The Pumpkin Plan: A Simple Strategy to Grow a Remarkable Business in Any Field
Description
Each year Americans start one million new businesses, nearly 80 percent of which fail within the first five years. Under such pressure to stay alive—let alone grow—it’s easy for entrepreneurs to get caught up in a never-ending cycle of “sell it—do it, sell it—do it” that leaves them exhausted, frustrated, and unable to get ahead no matter how hard they try.
This is the exact situation Mike Michalowicz found himself in when he was trying to grow his first company. Although it was making steady money, there was never very much left over and he was chasing customers left and right, putting in twenty-eight-hour days, eight days a week. The punishing grind never let up. His company was alive but stunted, and he was barely breathing. That’s when he discovered an unlikely source of inspiration—pumpkin farmers.
After reading an article about a local farmer who had dedicated his life to growing giant pumpkins, Michalowicz realized the same process could apply to growing a business. He tested the Pumpkin Plan on his own company and transformed it into a remarkable, multimillion-dollar industry leader. First he did it for himself. Then for others. And now you. So what is the Pumpkin Plan?
Plant the right seeds: Don’t waste time doing a bunch of different things just to please your customers. Instead, identify the thing you do better than anyone else and focus all of your attention, money, and time on figuring out how to grow your company doing it. Weed out the losers: In a pumpkin patch small, rotten pumpkins stunt the growth of the robust, healthy ones. The same is true of customers. Figure out which customers add the most value and provide the best opportunities for sustained growth. Then ditch the worst of the worst. Nurture the winners: Once you figure out who your best customers are, blow their minds with care. Discover their unfulfilled needs, innovate to make their wishes come true, and overdeliver on every single promise.
Full of stories of other successful entrepreneurs, The Pumpkin Plan guides you through unconventional strategies to help you build a truly profitable blue-ribbon company that is the best in its field.
This is the exact situation Mike Michalowicz found himself in when he was trying to grow his first company. Although it was making steady money, there was never very much left over and he was chasing customers left and right, putting in twenty-eight-hour days, eight days a week. The punishing grind never let up. His company was alive but stunted, and he was barely breathing. That’s when he discovered an unlikely source of inspiration—pumpkin farmers.
After reading an article about a local farmer who had dedicated his life to growing giant pumpkins, Michalowicz realized the same process could apply to growing a business. He tested the Pumpkin Plan on his own company and transformed it into a remarkable, multimillion-dollar industry leader. First he did it for himself. Then for others. And now you. So what is the Pumpkin Plan?
Plant the right seeds: Don’t waste time doing a bunch of different things just to please your customers. Instead, identify the thing you do better than anyone else and focus all of your attention, money, and time on figuring out how to grow your company doing it. Weed out the losers: In a pumpkin patch small, rotten pumpkins stunt the growth of the robust, healthy ones. The same is true of customers. Figure out which customers add the most value and provide the best opportunities for sustained growth. Then ditch the worst of the worst. Nurture the winners: Once you figure out who your best customers are, blow their minds with care. Discover their unfulfilled needs, innovate to make their wishes come true, and overdeliver on every single promise.
Full of stories of other successful entrepreneurs, The Pumpkin Plan guides you through unconventional strategies to help you build a truly profitable blue-ribbon company that is the best in its field.
About Authors
استراتيجية اليقطين
عن الكتاب
يطلق الأمريكيون مليون عمل تجاري جديد سنويًّا يفشل منهم نحو 80% في أثناء السنوات الخمس الأولى. وتحت مثل هذا الضغط للبقاء حيًّا -ناهيك بالنمو- يصبح من السهل أن يعلق رواد الأعمال في دائرة لا تنتهي من «بِع هذا وافعل هذا، بِع هذا وافعل هذا» تؤدي بهم إلى الإرهاق والإحباط وعدم القدرة على المضي قدمًا مهما حاولوا بقوة.
كان هذا الموقف الذي وجد مايك ميكالوفيتش نفسه فيه في أثناء محاولة تنمية شركته الأولى، وعلى الرغم من أنها كانت تجني دخلًا منتظمًا، لم يتبقَ منه الكثير قط واستمر في مطاردة العملاء في كل مكان باذلًا قصارى جهده لثماني وعشرين ساعة في اليوم على مدار ثمانية أيام في الأسبوع، فالعمل الشاق لم يتوقف قط، ورغم أن شركته كانت حية، لكنها متأخرة النمو وبالكاد تتنفس، وعندئذٍ اكتشف مصدرًا غيــر تقليدي للإلهام عند مزارعي اليقطين.
كان هذا الموقف الذي وجد مايك ميكالوفيتش نفسه فيه في أثناء محاولة تنمية شركته الأولى، وعلى الرغم من أنها كانت تجني دخلًا منتظمًا، لم يتبقَ منه الكثير قط واستمر في مطاردة العملاء في كل مكان باذلًا قصارى جهده لثماني وعشرين ساعة في اليوم على مدار ثمانية أيام في الأسبوع، فالعمل الشاق لم يتوقف قط، ورغم أن شركته كانت حية، لكنها متأخرة النمو وبالكاد تتنفس، وعندئذٍ اكتشف مصدرًا غيــر تقليدي للإلهام عند مزارعي اليقطين.