Want to be more effective at managing your business? Make decisions quicker and take action sooner! 

How do you feel after you’ve decided on something important in your business and you’ve taken the first step towards making it happen?  It’s like a shot of caffeine or the sensation of just winning something!  You feel good about getting it started (or done) and relieved that you don’t have to think about it any longer.  Unfortunately, for every good decision that gets put into practice, there are many more that simply miss the boat of opportunity. 

To be sure, it’s most important to consider your options and seek advice if you aren’t comfortable with the subject before deciding to move forward. Many times, however, the research people continue doing or ‘that’ additional person they feel needs to be consulted with, only drags out the deliberation process causing good, timely decisions to get dropped. 

If you find yourself spending too much time sifting through mounds of information and thinking about everyone else’s opinions; afraid to take action because ‘what if you’re wrong!’, you are already in a bad spot.  Making good, confident decisions and acting on them is a behavior that takes practice.  Like every other body part that needs exercise, your brain needs to be trained to evaluate, deliberate, decide and move forward.  After all, the fun is in knowing you are engaged in doing something, right! 

Set a Deadline and Stick to It:

Regardless of how important or how big the decision is and what you must commit to in order to make your actions successful, set a date when your decision will be made.  Align this date with whatever factors determine the opportunity’s availability and make a hard commitment to act by that time.  If you do your homework and decide it’s not for you, you will still feel good that you made a conscious decision not to move forward.  Having to walk away from things because you waited too long only contributes to your continued inability to move in a timely fashion. 

You Don’t Know What You Don’t Know:

This is a symptom of a great idea that opens up a whole new area of opportunity for you. The idea maybe something you have been mulling over for awhile or a suggestion by someone else that got your cerebral juices flowing.  Let’s say you have an industrial tool making business and a friend suggested you look for government contracts.  You think, ‘wow, I don’t get any of the government’s business- I need to do this!’ But then you realize you have no idea how to start this new revenue venture.  It’s likely going to take time and money to meet whatever requirements are needed and the ability to connect to the right folks.  Just thinking about where to start could keep this decision from ever getting off the ground. 

One thing to consider is checking to see if there are people that provide this service as a business.  Just by Googling ‘government contracts for small businesses’ you’ll get a list of services to contact.  You could also ask among your business contacts to see if anyone else has done this.  This usually works best as anyone who has been there is likely to want to show you the ropes. 

The debilitating effects of too much information:

I’m not talking about a TMI moment you experience while having dinner with someone.  I’m referring to the endless sources of information available to anyone who likes to do a little research.  If you don’t limit your sources, you can literally stay in investigation mode forever!  Pick 3 sources of information that pertain to your decision and get what you need from each.  If you are unfamiliar with the area of interest, look for websites or books that can bring you up to speed on the ‘ins and outs’.  If other  people’s opinions matter, find a website with reviews to look at.  If the issue at hand involved a major area of your business that you’d like to know more about, seek out a trusted expert to fill in the knowledge gaps.  Then, weigh the pros and cons and decide. 

Consider someone who can help you through the decision making process:

Taking action has benefits in so many areas, it’s a shame most people feel more secure waiting for someone or something to give them a sign.  If you typically wait and often regret not moving sooner or faster once the opportunity has passed, consider getting an advisor to bounce ideas and actions off.  Many times, you already know the correct direction to head in, you just need confirmation that everything has been weighed and considered before committing yourself.  In the end, your life will be less complicated and your confidence much greater when you tackle decisions promptly and make decisions that move you from deliberation to action. 

More Business Growth Resources:

If you have an important decision to make or an area of your business that needs to change and you want some objective input, go to http://www.growthsourcecoaching.com/Need-Answers-Ask-Steve.html or visit www.GrowthSourceCoaching.com and get help moving forward. 

If you would like more information on various topics having to do with small business growth strategies, tune in to Steve’s weekly Radio Show on BlogTalk Radio- ‘The Small Biz Growth Show’.  Each Tuesday at 11:00am (PST) and Thursday at 1:00pm (PST), Steve and his co-host, Cash Miller, discuss specific business building topics that small business owners can take action on.  http://www.blogtalkradio.com/the-small-biz-growth-show

Originally posted 2011-09-28 15:38:34. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

Are you trading time for money?  When you started your business, did you envision a day that your business would support you and run without you doing everything?  Depending on the business you have, you may or may not have considered the need for expansion at some point.  Solo-preneurs abound in every industry and usually have to carry the ball until revenues allow for hiring staff or moving into a bigger facility.  Unfortunately, many people at the solo-preneur level don’t plan their next moves and get stuck in an endless cycle of trading their time for money. 

If you always imaged building a business that was not dependent on ‘you doing it all’, there are a few things to think about now in order to prepare for expansion that supports more business without breaking the bank in increased costs of operation. 

1.                   Get clear about what your dream looks like:  

Unless your business is a temporary strategy for making money until your dream ‘job’ comes along, you need to think about where you want to take it.  Take some time to write out your vision for your business in as much detail as possible. Include the revenue you want, the kind of customers you want to work with, the organization you will need to support it and the rewards you will get to support your personal life for your efforts.  Give your vision to someone who knows you and ask them to critique it and if necessary, refine it. 

At this stage, don’t worry about how you will get there or the things you don’t know how to do to support it.  What’s important is to visualize the end game. If you do, you will strive for what you want.  If you base your vision on what you have and know today, you will most certainly fall short regardless of your effort. 

2.                  Check your mindset about your role in your future vision?

Most of us have a preconceived mental picture of our role in our business. In the beginning, we are the business.  We find the customers, we deliver the service or sell the product and we provide the support in between.  As the business shows signs of growing, our roles will change.  If employees are involved, contractors hired, or systems invested in, are you prepared to delegate more?  Are you willing to share what you know (training others) in order to serve more customers and keep the experience consistent or are you more comfortable keeping your system close to the vest.  In order to expand your business, your mindset will have to go from ‘primary doer’ to ‘owner of what the business provides’.  It’s a subtle difference but it’s absolutely essential to transition from ‘I am the business’ to ‘I own the business’. 

An excellent book that drives this concept home is ‘The E-Myth’ by Michael Gerber.

 3.                  Get real about the commitment required:

Building a business today has been tougher than any time in the past 3 decades.  And while many business owners are staying the course and making their companies work, it takes a level of effort and desire rarely displayed in a job working for someone else.  Giving yourself time to build your business correctly means understanding the financial commitment involved as well as the approach needed to build a sustainable operation.  Get help from people who can help you figure these areas out so your commitment is backed by confidence in your plan.  Many times, a simple business plan can provide the starting point.  Spend additional time projecting your costs and sales so you will be prepared to go the distance.  You will also want to spend time developing a growth strategy for your particular business so you can stay on track and focused.  

Your commitment will be easier to maintain if your vision is meaningful and your support is solid enough to last during the ups and downs of getting to a level of sustainability. 

4.                  Critique your business model for growth potential:

One of the biggest challenges any solo-preneur gets into is creating a business model that is not sustainable.  Think of any service business operated by one person who charges by the hour.  If this person wants to have a $500,000 per year business but charges $50/ hr. (market rate) for their service, there’s not enough time in the day, week or month to get there.  Ask yourself, can my business be duplicated effectively by people I hire so my revenue can grow beyond me?  Can I create other services that don’t rely on an hourly billing? 

If you have no way to replicate your efforts in a manner that’s consistent and affordable so you can take on more clients while ensuring the same, high quality experience, your business model may need an overhaul.  Be sure to consider the cost of hiring and training as well as any investment in equipment or facility necessary as a way to insure your fees will produce a profit that supports your ultimate revenue and profit goals. 

5.                  Set measurable benchmarks for each definable step:

This is where the ‘rubber meets the road’!  Expanding a business should be a planned event, not a solution for an immediate crisis.  I have several very competent, dedicated clients who found themselves with more business than they could service.  Not having a plan to expand their businesses, they simply stopped marketing because they did not want to disappoint new clients.  In all 3 cases, we laid out a set of definable points where new business support would overlap increased revenue and decided what would be done to migrate up to the next level.  Was it hard?  Yes, in a few cases, the risk of committing to a new employee or a larger office was stressful.  But following the plan that was designed to handle this transition is what got them all over the hurdle. 

If you plot out your various revenue streams (areas you repeatedly make money) and project increased revenues compared to the cost of services more customers, you will be able to spot the natural transitions and be prepared for them before they hit. 

6.                  Be willing to invest in yourself and your operation as your business get bigger:

Moving up to a greater level of business performance is one thing; staying there is another.  The most successful businesses today all found a way to automate various parts of their business so they could continue to focus on the future. Remember to automate your systems as well as your processes.  Training new employees can be a huge time drain if you don’t have your process well documented so your new person can quickly produce the same outcome.   

Likewise, invest in systems that will efficiently duplicate rote tasks or allow employees to handle a greater volume of work with minimal errors or disruptions.  If you invest carefully and in line with expected growth benchmarks, the challenges of incorporating new processes into your business’s routine will be much less disruptive. 

Finally, if you plan to growth with your business and take on the role of a business owner who oversees the entire company, look for support for yourself.  After all, planning not to do it all in the future still requires that you know how to get your organization to its final destination.   

More Business Growth Resources:

If you would like more information on various topics having to do with small business growth strategies, tune in to Steve’s weekly Radio Show on BlogTalk Radio- ‘The Small Biz Growth Show’.  Each Tuesday at 11:00am (PST) and Thursday at 1:00pm (PST), Steve and his co-host, Cash Miller, discuss specific business building topics that small business owners can take action on.  http://www.blogtalkradio.com/the-small-biz-growth-show  

If you need help to figure out where your best sources of growth are, sign up for my free business growth guidebook and learn where to look and what to do to improve your revenue, clients and overall health of your business.  http://www.growthsourcecoaching.com/business-growth-strategy-guidebook.html

Originally posted 2011-09-19 12:36:33. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

I was fortunate enough to listen in on a round table discuss between 6 multi-millionaires who had come together to share their secrets. Each had achieved success multiple times and had also suffered huge loses in the process. They were all successful enough to have reached their life’s goals but each man came to the meeting eager to learn new things from the others.

As each man tossed out a question for the others to reflect on, one man asked the group; “‘what makes a person truly successful”? The answer was surprising. Three of the men spoke about the people who had mentored them at an early age but 1 man said it was his ability to deal with risk. This guy had started or turned around 17 businesses in his career and he attributed his fortune in this way. He said, “at an early age, I always knew I would be successful. The thought of failure never crossed my mind. I just assumed that I would reach the goals I had set for myself”.

The other men seemed to understand his comments but one asked him to elaborate. The man went on to say that he assumed that becoming successful would include taking risks and that sometimes he would fall short or possibly lose what he had invested. But he never attributed a shortfall to himself. He only considered the poor result as something he needed to learn from before he continued on in pursuit of his goals.

Being successful in business means being able to take risks. The risk should be investigated and considered against the reward that you want, but in the end deciding to move forward with your plan is the only way to achieve anything. Letting risk stop you from taking action will guarantee that you do not get want you want.

If you have difficulty taking risks, try to understand why you are unable to do so. If it’s the result of prior bad results, what did you learn that can improve your decision making ability going forward?

There’s risk in everything we do. Deciding what risks to take is as important as learning from the choices that don’t work out. Regardless of what happens, resist the temptation to internalize the loss. Eventually, everyone makes a bad decision. It’s the lessons you learn from these events that set you up for the truly great wins.

Originally posted 2010-07-17 19:53:38. Republished by Blog Post Promoter