To be honest when this first crossed my mind it wasn’t so much about “know-how” as it was about “knowledge.”  I thought back to my younger years and the days of watching School House Rock on ABC.  Great stuff in the theme like “knowledge is power” and episodes like “I’m just a Bill.” Those 90 to 120 second teachings made there mark and likely contributed to me embracing a lifetime learner lifestyle.  But the equation (Knowledge * Passion), just doesn’t seem to perform as well in everyday business.  I’ve adjusted it to be, Know-how * Passion = Impact!  That’s my true KPI.  Applying that equation has always provided the best results.

Some of my best accomplishments came from taking action on what I knew from customer research – combined with past experience from mentors, colleagues and channel partners, waiting for more knowledge would have only delayed making the same decision.

Now I realize some of you may be thinking, but John, “its not what you know but who you know.”  Yes of course, I’ve grabbed onto that olive branch from time to time too.  But still that is only enough to get through the door for an initial meeting or maybe even the first order.  Eventually, long-term what matters is what you get done.  And what you get done is rarely better from over analyzing what you have or greatly improved by the next report to come from someone else’s desk… it’s taking what you know from customer/market research and doing something with it, today!

Now, take what you know-how to do, multiply it with passion and I guarantee you will make an impact that gets recognized.