I really enjoyed Drew McLellan’s article about “Letting Go.” When I first started my business, I thought all my marketing materials had to be perfect and would spend hours working on a letter. If someone gave me their opinion, I changed everything. Now I realize that I just have to “let go” and have fun with it.
Here is Drew’s article in case you missed it in his blog.
When my daughter was less than a year old, she was struggling to stand and take those first steps. I would walk behind her, her hands wrapped tightly around my forefingers to provide some stability, and together we would walk.
Of course, I was handling most of the balancing. She was just putting one foot in front of the other and sort of lunging. If I had removed my hands, she would have fallen. So I didn’t.
My mistake.
Once I let her fall a couple times, she figured it out. And took her first steps.
Flash forward a few years. My daughter loved riding her bike and was ready to go sans training wheels. So we took them off. We started out slowly. I’d run along side her, holding onto the seat so she wouldn’t fall. Every time the bike would start to tip, I righted it and we kept going.
My mistake.
Once I let her fall a couple times, she figured it out. And rode down the street, triumphant and training wheel free.
I believe the same “let go” lesson is incredibly relevant in marketing.
We can craft our marketing messages and brand promises until we think they’re perfect. But sooner or later, we have to let go. It’s okay to not over correct.
The era of keeping your business and business’ message under your complete control is over. Today’s consumers expect to have a say in the relationship. Are you afraid to let your customers comment on your website because they might complain? Do you avoid doing client surveys because you don’t want the bad news?
We learn the most when we let go. Stop worrying about doing it perfectly and instead…do it and ask for feedback. You’ll get nothing but better.