When I graduated from college in 2003, my wife and I went on an adventure.
I had fallen in love with Major League Baseball.
I loved watching the game.
I knew how to score a baseball game and kept track of my favorite players’ statistics.
If you know anything about Major League Baseball, there is a statistic for everything in baseball.
Sometimes I look at a baseball statistic, and I get dumbfounded of why that baseball statistic is followed.
Back to my adventure.
My wife and I drove around half the United States and parts of Canada as we visited 19 Major League Baseball parks.
I think we saw a total of 30 baseball games that summer.
It was a wonderful time.
When I first started out the trip, I made a small pledge.
I’m going to eat a hot dog at each and every stadium.
I didn’t live up to that pledge.
I got tired of hot dogs after three stadiums.
We even went to the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, New York.
There were many things I remember from that summer.
I saw someone hit a grand slam.
I say the New York Yankees win a baseball game with a walk-off walk.
It was a lot of fun.
Baseball was America’s favorite pastime for many years.
It’s been years since I’ve followed baseball.
Something about having to work for a living made me realize I didn’t have as much time to follow baseball.
Baseball is a game of fundamentals.
Business is also a game of fundamentals.
I think there is a tendency in business to get caught up in the latest and greatest technology.
What’s the new thing?
I’m constantly looking for ways to improve our businesses.
I’m constantly looking for the best tool so I can provide the best service.
Sometimes I have to draw a line in the sand and say enough is enough.
Here’s the thing that I’ve realized with business.
Improvement is another word for change in business.
Change involves modifying what is currently occurring in our business.
It’s important to evaluate what’s working and what’s not working in business.
It can be addicting to be involved in change.
Change for change’s sake does not accomplish anything.
What if I wasn’t evaluating my business, and I changed something in my business?
What if the something that I changed was working, and the new change didn’t work?
Then I would have a decline in my business.
What if the new change worked better than what was working before?
Without testing, I have no way to know if something new will work better.
However, one thing to keep in mind is there are fundamentals of business that always work.
Just like baseball in there are fundamentals that always work.
Here are some fundamentals of baseball.
- Keeping your eye on the ball increases your chance of hitting the baseball.
- Always run all out on your way to first base.
- When there are no men on base, the baseball should always be thrown to first base.
When a batter is struggling with hitting the baseball, the first thing to do is to return to the fundamentals of hitting.
- What is the stance?
- How is the batter holding the bat?
- Pay attention to how the ball comes off of the bat.
- Make sure the batter has good follow through with the shoulders?
Here are some fundamentals of business.
- Do my customers want what I am selling?
- Am I making enough money on the products I’m selling?
- Am I keeping control of my costs?
- Do I have enough revenues to cover my costs and pay myself a reasonable salary?
Here’s the thing to remember, if the fundamentals of business are being done properly, it doesn’t matter how much you work on other items in the business.
Look at your business and determine what the fundamentals are that should be revisited.
Determine if you need return to the fundamentals.
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