People: The Real Differentiating Factor in Your Business

There’s a lot changing in business right now. Companies are restructuring, the job market isn’t exactly candidate-friendly, and Ai has flipped entire industries upside down. So if you’re trying to scale a business in this environment, where do you start? If you’re a small business, that question gets even harder. You want to attract great people, but maybe your budget is tight. Your benefits might not compete with bigger firms yet. So what’s your differentiator? It’s people. Always has been, always will be. It doesn’t matter if you’re running a $3 million company or a $300 million company — growth will always come down to people. Finding the best ones, keeping the best ones, and creating an environment where they can thrive. Get to Know Your People One of the most impactful things I’ve ever done as a leader is simple: take the time to really know my team. What motivates them? What’s their home life like? Are they married? Do they have kids? John DiJulius, in The Customer Service Revolution, talks about wowing your customers through small, intentional actions. His message stuck with me — because as leaders, our “customers” are our employees. He introduced the idea of a FORD file: Family Occupation Recreation Dreams As I got to know my team, I started collecting these details naturally through conversations, lunches, and 1:1s. I’d take note of birthdays, work anniversaries, family updates, hobbies, even dreams for the future. Not in a corporate way, but as a reminder of what matters to each person. Because people don’t care how much you know until they know how much you care. Be Intentional One of my sales coaches, Dan Larson, taught me something years ago: “People will always work harder for their reasons than they ever will for yours.” Your job is to figure out why their feet hit the floor every morning. Then look for small ways to show that you care. A handwritten note on a work anniversary. A small birthday gift. Remembering to ask about their kid’s soccer game. It takes effort and intentionality, but it pays off. The Long Game Just this week, I got a call from a sales rep who worked for me about 10 years ago. He was one of the good ones back then and, after some recent life changes, was looking for a new opportunity. I happened to be working with a couple groups in need of a great rep. That reconnection didn’t happen by luck. It happened because years ago, I invested in the relationship. Those small relational deposits built trust that lasted long after we stopped working together. So start small. Be intentional. The long-term payoff of focusing on people will outlast any process, playbook, or platform you put in place. Happy Selling,
Emil