The seasons will be changing in a couple of months and, among other things, that means Remodelers Advantage (R.A.) peer group meetings will occur. I am fortunate to have been a facilitator for some of these meetings since 2000.

The Spring Meetings for many groups include a Case Study. That means Day 1 and the first two hours of Day 2 (the meetings are three days long) focus on the business of the member who is hosting the group.

As you can imagine, the thought of having a group of your peers dive deep into the workings of your company and then deliver suggestions on how your company could become even better makes many business people quite nervous. Kind of like that dream where you are out in public with no clothes on.

I got a message recently from an R.A. member who is the Host Company this spring. The member said two local members described a Case Study as worse than a colonoscopy.

I replied with some advice:

Be very clear about the three plus/minus points you want input on. If you don't want input on an issue/topic, lay that out, too.

Listen and ask clarifying questions. Don't explain and defend; no one cares about that.

Remember that the stuff that is the hardest to hear is the most valuable. Struggle to understand it. This might take years—I am not kidding. We went through a similar process when we owned our remodeling business. According to our group, the only thing wrong with our company was me. Hard to accept. But there was a lot of truth in it. It took me a long time to see that.

We will be kinder to you.

During a colonoscopy one is sedated. During a Case Study one is not. Big difference.

The truth is that the feedback we received and I eventually accepted spurred many changes in me and, consequently our company. We would never have achieved the successes we did without that input.

The only way to get better is to be faced with the truth. Being the owner of a company often insulates one from getting needed feedback from the employees of the company.

You have to be vulnerable to have your peers deliver their suggestions for improvement to you. It takes courage to be open to hearing things you probably try to ignore.

Not paying attention to what is obvious to others dooms your company to continuous mediocrity. Embracing the input drives needed change.

Both a colonoscopy and a Case Study dive deep into their respective subjects. They both provide insights that can prevent bad things from happening.

Do they make you feel uncomfortable? Probably! But there really are no alternatives. So, hang in there. It will be over soon.