The pointlessness of under promise and over-deliver

"If I tell you 1 sale but I come in with 2, it'll make me look good though right??"

WRONG

For so many years I thought the exact same thing, make myself look good, keep the boss happy, tell him/her I have 1 or 2 deals then come in with 3 or 4 riding on a white horse like the savior of all.

For some of you reading this, that makes total sense and to be honest, I get it! Especially if management react in that way which we often do. It can even translate to hobbies such as my own hobby, running. I might tell my wife or my running club I am going out for a 10k then bosh out 12k and everyone applauds and congratulates you.

But whilst out on my daily run, listening to numerous self help books as I do, I was introduced to the concept of over promise and over deliver. At first I was very sceptical but the more I thought about it, the more I realised it makes so much more sense for everyone!

Let me give you an example: You have just been given the nod from the producer that your musical will be on the west end in a matter of weeks (dramatizing! I am sure they take forever to get on stage, but roll with me here). You have picked your cast; who are AMAZING, your stage crew are in place, the orchestra is set and the merchandise is on order for opening night. The PR firm you are using come to you and say "we have the perfect way to market this and we really think it will help you make sales"

"NEW WESTEND MUSICAL WRITTEN BY UNKNOWN WRITER WHO'S ALRIGHT, WITH OK CAST WHO ARE PRETTY COMPETENT SINGERS, STORYLINE IS PASSABLE AND YOU'LL BE LEFT CLAPPING LIGHTLY AT THE END"

You're shocked; "what the hell kind of a sell is that??" you ask.

"Well we thought we would under promise initially but we know they will love it and be blown away so when they leave they will give it rave reviews"

Sounds dumb right??

Or if your favourite sports team's manager has a press conference at the beginning of the season and promises (cue best foreign sounding accent)

"A distinctly average performance this year and we will certainly hope to get to the play offs and maybe even the final! But no promises as we don't want to under deliver to you. Come pay for your season ticket now!"

Wouldn't happen would it?

The concept of over promise and over deliver has 2 parts to it: firstly its the promise, sometimes meaning you are telling a small white lie. I will deliver 3 deals this week boss you can count on me. Does that make you want to sweat a little?? heart palpitations ?? Yep the first time you do it it will make you want to cry as its totally against what we have been bought up to believe. This is not a "play it safe" or "don't take too many risks" mentality. This is an ALL IN and GO FOR IT mentality which many of us here in the UK just do not have.

The second part is ACTION and DELIVERY! Action is the one thing that most people think they take, but underestimate how much they need to take, to get the job done. If you promise 3 deals this week you damn well need to deliver those as everyone up the chain is counting on you. Now is the time to take full OWNERSHIP of yourself, your business and your actions. What can you do today to make this happen? How many phone calls will it take to get me there? Can I break this target down enough to know when I can hit it? How many hours do I need to give to this? Have I made a terrible mistake?? And on and on and so on and so forth.

Do everything it takes to get the job done even if that means working late one night or making a few extra calls which you're not comfortable doing. Be different to those around you and understand that its on you to perform each week. You cannot blame those around you, the market, the boss, the weather etc for your lack of get up and go. Every second of every minute of every day someone, somewhere is making a buying decision. So make sure they make that decision with you.

Just a thought. Try it out and see what you think.