See It, Say It, Start It. The Framework Walt Disney Used and Every Travel Advisor Should Steal.
Written By: Scott Koepf, Chief Strategy Officer (CSO)– Cruise Planners
With every project you start or for that matter even for your business itself, there are seven steps that will represent the stages you will go through. Depending on the size and scope of the endeavor, it may take years to progress through the steps or for smaller projects it may only take days. In either case it is important to follow this path, and give each step along the way the time and attention it deserves. Since I love alliterations, each step starts with an S so they may be easier to remember. This process is the best way to reach your desired result – Success!
- SEE IT – Having a vision for what you want to accomplish is the starting point. What does the result look like? It is important to have a clear picture of what this project or venture will do or be when complete. The vision can evolve over time and may never be fully completed. For example, Walt Disney had a vision for his park, but he said, “Disneyland will never be completed. It will continue to grow as long as there is imagination left in the world.”
- SAY IT – This step takes the vision and puts it in written form. What are the tangible goals this project sets out to achieve? In travel it may be gross sales or net income or number of transactions or size of the staff or all of the above! Having the vision is like having a good idea, it will stay only an idea until you determine how to measure and track exactly what you hope to complete. This means creating and writing down goals.
- SYSTEMITIZE IT – Setting Goals provides the target but now you need the plans and strategies to get there. Coming up with an ideal annual sales figure is not as difficult as determining how you will make that happen. So you need to design all of the ways in which you will make those goals and vision come true. Once again, I will use Disney as a perfect example. Walt wanted exceptional customer service provided in his park. It is easy to have the vision, but he and the company realized that to provide consistent extraordinary service there needed to be a documented system and ongoing training and constant reinforcement of the expected behaviors. Write down the plans, processes and systems needed for your project to hit the goals set.
- SELL IT – Now that you have a clear vision, specific goals and a well-developed plan, you need to sell the combination of those to yourself and others. At this point it has probably become evident just how difficult this idea might be to bring to life, so you are the first person who needs to fully buy in. If you are unsure of the proposal, then others will not be enthusiastic to support you. If you have confidence, then you can sell others on joining you to bring your vision to life. Once you are convinced, then develop a professional presentation so others will see you are serious about bringing your idea to life.
- START IT – This may be the most difficult step of all as this is just plain work! It is like building a house – the architect has created the vision, the engineers have set the goals, the contractor has set the systems but now someone has to actually build the house. Roll up your sleeves as this is the part that no one likes to hear about. Implement the systems and put in the time and effort needed for success.
- SCOUR IT – Rarely does everything go exactly as planned so you need to constantly review all of your systems and goals and even your original vision and adjust them as necessary. There will always be the unforeseen issues and extenuating circumstances that you could not plan for. You need to know they will come and be ready to revise your approach. It is important to dig deep and look hard at everything you are doing, as just one thing can have a huge effect long term. Using the home analogy again, if the foundation is off by just a small amount, that can cause all kinds of problems down the road. So always pay attention to the details.
- SAVOR IT – If you have followed the first six steps then you should take some time and enjoy the fruits of your labor and savor the moment. Of course, not for too long as there will always be more to do and updates to put in place, but celebrate your successes!