I have a dog. A Jack Russell, which, if you don’t know, is a breed that requires boundless attention, patience and, above all, exercise. You see, a Jack Russell is not a lap dog; it’s not one to stay sedentary for too long, and requires walks, runs and other assorted play time on a frequent basis. This, typically, manifests itself in exploring and experiencing the outdoors.
Now, the Jack Russell is prone—bred to, actually—to hunt and chase: squirrels, deer, varmints of varying sizes, you name it. When it comes to this world, unlike humans, dogs see with their noses. In fact, it’s estimated that dogs can smell 100,000 times better than humans. Consider this: 40% more of a dog’s brain than a human’s is committed to smell. While the average person has five million smell receptors, the average dog, depending on breed, has 125 to 250 million smell receptors. Dogs are olfactory marvels.
There is something to learn from this. Each day, I take my dog for three walks. They are her walks, not mine, something I learned over time. See, when I first started taking Olive (that’s her name) for walks, I’d go at my pace, not her own, which, invariably, was brisk (especially if there was a ballgame on). Like a lot in life, we try to do things quickly, to get it done with pace, cross it off a list and move onto the next thing. We should be doing the opposite.
What Olive has taught me is to slow it down. At first, I’d find myself almost pulling her along, trying to drag her to the next point. But as these walks progressed, I understood, noticed, that she was taking her time, sniffing everything and everywhere, pausing to take it all in. She takes in the world this way, her nose an antenna that processes information and allows her to make decisions—move on or stick around a little longer. It’s a mode of operation we can all learn from.
The business of hotels requires decision-making, in operations, in investment, in everything. The late, great basketball coach John Wooden is credited with the line, “Be quick, but don’t hurry,” which can be interpreted as avoid being rash. The slow movement calls for exactly that: slowing down. It’s not about doing things at a snail’s pace; no, it’s about doing things at the right speed, being calculated, being intentional. We’ve all heard the phrase “slow down to speed up”—well, there’s a veracity to it, working at a steadier, slower pace and taking deliberate actions. It’s an efficient approach that can help you become more productive.
I challenge you all to try and slow it down; to take it all in. Are you in the market to buy a hotel? Sure, NOI matters, but take a closer look, open the aperture: Is new competition coming into the market? Is the area population growing or decreasing? What does the surrounding business environment look like? Do a SWAT analysis, it’s your best feasibility study. And if you are selling, ask yourself why. Is this the best time? If so, convince yourself by slowing down and looking at all the angles.
An unhurried approach will improve your decisions and, ultimately, lead to a better outcome. Like a dog, you can always learn new tricks.
