If you have followed the economic activity over the past few months, it seems to be a head scratcher. This past week, the economy created more jobs, but the stock market tumbled. And the Federal Reserve says they are going to hike interest rates again. This is going to make borrowing more expensive and although, “they” talk about wanting a “soft landing” where the economy cools, it doesn’t go into a recession.

My opinion is by definition, we are already in a recession. We have already been working within a window market that is experiencing ebbs and flows. But my response is “so what!” In my 30-plus years in the industry, I have come to count on how resilient and creative our industry is. Instead of scaling back, I see our industry spending more on advertising. I see our door and window manufacturers reducing lead times close to pre-pandemic levels.

Our industry finds different ways to adapt, adjust and become better than we were before.

If you are selling in the home or selling to remodeling companies, how should you adjust? How should you be different?

I would say the first thing is do not let the ups and downs of the news cycle, specifically the economic news cycle, be an excuse not to show up and do your best. From this perspective, hopefully, you just continue doing what you are doing.

Whether you are selling to remodeling companies, home improvement companies or homeowners, the concerns are the same – these may be worded differently, but they are all very similar. Be prepared to address these concerns and bring up the ones that should be addressed. Stay in front of things instead of being reactive.

Also, get creative on making your own “luck.” There is a fine line of being average and being great. It just takes that extra work and creativity to push yourself over the line. Take some calculated risks, learn from those chances and then adjust to be better.

Finally, it doesn’t matter if we are in a recession or not. Some folks say showing up is half the battle; this may be true. But if you want to be the best, you need to push yourself past “just showing up.” The important thing is not using these different things thrown at us as excuses not to excel. Continue pushing yourself to be better, be different and be creative. If you do this, you won’t just show up, you will end up being one of the best!

Great Selling!
Ty