As business owners, we tend to do allot!  During the start-up phase it’s called ‘boot strapping’ and it is essential if resources are tight.  Once established, the need to do it all stems from the feeling that no one else can do it as well.  Likewise, a general lack of planning and discipline can have you holding the ‘task bag’ more often than you’d like.  Suffice it to say, most business owners would think twice about having their owner companies if they realized how difficult it can be to get the important things done. 

Business is a continuum.  Time waits for no one and you are either moving forward or you are losing ground.  In either case, a lack of focus can inhibit one and accelerate the other.  It’s not a matter of having more time to get everything done; it’s a matter of doing the right things at the right time.  If focus has been a battle for you, here are six of the most common reasons why business owners can’t stay focused and what to do so you can get the kind of results you want.  

1.                   Lack of a Clear Vision: 

Neurologically, focus is a contest between your conscious and your subconscious minds. The conscious mind is in charge of communications, logic and decision making. It controls about 6% of your total brain activity.  The subconscious, on the other hand, controls all of your bodily functions, your feelings, emotions, thoughts, behaviors and habits which make up the remaining 94% of your brain.  Everything you have experienced in your life is stored in your subconscious just waiting to be recalled as a recognizable experience shows up. 

For this reason, having a clear, complete vision of what you want your business to be is essential to keeping your mind focused on activities that lead to that end result.  If you do not have a vision statement with all the relevant specifics (time frames, revenue levels, profits, brand, identity, facility and staff needs and size of client base, etc) you are allowing your focus to be swayed by a multitude of distractions and false opportunities.  Once you write out your vision, create a bulleted list in large letters and display it everywhere you work.  Seeing it on regular basis will train your subconscious to start looking for things that will support good focus habits. 

2.                  ‘Screaming Baby’ Syndrome- A Constant State of Overwhelm: 

Overwhelm stems from 2 things; not knowing what to do and having too many things demanding your attention.  It’s one of the most arresting feelings I know of and if left unchecked, it can paralyze you from making any decisions or taking any action at all! 

Having a clear vision will at least give you a sense of direction but until you become confident in what you need to do and eliminate the ‘screaming babes’ from your daily routine, not a lot is likely to improve.  Start by recognizing that you can’t do it all.  Multitasking has its benefits but in business it’s generally unproductive in the end. 

Get help from someone outside your business who can help you objectively determine which tasks are priorities and which ones can wait.  Consider hiring people for the most important areas requiring special knowledge or skills.  Look for people in your surroundings that might be willing to barter services if finances are tight.  You can also visit your local college to see what intern programs are available.  You might have to pay something for their time but most college students are more interested in getting meaningful experience.  Once you have identified the sources of your overwhelm and engages people/ services to handle them, you will notice a tremendous change in your level of focus. 

3.                The Debilitating Effects of Environmental Clutter: 

Most of what we react to are things we see or hear.  A work environment that is unorganized or loaded with clutter can be an ongoing reminder that things are out of control.  Stop telling yourself, ‘I know where everything is’.  The moment you see something that you tossed aside a week ago, the tendency to deal with it happens quickly, pulling you off task and in many cases, dropping the work you intended to finish. 

The only cure for clutter and disorganization is to strip the environment (your office, your car, etc) of everything and start fresh.  The reason this is needed is so your mind understands that the old ways have come to an end.  Start by forming 3 piles; things that most be urgent, items that can be addressed in 30 days and everything else.  Then toss the ‘everything else’ pile.  Fact is, if it ends up being important, it will come back to you but for now eliminating as much volume as possible is critical to organizing the rest.  If you don’t think you can do this, bring someone in whom specializing in organization.  Believe me; the cost will be worth it.  In the end, eliminating the clutter and organizing the rest will help you stay focused on the important plans and projects. 

4.                   The Lure of Shiny Objects:  

Ever notice how you can get charged up over a new idea?  One minute you are hard at work, the next you have a brain storm that is so appealing you immediately abandon your work and begin a new direction.  I call this ‘the lure of shiny objects’ and it’s a huge problem for many entrepreneurs.  It’s caused by engaging in mindless activities which allows your brain to drift.  At this point, you become susceptible to other influences which manifest thoughts in your subconscious.  Without warning, out pops a latent great idea.  Now you immediately shift gears and start working on your new idea leaving your prior endeavor for another day.  Trouble is this new idea will probably be replaced several times during the week with other great ideas.  Bottom line- nothing ever advances past the initial thought stage.  

Now, the shiny object interruptions don’t seem to happen when the task in front of you is meaningful and vital to the growth of your company (new revenue, new client service, next phase of marketing plan, etc).  The shiny objects usually appear when we’re doing rote, menial tasks that put our minds on autopilot.  I have colleagues for which this phenomenon is so powerful, they literally go through withdrawals trying to fight the lure and stay on task. 

Use this technique to wean yourself off the endless merry-go-round of chasing shiny objects.  Jot down the idea.  Put the note in a folder marked ‘Great Ideas’.  Place the folder in a draw and go back to the task that is directly connected to your vision and growth plan. 

5.                   Making the Mistake of not Delegating:  

Delegation is a skill that can be learned.  Effective delegating is an art that requires practice and involves foresight, communications, planning and a defined level of expected results.  If you have employees in your business, ask yourself two questions before taking on a task that is not supporting primary goals:  1). Who can I get to do this? and 2). If no one knows how to do this, who can I train to do this?   

The more routine tasks and responsibilities you can delegate, the more your focus will stay on things that get you to your goals.  If manpower is an issue, look for outsourcing options.  There will be an initial cost involved but the benefits of staying above the minutia and connected to your growth objectives will more than pay for the it. 

Business owners are a proud bunch by nature and we like to think no one can do it better than us!  The daily mantra usually is- by the time I explain it to someone else I could do it myself.  Break this habit.  There is no better feeling than having things get done by others while you attend to the important stuff. 

6.                   No Awareness of Boundaries: 

I suffered from this early on and it caused more problems than just focus!  Maintaining a healthy level of focus requires being uninterrupted at certain times.  It also means knowing when to put work down and focus on family, relationships, hobbies, charity work, whatever re-energizes you. 

If your employees know that during certain times, you are not to be disturbed, they will learn to operate and make decisions without coming to you all the time.  Likewise, your customer’s will accept a reasonable amount of time to receive return calls from you.  Planning to tackle an important task and then having your time repeatedly interrupted by questions and phone calls will grind your focus down to a tiny nub. 

Set boundaries that are reasonable for your business and stay consistent with them and you will love what you get done with the uninterrupted time. 

Being focused enough to grow your business at the pace you want and move in the direction that reaches your ultimate vision is the best way to use two of your most valuable resources- your time and your sanity!

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 2011-09-08 18:03:07. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

If you own a small business, networking should be a key component of your overall marketing strategy. Networking is the best way to build relationships with people in your community at a personal level. It’s the only way to convey who you are in real life; something that will earn a tremendous amount of trust, confidence and credibility if done properly.

Networking can be very intimidating for some business owners. It requires being able to walk into rooms full of people you don’t know and feel comfort approaching these folks with a welcoming smile and an engaging hand shake. It also takes time and some money to participate in the myriad of events, socials, grand-openings, workshops, presentations and lunches that are available each week to business owners who are already working long hours just to run the businesses they have.

Whether you are a networking maven, someone who doesn’t think it will generate business or someone who is terrified of the prospect of going to these functions, it’s important to recognize that marketing strategies have shifted from traditional media and relentless advertising to more social interaction. For the majority of businesses trying to create a brand or a market presence, social interaction is the fastest way to get the word out about `who’ you are and `what’ you do.

As a small business advisor, the most common complaint I hear about networking is the low payout for the time and money invested. Make no mistake, networking can be a time-consuming endeavor and if not approached with a plan, can be reduced to eating too much fatty food and having coffee with people you’ll never see again. So how do you make the most from your networking efforts?

If you’ve had hit-and-miss results with networking, here are some tips you can use to create a strategy to get greater results from your networking efforts:

1. Decide what you want from networking:
Expectations play a huge role in the results you get from working the room. Decide whether you are looking for customers or wanting to make connections with potential referral partners. Referral partners are business owners who focus on similar customer targets.

Originally posted 2009-09-18 11:15:00. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

In BizTip #28 I talk about being able to identify your niche.  Your niche is the specific area of the overall business category you serve that you do particularly well.  It’s the one area that you specialize in and that your best customers know you for.  Every business category has smaller segments that customers are looking for.  It could be an additional service you provide becasue you know your customers appreciate it. 

As a small business advisor for OneCoach, we have a dentist that serves a community of busy business executives.  When he realized that the parents were missing their childrens dental appointments due to troubles with scheduling, he initiated a partnership with a limo driver to pick up and return the children to their homes.  Since the limo drive had down-time during the day, it worked for him as well.  Ultimately, the parents were thrilled to be able to have their children’s dental appointments kept and told their friends what the dentist was doing.

So, how do you identify your niche?  Here are few places to get started:

1.  Think about what your customers really appreciate about your product or service?  You might even want to have someone contat a few and ask them.  It only takes one or two specific areas for you to understand what is important to them.

2.  Think about other ‘problem areas’ your customers or potential customers are having.  Is there a solution that you can provide?

3.  Do a quick inspection of your competition to see what things they promote as their ‘claim to fame’.  Make sure you don’t follow these areas unless you feel you can do them better and be more effective at advertising them.

4.  As you serve your existing customers, ask them if they know anyone who is looking for (someone like you) that provides that specific service or approach to doing things. 

Here is why niche marketing works.  People do not remember generalities, they remember specifics.  They also do not remember things that do not touch them personally.  They remember things that they feel have value to them. 

Your focus on a very specific area that highlights the benefits they like and see value in, will casue them to share their experience with others like them.  You will actually grow your business by touching less people.

Niche marketing is not difficult but it can be challenging to figure out.  Rather than put to the side while you work on other non-revenue producing activities, get help from an experienced business coach who can help you figure out where your niche is.

The riches are in the niches.  Start identifying your niche today.

Originally posted 2010-02-22 10:56:02. Republished by Blog Post Promoter