I’d like to share what we call the Oyster Theory. Oysters are where pearls come from, those beautiful pearl necklaces that our ladies love to wear, gleaming in the sun and the light so others can admire them. However, how is that oyster formed? It’s formed from being in the comfortable protective environment of the oyster. That environment is stable so that the pearl has a chance to grow into its beauty.
I used to work in the restaurant industry where they educated us on the Oyster Theory. If you’ve ever been to a restaurant, I’m sure you’ve experienced this, and what I’m about to share is the same in business, so be very conscious of what you are reading. You visit a restaurant, it’s clean, it’s actually spotless. You go to the restroom, it’s immaculate. The waiter or waitress comes to your table, they’re cheerful. They’re enthusiastic. They’re having fun. They actually create an event for you because they’re in such a great mood. They’re upselling you without you even knowing it because you’re just going along for the ride. The hot food comes out hot, the cold food comes out cold, and it all comes out in a timely manner. Have a great meal. You get great service. The place is clean, and the check comes in a timely manner. Everything is great.
Because of this, that restaurant is doing well. The revenues and profits are increasing. They become extremely successful. They’re one of the best restaurants in the industry, in their town, in their community. Then they get a little complacent and unfortunately, adopt what we call the Success Syndrome. The restaurant isn’t as clean. The busboy or bus girl isn’t going frequently into the restrooms in making sure they’re immaculate. Paper towels are on the floor. The basket is over full. The waiters and waitresses are a little bit arrogant. They’re not as cheerful. They complain about their tips. The cold food doesn’t come out as cold. The hot food doesn’t come out as hot, and it’s no longer coming out in a timely manner.
The whole ambiance of the restaurant has changed. A few months go by. The regional managers and the district managers are sitting around brainstorming as they can’t figure out why revenues and profits have dipped. The number of people visiting the restaurant has shrunk. They can’t figure it out. They got complacent. They unconsciously adopted The Success Syndrome as opposed to continuing practicing the Oyster Theory.
I share this because in business we can possibly and unconsciously adopt the same pattern. As you’re doing everything right in your organization, you’ve created the right culture. You conduct your team meetings on a consistent schedule. You’re following up on KPIs, key performance indicators with your team, making sure they’re sticking to what they’re supposed to do in a timely manner. Your team exhibits great attitudes. You’re keeping your marketing flowing to keep your brand visible. Your service mastery is excellent because you’re taking care of your customers consistently. You’re doing everything right in your business.
Don’t get complacent. Trust me, if you do, everything you’ve worked on will begin to slowly erode to the point you won’t even notice it until months, maybe years down the road when you’re trying to figure out what happened to that momentum you once had.
The theory is, when you do everything right, what you did yesterday doesn’t matter. What you do today most definitely matters. Just because you showed up with excellence yesterday doesn’t mean you can relax today. You need to show up with excellence every day. Make sure you are adhering to the Oyster Theory. Your business, your clients, your team, your organization, that’s the pearl that you’re cultivating. Make sure that environment is right so that the pearl can come out nice and shiny so everyone can admire it, just like they’re going to admire your organization doing what’s right and delivering the goods and services to your customers and clients with excellence each and every day.
COACH MICHAEL DILL is an Award-Winning Certified Business Coach, global speaker, and published author. He is a proud Action Coach Franchise partner as well as the President of Power & Ice Wealth Creation a strategic leadership company that works with business owners, leaders, teams, and entrepreneurs to both develop a systematized and structured organization while accelerating their mindset, efficiencies, and effectiveness to grow both personally and professionally to achieve extraordinary results. He brings more than 40 years of business and entrepreneurial experience in his leadership, team training, and mentoring practice. Businesscoachmichaeldill.com