ENOUGH with the FCC!

When we were growing up, if Mike, Mitzi and I were constantly arguing or fighting, Mom would patiently warn us several times to stop. If we continued to be rowdy, she would finally step back in the room and say, “I’ve had ENOUGH!” which we knew meant our future was not real bright and our backsides were now in jeopardy. As a profession, we need a wake-up call of our own about the disruption and speed of change we are facing. So, today, we will use the term ENOUGH just as Mom did. 

There’s no doubt that our profession logically understands that we are in the midst of a technological transformation that will leave no stone unturned in our business models. We also know that with this much change we can expect lots of opportunities for those who anticipate the changes and act on them.

Logically, we know what is happening and what we should be doing. We know our clients are dealing with the same disruption and they are seeking advisors and solutions to understand a path forward. We are smart people and we get it—yet, we are moving too slowly, with too many excuses and too much apathy for real change.

It’s my belief that this is not a logical problem—it’s a psychological one. We are being overrun with FCC and I am not referring to a federal agency or more regulations. Fears, Comfort, Control. ENOUGH with the FCC!

Fears are causing us to move slowly or not at all. The fear of losing the business, fear of being embarrassed, fear of making a mistake or fear of being inferior to others. Here’s another huge fear we are harboring in many of our firms—the devastating fear that we might not have the answers! Nobody has all the answers, so ENOUGH with the fears. Push through the fears and do what we logically know we should be doing. Collaborate and gain support from others and courageously step forward towards the opportunities in front of us.

Comfort is causing many of us to move slowly or not at all. As someone said, the greatest enemy of future success is present success. We are too comfortable with where things are right now but that SHOULD generate our greatest fear. Simply stated, we know logically just staying with the status quo, just staying with our existing knowledge and skills is the riskiest thing we can do in this world of technology transformation. ENOUGH with the comfort that causes apathy and the risk of missing new opportunities for growth and relevance.

Control is causing many of us to move slowly or not at all. We actually are spending time and energy thinking about how we continue to control various things that are totally outside of our control. We have competitors coming at us that do not care what our past rules of engagement have been. They do not care about our valued relationships as some will take services without even meeting our clients or answering the phone. Software vendors that we currently purchase from will compete with us as they bring new solutions. ENOUGH with control that gives us a false sense of security while new competitors take our market share with new business models and new advisory services that transform how clients do business.

ENOUGH with the FCC! I know this blog is direct but its time we call out these stumbling blocks at every interaction. Whether it’s your personal career, your team or your firm, shout ENOUGH with the FCC when you see it.