I’m curious.  Have you ever wondered why it is that some businesses seem to thrive with ease and others struggle? 

My first year in business was disappointing because there is such a difference between knowing WHAT to do and HOW to do it.

The following story is such a great example of the power of knowing both what to do and how to do it. 

When I was 15, I saved a man’s life!

One night when returning from a day out sailing, a friend of my father’s fell overboard.  His name was Joe. He was 35 years old with a wife and 2 children.  

I’d like you to try to place yourself in the moment if you can.  There was a strong wind, and we were under full sail, so we were really moving along.  It was full dark with no moon, and it was a very cold night. 

My sister and I were in the cockpit with my father.  Suddenly, my father went from relaxed to sitting upright and alert.  He had heard the tiniest of sounds. A small “ping” that came from the front of the boat.  He looked forward to where his friend had been sitting and couldn’t see him.  He looked back and saw something in the water behind the boat. It was Joe!  

And this is where the difference between knowing what to do and how to do makes the difference between life or death. 

My father let out the yell “MAN OVERBOARD!”  To this day, I remember the moment. What? Could this really be happening?  Time slowed down;  and …  I started moving….

I knew what I was supposed to do and I knew how to do it. We had actually trained for this because my father was a believer in making sure his daughters knew HOW to do stuff. 

There was no time to think.  No time to learn.  There was only time TO DO. 

My sister and I jumped to our stations.  My sister ran to the front of the boat.  My father turned the boat HARD while I released the foresail, and my sister moved it to the other side of the boat.  Then I secured the lines while my sister brought down the mainsail to slow us down. I took the tiller from my father, and he ran to the front of the boat. The pure miracle of this night was that my father was able to spot his friend in the water… in the dark.  My father was telling me where to steer and then suddenly he was running along the rail and reached down and pulled up a very wet, but very ALIVE Joe!  This all happened in less than 3 minutes. 

I’m sure you well know that when someone goes overboard, you only have a few minutes to get them out of the water and I trust that you can see that my sister and I knew not only what to do, we knew how to do it. 

The difference between win or lose, easy or hard, life or death,

(or running a profitable, successful business)

is knowing both what to do… and HOW TO IT! 

I tripled my income my second year in business by making sure I learned how to do all of the pieces I had missed in my first year. The great news is that the use of simple tools and effective strategies produces profound results.

Since then, I have been able to consistently make informed decisions, rise above my fears, and build a highly profitable business (that has become more than I ever expected it would). I am more confident and have the freedom that time and money make possible.

For me, there has been nothing more exhilarating and fulfilling than being able to confidently take focused action, make a difference, make money, love my business, and have a life I love. It would be my honor to help you to learn how to do the same.

PS: Joe spoke about this experience for years.  The moment he realized he was in the water, he was instantaneously sick with TERROR.   He had on a down jacket and could feel the water rushing in and the jacket becoming heavy in the water. He was sure he was breathing his last breaths.

My father shared later that he knew this was a matter of life or death.  He KNEW that if we FAILED to get Joe on the FIRST RUN we would NEVER have a second chance – and… his friend was going to die.  It took us less than 3 minutes to turn the boat around, grab Joe and pull him from the water.

Joe was only 35 when this happened, and he lived another 30+ years. Our knowing what to do and HOW to do it saved his life.   

Joe was late getting home for dinner that night, but his wife forgave him.