Keep the glass half full

I’m writing this column from Dayton, Ohio, on one of the stops on the 2019 Turnaround Tour. As I scraped the ice from freezing rain off my car to head over to one of the winners – Brunner’s Lawn and Services – this morning, I was thinking about the start of winter here in the Midwest.

And with winter, my mind goes to New Year’s resolutions and the optimism that surrounds them as we turn the calendar to the next year. I’ve never been one to set those resolutions, but I’m envious of people who have the optimism to set them, and even better, follow through.

The participants signed up for the project through Lawn & Landscape to work with the Harvest Group, an industry consultant group, to solve problems that have stopped them from reaching their potential. The idea is with some consulting, they can break through to the next level.

When we started 2018 visits in November and December of 2017, there was tons of optimism from everyone involved. Plans are made, goals are set and everyone is “rah-rah” to start the season.

But, of course, as the year goes on, reality sets in, problems come up and that sunny optimism turns into, well, freezing rain.

Don’t let rejection or mistakes kill your optimism.

But as the companies in 2019’s Turnaround Tour hit speed bumps and fall short of daily, weekly and monthly goals, I hope they maintain the optimism they have right now. The same goes for you as you start the new year with personal and professional goals. Don’t let rejection or mistakes kill your optimism.

As I make mistakes individually, or we make collectively as a magazine, I take a few minutes to realize what could have been done differently. But then I think about a few things we’ve done well as a way to not dwell on the mistakes we just made.

For me, it’s a way to avoid getting stuck in a rut.

So as problems arise in 2019, put the rain gear in the closet and keep the sunglasses nearby because learning from your failures will provide you sunshine in 2019. – Brian Horn