I never thought my son would take a shop class. When Robert was in 8th grade his schedule was determined by the science and math classes he wanted to take, so he was forced to take an elective for 4th period. Although he would have preferred to take keyboard or some other music class, those weren’t offered at that time, so his only choices were shop and PE. Turns out he loved shop. In shop he got to use four different types of saws, a drill press and sanders.

For the first four weeks of shop class, Robert’s teacher taught the students only how to draw. Before they cut anything, they have to draw what they plan to build from several different perspectives. For instance, if it’s a wooden tool caddy, a small box with a handle at the top, Robert had to draw pictures of what the caddy will look like from the top, the bottom and two different sides. This way, he could demonstrate that he knows what it should look like before he starts cutting.

It’s amazing how good Robert has become at building things. At 13 years old, he could cut wood to create beautiful, practical objects. While I’m proud of my son, it’s not the magic of the kid; it’s the magic of the process.

For several weeks, the shop teacher teaches his students how to create drawings before they touch the saws. Then, as their skill in creating drawings improves, he can introduce the saws and demonstrate how the drawing makes it a lot easier and better when it comes to actually cutting the wood and building the object. Plus, while the drawings allow the students to produce better finished products, what is more important for a school system on a tight supplies budget is that those drawings allow the class to be a lot more efficient with the resources.

In info-marketing, we don’t get that luxury. Instead, customers pick a guru based on who makes the most outlandish claims. Someone announces that he sells millions of dollars in just a few minutes, and everyone flocks to buy what he’s offering and then tries to implement it in their businesses without any regard to whether it’s appropriate for their own long-term business goals.

There’s no planning, there’s no thought about what they are going to build. Instead, it’s all about chasing fast cash.

I just have to shake my head sometimes when I see the nonsense that happens in this “industry.” Too many info-marketers are quick to brag about how much money they are generating, but they think nothing of the money they are wasting in their businesses. In fact, for some, spending money is their way of tapping into the “Law of Attraction” to build their wealth mentality. I don’t know about you, but I’m more about making wealth stick than maximizing the amount of money that passes through my fingers.

Until you’ve experienced it for a while, you will be blown away by how much profit there is in planning. Yep, it doesn’t sound as sexy as social media marketing or web launches, but planning is the most profitable thing you can do in your business. It’s fun to complain about companies that put the accountants in charge, but there’s a good reason they do it. Planning and financial discipline creates profits.

It is more like my son’s shop class. There’s a lot of drawing and planning to do before the cutting can begin. But a little planning makes the cutting a lot more effective and the results more beautiful to behold.

What do you think? Do you disagree or have a comment? Scroll down to the bottom of the page to leave me a comment. I read every comment and reply when appropriate.

Best wishes,

About Robert Skrob

The problem with subscription membership programs is that members quit, I fix that problem. For more than 20-years I have specialized in direct response marketing for member recruitment, retention and ascension in diverse subscription members environments including non-profit associations, for-profit publishers/coaching, subscriptions and SAAS companies. For an evaluation of your current churn rate and how I can improve it, contact me here. I discover there are often two or three quick wins you can implement within a week to lower churn immediately, let’s talk about your quick wins.