It's The Little Things

Have you ever attended an event, received a letter, an email or read a book that had something missing, a typographical error or promised a gift and didn’t deliver? I know I have. And when that happens, no matter how successful, groundbreaking or impactful the thing was, all you can focus on is what was missing.

As I prepare to help a client get their next book together to send to the publisher, I’m reminded of just how important all the teeny details are that go into making a good product. Whether your product is printed, minted or presented, somewhere in the process there needs to be a nitpicking, anal retentive proofreader stage.

I’ve been to workshops and teleseminars where there was a recording promised and never delivered, watched PowerPoint presentations where the bullet points didn’t line up or watched someone give a flipchart presentation where they hadn’t planned ahead to have a spare pen in case one went dry. These things don’t need to happen and they leave a bad memory when they do. With the number of events I attend, I can’t even remember now what the topics were, but I sure remember what was missing.

So here’s my question: Where in your life and/or your business has a missing detail cost you? You remember those times, don’t you? It is, fortunately or unfortunately a fact that we learn more from our mistakes than our successes and I know I’ve learned a ton!

So here are some tips to help the next time you have a project or task to do to make sure you get all the details handled.

For anything to be printed, run it by a second set of eyeballs. After you’ve edited something for the 10th time, you can’t see it anymore to be objective. Ask someone you have confidence in to proof your work for mechanical errors.

For anything to be presented, create a checklist to go by as you pack your presenter’s box. (A presenter’s box is full of business cards, brochures, samples, giveaways, pens, aspirin, throat lozenges, copies of the presentation handouts, etc.) .

For anything to be done, such as in cooking there’s a phrase, “mise en place” which means done in place. That’s getting everything prepared so that when you are ready to put the heat to the pan, you don’t burn anything while you chop the broccoli. Make sure all your prep work is done prior to the final doing and your life will be so much less stressful.

If you don’t know how to prepare for something, you can find someone who does to assist you. In business, there are virtual assistants, local assistants, and friends and family to help. These days, it’s really very easy and economical to find specialists out there who are willing to do just one thing and they do it well; much better than you do when you’re heading up the steep side of a learning curve because you need to deliver something you haven’t done before. In everyday tasks, there are great how-to articles online and even videos that will walk you through each step.

By paying attention to the small details, the overall task will be more efficient, more satisfying and deliver a sense of satisfaction instead of exhaustion when completed for all concerned.