Are you following the business rules you already know?

A friend likes to say, “When the student is ready, the teacher will appear.”

Every day is filled with hundreds of lessons that fly by our inattentive eyes and ears. There’s so much we could learn if we only paid attention.

But it’s even worse than that. Often, we already know what we should do. If somebody else asked for advice, we’d give them the very rule that we should be following.

A famous psychologist says, “Treat yourself like someone you’re responsible for.”

You probably already know what you need to know, and if you don’t, just be attentive. The teacher will appear.

I’ve been in the publishing business a long time, and it’s rare that I hear something new. When I go to a conference, I’m usually not getting new information. The talks serve to remind me to emphasize things I already knew and should have been doing.

Sometimes I find myself giving advice that I’m dead certain my client already knows, and when I ask for advice, I often hear things I already know.

• Focus on features and benefits, but especially benefits.
• It’s not about you.
• It’s easier to keep a customer than get a new one.

Here’s another simple rule for you. My friend Chris Moffa likes to say “there’s all the difference in the world between someone who will pay a dollar and someone who won’t.”

That’s a slightly deeper application of the “it’s easier to keep a customer” rule. So ask yourself this – Are you treating the people who have paid you something – even just a dollar – better than the unwashed pool of freeloaders who haven’t? And whose attention are you trying to get? Which people’s opinions matter more to you?

Here’s my advice (which I will also do).

1. Start writing down some of your favorite business aphorisms. Review them regularly and ask yourself if you’re actually following them.
2. When you give advice, update your list of aphorisms and make sure you’re following your own prescriptions.

Odds are you already know way more than you think, and if you listened to your own best counsel, you’d be doing well.