Flight 1397: A Near-miss And a Business Lesson

Some days, more than others, you’re just happy to be alive.

Yesterday was one of those days.

I was in seat 14B, Southwest Flight 1397 from Philadelphia to St. Louis, staring out the window as the Boeing 737 eased toward the ground for landing when…

…suddenly the plane surged upward and turned hard to the right.

A few seconds later, the captain announced, “Sorry about that, folks. We were about to land when the tower alerted us there was a plane on the runway.”

Tragedy narrowly averted.

US air traffic controllers manage around 45,000 flights daily. Accidents are exceedingly rare.

Imagine what would happen without air traffic control. Imagine if all those pilots — on 45,000 flights daily — were flying blind.

Speaking of “flying blind,” I recently asked a business owner what numbers he tracks to manage his business.

“None, really,” he replied.

No close rate. No average client value. No cost per lead. No monthly revenue trend.

He was flying a business… with no air traffic control.

He’s not alone. Most small business owners I talk to are doing the same thing — making decisions based on gut feel and hope.

They may generate enough revenue to avoid business tragedy. But they’re not in control.

Here’s the good news: You don’t need a fancy dashboard with 47 metrics and a team of data analysts.

You need maybe 5-7 numbers. The RIGHT numbers. Numbers that tell you where your business is headed before you get there.

Numbers like:

→ How many leads came in this month (and from where)

→ How many of those turned into conversations

→ How many of those conversations turned into clients

→ What each new client is worth to you over time

→ What it cost you to get them

When you know those numbers, you stop guessing. You start seeing. You can spot problems while they’re still small and double down on what’s actually working.

Without them? You’re the pilot who doesn’t know there’s a plane on the runway.

And there’s no one in the tower to save you.

If you’re ready to stop flying blind, let’s talk.

I’m opening a few seats this month in my program where together we’ll design and implement business-building marketing systems that include simple ways to track progress — so you won’t be flying blind and you can grow more consistently and predictably.

If you’d like to discuss the options, reply to this email with “up, up and away,” and I’ll get back to you with details.