Getting Muddy

You’re better than a largemouth bass.

One of my favorite fishing lures is a Kastmaster.

It’s simple and effective. It’s basically just a chunk of metal with holes drilled into each end (one for an eyelet, one for the hook). They are highly polished to a bright shiny finish, and have an asymmetrical design that makes them wobble through the water when being retrieved. It makes them look like a semi-injured bait fish.

Legend has it that Kastmaster was started from a failed earring design.

The earrings represented some poor soul’s hopes and dreams – they had a vision to create the next fashion sensation, and instead couldn’t sell them at all. Demand was nearly zero.

Desperate for a glimmer of success, they tried them as a fishing lure.

It became a hit.

I have caught so many different species of fish on Kastmasters… largemouth bass, rainbow trout, catfish, white bass, drum, crappie, striped bass – it’s the one lure I always have no matter what I’m fishing for.

But you can learn a lesson from those fish: don’t fall prey to Shiny Object Syndrome.

As business owners, we tend to have a creative bent to us. We get excited about new ideas, and big pivots. Chasing the shiny new object.

Sometimes a pivot can be a win (see: Kastmaster). But it’s easy for a pivot to be a distraction.

You can muddy your message with too many products if you’re not careful.

If your business has a bread-and-butter product that everybody knows you for, then tread lightly when offering new products or pivoting. Make sure that it makes real sense for your current audience to buy your new product as well.

Stay out of the mud, and you’ll be ok.

This is from Trail 8 of Profit Hiker: 11 Trails to gain lasting elevation in your business. Find the book right here and the program over there.