A Chat with Eduard Bjorncrantz, Vice President, Direct Marketing at Day-Timers, Inc.

CS: If you can pick out one thing, what’s the biggest business mistake you ever made, and how did you deal with it?

EB: I’m not sure it’s a catalog mistake, but a management mistake. Trying to do too much. You develop a plan, then as opportunities come along, you add more to your plate. I think I learned fairly early on that you have to focus on the plan you’ve got and stick to it. Otherwise you’re overtaxing your staff, and you’re confusing them as to what the priorities really are. Build a plan and make sure it’s fully integrated across the entire organization. Yes, there will be changes, but they can’t be frequent, and they can’t destroy the basics of the plan you already have in place.