Housewife to Millionaire - Debbi Fields' Success Story

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Today we're going to look at how a housewife who was told by her husband that her business concept was a "stupid idea" created an international brand with almost 500 retail locations.

"The greatest failure is not to try. Had I listened to all the people during the course of my life who said, "You can't. You'll fail. It won't work. You don't have...," I wouldn't be here today." - Debbi Fields

To learn more check out my list of Debbi Fields articles at http://www.evancarmichael.com/Famous-Entrepreneurs/1558/summary.php or http://community.telustalksbusiness.com/blogs/talk_business/2010/12/07/top-3-business-lessons-from-debbi-fields-from-housewife-to-multi-millionaire

Action Item #1: Don't Let Rejection Hold You Back

Every new business is going to have its share of doubters. You'll have potential customers, lenders, suppliers, partners, and employees turn you down. You may even have your friends and family question what you're doing. If you're sure that your idea has merit then you owe it to yourself to give it your best. Use the rejection as fuel to motivate you to keep going - remember that each no gets you closer to a yes.

As far as Fields was concerned, she knew she was not going to disappoint her husband and her parents who did not believe in her. The only person she risked disappointing was herself if she did not try. "And, so, my journey began," says Fields. "I made the decision, and I was going to see it through."

Meanwhile, Fields' parents continued to discourage their daughter's plans. Again, Fields' mother told her to give up telling her that "There's magic in those words because when she said, 'Debbi, just give up,'" Instead of giving up, Fields created a mantra for herself, and maintained the faith that there was someone out there that would finally say 'yes' to her dream. Her advice: "You do not have to be superhuman to do what you believe in. The most important thing is for you to believe in what you are doing. Absolutely know there are people out there who want to say yes."

Action Item #2: Let Customers Try Before They Buy

With any new product or service customers are reluctant to buy because they don't know what they're getting. If you can think of a way for your clients to try out what you're selling on a small scale they are much more likely to buy, assuming that you have a quality product or service. Trying something out reduces the risk for the customer and increases the chances that they'll place an order with you.

When Fields opened up her first shop she had trouble getting the foot traffic outside to come inside her store. To create an incentive for new customers to come in, she began sending out trays of free cookies into the streets. People would try her cookies outside and wander into the store to see where they could find more.

According to Mrs. Fields: "I wanted to make my first investment in my customer. I wanted to give the product away... I wanted people to actually experience the product, try the product, and if they thought it was worthy, if they liked it, then they could buy it.... Try it and buy it. That was the way we really found customers."

Action Item #3: Good Enough Never Is

One day Debbi Fields walked into one of her stores to see a long line of customers waiting to purchase a huge batch of cookies that she immediately knew had been over baked. Fields was upset; she did not want those cookies to be sold, or for those customers to associate her name with over baked cookies. Fields approached the manager to figure out what was going on. "What do you think of these cookies?" Fields asked him. "He responded by saying, 'Oh, Debbi, they're good enough." Fields was upset and immediately threw out all of the cookies. "Good enough?" she said. "Good enough never is.

Fields now had a long line of hungry customers waiting to buy cookies that had just been tossed in the garbage. She went over to them and explained, one by one, what had happened. "We've over baked these cookies," she said, "and I want them to be perfect and whatever you are standing in line for, I will absolutely give them to you free plus I'll match for free if you will come back." According to Mrs. Fields: "Good enough never is. Set your standards so high that even the flaws are considered excellent."

Closing Thoughts

Have you used rejection to fuel your success? Do you believe that good enough never is? What part of Debbi Fields' message impacted you the most? As always, I'd love to hear your thoughts if you leave a comment below!

Видео Housewife to Millionaire - Debbi Fields' Success Story канала Evan Carmichael