At the Helm: The dare to be different

By Adam Quandt

It’s time for some truth. The recreational boating industry is one that is often slightly slow to change. Sometimes it’s because the technological advances found in other industries aren’t quite able to operate in a marine environment just yet, other times we simply look at things and say, “that’s how we’ve always done things.”

The latter is a problem. Meeting opportunities of change and growth with “that’s not how we/I’ve always done things” will stunt you and your business. Whether you are in a leadership role or not, it’s time to step up and be open and ready to doing things differently.

Over the last few years, a lot of change – both in our industry and beyond – has been forced into being by adaptation in facing various challenges to pop up. While that change has been helpful in navigating the industry over hurdles, it is not the only change that needs to happen across the recreational boating industry.

Moving through changes and doing things differently can certainly be intimidating, but it’s also a necessity.

With this issue of Boating Industry we’re proud to award and shine a spotlight on Movers & Shakers and Bold Moves across the recreational boating industry. The industry leaders highlighted through the Movers & Shakers program are those not afraid to take risks and do something differently to further propel the industry toward success.

During interviews with this year’s Movers & Shakers candidates, a common theme quickly emerged – a willingness to take risks and try something different.

“Sometimes you’re going to fail, but that’s ok,” one candidate said. “I think more people need to realize that failure is a part of growth and if we learn from our failures, it brings us so much closer to unprecedented success.”

Taking risks and encouraging your team to try things in a different way is absolutely required as part of being a leader in today’s world.  It’s about pushing the envelope of what you, your team and your products can do.

With that in mind, I challenge you: every time you find yourself saying or thinking “that’s not how we’ve always done things,” take a moment to stop yourself and rather think about how this new idea might be good for you, your team, your business and/or your products.

With this mindset, I believe we can all continue pushing the recreational boating industry and the boating experience to unknown heights.

Source: https://boatingindustry.com/columns/2022/09/26/at-the-helm-the-dare-to-be-different/