Building blocks or jigsaw puzzle?

The basic functions of your business – Marketing, Sales, Production, Accounting, Service (and whatever is specific to you) – Can you operate with just one or two of them?  In other words, if you had a few of them figured out, but one, let’s say Sales, or Production, or Marketing was missing, could your business do well?

They are not building blocks.  You can’t realize half your potential when you have half your company working good and half working poorly.

When you put all the key functions together, then your machine really starts to work.  The “hockey stick” starts to show on a chart of your results when you integrate great performance of all your key functions.

What key function is not working in your business?

Thinking Machine

Sometimes we are so busy collecting information that we forget the reason why we wanted it.  Don’t just use your mind as a warehouse for facts – do some thinking.

Put that information to good use; ponder it, mix it, combine it, develop it, detail it, and then put it into action.

Think – and see what you can come up with.

"Hidden talents"?

I would bet you that some of your employees have talents that could be quite valuable in helping you and your company, that are untapped.  Sometimes we hire people for a job and never ask them what else they can do.  How about telling them what you need help with and asking if anyone is interested in helping, or if they would have ideas or skills in that area?  How about asking them – “What else can you do well that I (we) don’t know about?”

Learn all about the human capital you already have on the team and use the talents available to you. People love to do things they are good at and are interested in!

The Leaders Growth

Draw a line on a chart representing your company’s most important metric over the years – annual sales, profitability, or another KPI.  Now draw a stick figure on the line each year. That’s you – the leader.

The performance of your organization represents the growth of the leader.

Who do you have to be this year to make the line bend the way you want it to?

Setting the table

Before your customers are put in a postion to make a buying decision, what do they know about you and your company?

When you build credibility BEFORE you present your product/service/solution, they hear you differently.

How do you build credibility and listening before trying to make a sale?

Reasons for NOT buying

Your prospects have their reasons for buying – that’s easy; this product/service will make my life better in this way or that.  If we create a stronger more compelling desire in the customer for buying, we can overcome some resistance.  But it’s their reasons for NOT buying that you have to understand just as well.

The secrets to your selling more often lie in the customers reasons for NOT buying.  What are they for your prospects? How do you uncover and address them?

Guts Required

Learning to lead a business and your team requires courage. Often you are handling things for the first time and you don’t really know what you’re doing.  

It takes guts to be willing to get out of your comfort zone and be bad at it, so that you can get the experience, learn, and be good at it one day.

Leading can be scary.  Get help from others, find good advice, and get out there and lead.

The Road to Success

You can tell when you are on it – it’s uphill all the way!

If you give up, it’s over.  Don’t give up.

Adjust your actions to get better results.

Hang in there!

Accepting large responsibilities

Life is either the acceptance of responsibilities or their evasion. When you start/own a business, those responsibilities go up exponentially compared to the average citizen.  

Could a business owner evade their responsibilities?  It happens all the time – by abdication, ignorance, or poor management – and they pay a price for it.

Don’t pretend the problems you are hoping will go away aren’t there.  Face them, accept them, take care of them, and you can keep moving forward.

What do you have to face today?

The Price of Success

Success does demand hard work.  If it was easy everyone would do it and it wouldn’t be called success.  But 2X or 3X the success you have now does not demand that you work two or three times as hard, or two or three times as many hours as you are working now.

Success demands that you be willing to give up who you thought you were in favor of being someone else – the kind of person who achieves 2X or 3X the results you are getting now.

You can’t be you, and another person at the same time.  You have to give up the old you to be the new one.

Be the new you.