You've certainly heard all kinds of motivational sayings during your business life that are meant to keep you moving onward and upward during challenging times. "When the going gets tough, the tough get going," "A rolling stone gathers no moss," and any others you want to muster up could all fit the bill.

One thing we can't ignore is the Darwinian theory of evolution as it relates to business. Financial writer, John Markman, said, "Evolution favors the most adaptable; not the smartest, fastest or strongest."

In my opinion nothing could be truer. I created a unique business in this industry based on this statement. You don't have to be the smartest, most educated, most articulate, strongest or fastest. In fact, it bodes well to be a little ignorant, so that you won't think you can't do something.

In these challenging times you have to think and act like the day you started in business. You have to be hungry, passionate, ambitious and tireless. You have to get out of any comfort zone you may have been in and fight to survive. You have to be willing to do whatever it takes to make things happen, open your mind to out of bounds thinking and grasp every opportunity. The words, "can't," or "no," should not exist in your vocabulary.

Tools to Succeed

In order to prosper, you must do the following:

• Know the products you sell better than your competition,
• Carry the products consumers want,
• Have a store in which people will want to shop for floor covering,
• Make the shopping experience pleasant.

Right now, people want the best they can get- maybe at a discount, but they still want it. You have to do whatever it takes to deliver what they want.

How do you know what consumers want today? Pay attention. Read and listen as much as you can to absorb information like a sponge. Research on the Internet and you'll be surprised at the ideas you pick up to improve your business. If you're really good, as in you know what to offer and how, your business will grow and prosper.

Not everyone is suffering in this economy. I talk to all sorts of thriving people in the industry everyday, and residential and commercial dealers, architects, designers and end users attest that flooring is still being sold. The market has not dried up and things are happening. Things may not be occurring at a galloping pace, but they are plodding along and today, that's good enough.

So, what do you have to do? The same thing you should have been doing all along: sell the right product in the right place, use the correct components, (cushion, adhesive, floor prep), and make sure it's installed correctly, using installers who know what they're doing. Cheap installers will cost you more in the long run and an increase in complaints will hurt your business.

Claims and complaints should be avoided like the plague. If you get one, find out why, fix it and learn from it. Don't make the same mistake twice. Now's the time to be better than you've ever been and fix all the things that have broken in the business. You should have more time to coddle the customer, inform your team, build relationships, clean up the store- anything you can to make the buying experience the best it can be.

Maybe we all needed this slap to wake us up. But remember, the most adaptable survive and you may even thrive. If I can help, let me know.