We – many of us in coastal Eastern states and in the coastal New England states, in particular – had a bit of a snowstorm over the weekend. 22” – 30” inches of snow, roughly. And, who could tell? The wind blew some areas clean while others accumulated chest-high drifts. Provincetown and Wellfleet were, at storm peak, experiencing winds over 80 miles per hour. In Cambridge, over 40 miles per hour at one point. What we in these parts call a “wickid blizzid.”

I was trained early in life to “stay on top of a major storm” meaning “move snow while the storm is in progress” rather than letting it all go ‘till the end. The idea was to work in short intervals with rest periods between, clearing 2” – 3” of snow at a time rather than 22” or 30” at the end of a storm. Easier on the body and one’s state of mind. And, if you or someone else had to get into or out of the house in an emergency, for example, they could.

So, every couple of hours during Saturday afternoon and evening, I cleared a single shovel-width path down 60 feet of sidewalk and portions of the driveway. But, by around 9:00 pm, the driveway was coated with 22” of snow and, at the wind-exposed driveway entrance, we had a broad, waist-high drift. I could no longer keep up with it. Wind, too strong. Snow, too much.

As I retreated to clear the house front steps so we could walk unobstructed into the snowdrift, I was reminded of a second lesson: “If you’re facing off against a big, complicated storm (or business account), bring in a team early rather than trying to do everything yourself.” Otherwise, you get overwhelmed.

And a third… “Hire someone to deal with the snow and stay inside where it’s warm”.

When our relief column arrived early this morning, they cleared the place in 30 minutes.

Nick Miller and Clarity train banks and bankers to attract and develop deeper relationships with small businesses. Many more Sales Thoughts like this and a host of other articles and resources at https://clarityadvantage.com/knowledge-center/ .