Here's something that took me years to learn: having a brilliant solution isn't enough. Not even close.
Let me tell you a story from my banking days in the 1990s...
Picture this: A big bank buys a smaller bank. They're planning to close branches in several towns. At the same time, they need every credit card customer from the acquired bank to visit a branch to set up a new PIN.
See the problem brewing? More people needing to visit branches, just as they're closing branches. Recipe for disaster, right?
I was working as a very young, technical manager and I had what I thought was a brilliant technical solution.
(It was brilliant, actually! Seriously, one of the cleverest things I've ever done. The solution came to me out of nowhere in a burst of inspiration⚡. Not that anyone cares.)
But here's the interesting part:
• No one else in the IT department cared.
• No one in the credit card division cared.
• The more and more I tried to sell my brilliant idea, the stupider I looked, and I became very frustrated
• My clever solution was going nowhere
Then I found the person in charge of branch closures and mergers.
Well, "found" isn't quite right. I tracked them down and ambushed her after a meeting. She looked at me as if I was mad when I approached her and said who I was. But when I explained the problem, she got it immediately. In fact, she couldn't understand how the credit card division could be so "rude" as to jeopardize her project. And when I shared my solution (it really was one of the cleverest things I've ever done), she grabbed hold of it and made it happen.
Finally - someone who cared! Why? Because this problem would directly impact her goals and cause her real pain.
💡 The Big Lesson
When you're selling ideas (which is a huge part of helping and giving advice), remember this:
• Having a problem isn't enough
• Having a solution isn't enough
• You need someone who CARES about the problem
Tomorrow I'll introduce you to Billy Bross's "5 Light Bulbs" method, but today's lesson is simple: Find the person who feels the pain.
Sometimes selling ideas involves money changing hands (like when someone hires me as a consultant). That can muddy the waters, but the core principle stays the same - find someone who cares about the problem you can solve.
Until ... Monday,
Clarke
(Enjoying these? Hit reply and let me know what resonates. And if you're dealing with your own "who cares?" challenges - and it's causing you or someone else a lot of pain - I might be able to help.)