Go BIG or go home!

 

Last week while driving home from work I pulled up next to another car at a stoplight and noticed that there was a magnetic advertisement on the car door.  I slowly pulled up a bit more to read what was being advertised, but I had a hard time making it out because the sign was fairly small.

After squinting my eyes a bit (yes…I had my glasses on) in an attempt to make out the small writing on the sign, I finally gave up when the light turned green.

As I pulled off from the stoplight I couldn’t help but ponder why the owner of the magnetic advertisement would make the initial investment in a sign that was so ineffective and small.

Hadn’t he or she heard the phrase, “Go BIG or go home!”
(In all fairness they may have been driving home…)

As I continued on my way home I began thinking of all the excuses this person could have made to justify having a sign so small…

• I don’t have enough money for a larger sign
• I don’t want to spend too much money so I’ll just buy the smaller size sign…if people are interested they’ll care enough to make it out
• If it’s too big what will my family and friends say or think?
• What if my coworkers see the sign?  Do I really want them to know I have a side business?
• I am running a small business…so nothing’s wrong with a small sign.

I could continue…but I’ll stop…because for each excuse I made for this person, I could think of many more reasons why the excuse just didn’t hold any relevance.

For instance…one of the #1 excuses many of us make for our inability to invest in something is due to the associated financial obligation.

For many of us…money is the barrier!
If I just had more money I could…(fill in the blank)

But…is this really true?  Is it that we need more money or is it that we just have to make better decisions on how we spend our money?

For example…

• Your favorite band comes to town…
• Your favorite team makes it to the division finals…
• A year supply of cigarettes…
• The cost of your bar tab over the past year…
• The big screen TV in your living room…
• The latest smartphone…
• That pair of shoes at the mall…that just happened to be on sale as you walked by…

Those are things of which we choose to spend money.  These things don’t enhance our lives forever.  They merely provide a temporary satisfaction until the memory is old or the shoes are old and we eventually move on!

So let me ask…

Is $200 spent on books that will help you do a better job at work too much money, if the consequence of this reading gets you stellar reviews and possibly a raise and/or promotion?

Is $300 spent on a multi-day seminar with a panel of successful teachers and leaders freely imparting their wisdom too much money, if the learning benefits you a lifetime?

Would you agree that the person with the magnetic car advertisement should have spent the additional $25 dollars on a larger, more reader friendly sign? (Oh…yeah…I looked it up…google is amazing)

Go BIG or go home!

In my opinion the sign alone debunks the business’ credibility.

It is fascinating to observe how freely we are willing to spend, but how cautious we are to invest.  Especially when it comes to our time and money.

The next time you find yourself asking, “Should I invest my time/money in this?”

Just think, “Go BIG or go home.”
If you’re not 100% sold yourself…why would anyone else believe you?
Go ALL in…or just go home…and save yourself the embarrassment of a small, unreadable sign!