Okay, I'm going to date myself. When I was small - a little boy - I remember climbing up in the back window of our family car during trips. There's something terrifically convenient about being just long enough to fit in spaces no wider than the interior of a car. And I'm not talking about a Hummer or some other mammoth modern vehicle. I'm talking about a Pontiac or Chevy from the 60's. Being small had its advantages.
As we grew older things were much less convenient. As teenagers we had to scrunch up, folding our knees into our chest to barely lay down in ways that only a contortionist could master. Of course, when you arrived - learning to walk was the first order of business.
Size - or lack of it - had definite advantages. It was true during summer travel in the car. It's true in business.
Back in March, Peter Bregman wrote an article on HarvardBusiness.org entitled, "Why Small Companies Will Win in This Economy." There is some evidence that small businesses are not necessarily in trouble in this economy because of their size. In fact, he argues that small companies can win in this economy because they may be better at providing trust. He argues that trust is what buyers are seeking most.
Don't lament the fact that you are a small business, and therefore at a disadvantage. It's just not true.
Look for all the advantages of your LACK of size. List them. Talk about them with your key management team. Talk about them with your employees. Talk about them with your suppliers. Figure them out. Embrace them.
Make them part of WHO you are, WHY you're important and unique, WHAT those advantages mean for your customers and suppliers and HOW you're going to put them to better use in June than you ever have before.
June is the month to embrace your smallness. Climb up in the back window of the car. Make yourself comfortable. And laugh at all those big boys unable to get comfortable in such small spaces.
