Founder and CEO at LT Partners was featured in a recent article by Sara Connell for Authority Magazine. Sara’s series, Self Made Women, explores conversations with female entrepreneurs about where they came from, what drives them to create a successful business and what their guidance is for other women who strive to become successful entrepreneurs.
Lacie, what are 5 things you wish someone told you before you started and why?
There is so much business advice out there and I love to absorb all of it, but I think at the end of the day, the way companies do business right now is changing. Employees want to work at companies with values, clients want to hire partners they respect, and leadership is evolving from the archaic model of top-down management being highly overpaid. The things I wish someone would have told me is more about the environment and culture of the company.
Gratitude goes a long way: when I first started the company, I’d send a bottle of wine or champagne to new clients when we kicked things off. It’s a small gesture, but just taking the time to place that order was a nice surprise and helps things get off on the right foot. We just completed our first all-company offsite and the impact it had on our team to have a wonderful experience together is priceless.
Fear-based decisions: A mentality and decision-making process based on fear will never result in abundance.
Difficult conversations are mandatory and need to be mature, respectful, and constructive: having an open dialogue along the way is the best way to ensure nothing is a surprise down the road. If we’re not all constantly learning and evolving, we can’t achieve success.
Even when you kill it, sometimes things don’t go your way…and that’s ok. One of my favorite quotes from Ted Lasso is “You know what the happiest animal on earth is? It’s a goldfish. You know why? It’s got a 10-second memory.” We had a client that was extremely happy. When we found out they were moving to another agency, we were shocked. We got on a call and discussed it with him to get feedback. He told us we are amazing; he loves working with us and he literally cannot think of any negative feedback to provide or room for improvement. It was a situation where a new CMO came in who has a previous relationship with the other agency and we never really had a chance. It doesn’t happen often, but when things like that happen, dwelling doesn’t do any good. Onward and upward!
Never underestimate the power of your network and the reputation you’ve built.
