Adobe 18 phone calls - Lodging Newsletter January 31, 2022

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In his 1960s TV skit show, comedian Flip Wilson, playing his drag character "Geraldine," when confronted with "her" behavior, would exclaim, "The devil made me do it, honey."

It was stupid then and is stupid now. But it became a popular phrase because, well, because, any damn fool can blame the devil. And now any damn fool can now blame Covid.

Have you noticed that during the 104 weeks of the bug so far, seldom is a small business owner heard blaming their situation on Covid? They talk about it, and they struggle with it. They change their plans and their product. And they worry but seldom do they blame.

Small businesses simply buckle down and get back to work, as they have always had to do. They must adapt to change, solve problems, zig and zag - just to stay in business. The cavalry is not going to come to save them.

In the 1980s, Harley Davidson motorcycle company was failing financially, as their product deteriorated and their reputation plummeted. Finally, the company jettisoned. Bloated overhead redundant middle management and instead put the power for quality back in the hands of the mechanics who actually made the motorcycles.

The turnaround was spectacular, and today Harley is revered by their customers and contemporary culture. So, a famous consultant studied the turnaround by walking the factory floor. One day, a very husky man with very long hair, covered with large tattoos, came walking his way. The worker looked like a Harley biker, and he was fuming.

When the consultant asked why, the biker growled, "I'm going to phone the company that makes this part. It is crap, and I am going to tell him to quit making excuses and start making good parts."

"What if that doesn't work?" asked the consultant. "Then I will get on my bike, ride over and have a friendly little talk with them. They’ll fix it if they know what's good for them."

So, that was the conclusion about Harley. They stopped making excuses, stopped blaming, and just started making extraordinary motorcycles again.

As I sat on those 12 phone calls for hours, it dawned on me not once have I heard anyone at our business blame Covid. Nor have they blamed it on the devil, the weather, or politics. They all went to work every day, and they all strived to do a job that many others would avoid, at a time that was - to say the least - unpleasant.

All businesses have reasons why sometimes things do not go as planned. Or mistakes are made. Or something is not noticed. But during this Covid thing, not one of us has ever said we blame anything on Covid.

As I sat on those 12 phone calls with Adobe software for hours on end, I realized those big guys could learn a lot from us. We could teach them to stop blaming something they can't do anything about. And that it is time to get back to work to make things better.

I won't hold my breath waiting for them to forget about Covid, start making better products, and provide better service. Because I am sure they'll blame it on some other lame excuse. Maybe the devil made them lousy.