one.
Business owners and leaders certainly have to wear a lot of hats at times. That means a lot on the to do list, which can also mean developing a default mentality that leads to overlooking the little things. It can also lead to thinking that you have nothing left to learn. However, the most successful are the ones who never close their minds off and consciously put themselves in a position to learn something new, or simply be reminded of something they once knew. Consciously is the key word there because it won't happen without intention.
Franchise systems offer a potentially great environment to apply that conscious intentionality. It is perhaps the single greatest thing they do offer if properly leveraged. In ours, no two people or market are really exactly alike. That means everyone's perspective on accomplishing the same goal is unique and invaluable in giving peers something to consider. So while those conferences, forums, or engagement opportunities may seem like something you don't have time to step away for, stepping away is exactly what you need to do. It's only in choosing to seek perspective that you place yourself in a position to provide it. That's the complimentary circle that makes the obvious much less elusive for everyone at the table.
