 Success
Curve - 9 Success Principles to Accelerate Business
By Mara Osis of Amati Business GroupOwning a business
can be the ticket to maximum personal and professional fulfilment, or an
endless treadmill of frustration and exhaustion. Whether your business is
stuck in neutral, running out of steam, or hurtling out of control, you’ll
benefit from some insights that have consistently made a difference for my
clients. Implement one or more of these nine success principles to help you
get the business you’ve always dreamed of.
1) Are You Choosing Self-employment or a Business? - Decide which of these
lifestyles you are embracing. Self-employment means you are your own boss,
but it also means that, when you stop working, the money does, too.
Self-employment is often the pre-cursor to having a real business, but it
can also mean the trap of working long hours and doing everything yourself.
A true business relies on a team and systems to deliver the goods, and
allows you to remove yourself from the business without jeopardizing its
success.
2) Questions Are The Answer - When you’re in charge of your own business or
practice, you can easily fall into an “I know” attitude or believe that you
are responsible for having all the answers. That’s a belief that guarantees
burnout. Instead, adopt a “beginner’s mind”. For example, think how a
respected role model or someone from outside your industry would deal with
your situation. Ask yourself what assumptions you are making and what if
they’re wrong? Asking a better question leads to better decisions. Having
people around who will constructively question you is even better.
3) Put a $$ Value on Your Time - Many business owners work for McJob wages,
and they have a myriad of excuses for toiling long hours at menial tasks. As
the head of your business, you have an obligation to “do only what only you
can do”. Value your time at a rate at least 10 times what you pay your
highest-earning employee. If you’re in start-up mode, use the yearly draw
you’d like to take - then double it - to estimate the value of your time.
The priority list of a $500 per hour strategist is vastly different from a
$50 per hour administrator.
Also remember the 80/20 rule: avoid spending eighty per cent of your effort
in areas that return only 20 per cent of your results. Your focus is to grow
revenue, develop your team and systems, and build your brand.
4) Choose Your Customers and Your Niche - Identify your favorite customers
and what you value about them. Stop draining your energy by over-servicing
unsuitable customers, and divert your best resources to your A-list. Nurture
those A’s so they’ll refer more people like themselves to you.
Apply the same kind of thinking to your product or service. Don’t do it just
because you can. Focus on something you are excited about providing, and you
will tend to do it very well. Make sure your price/fee provides an adequate
return (see #5). This combination of focus, capability and value will
naturally attract your A-type customers.
5) Know Your KPI’s and Your Costs - Your Key Performance Indicators are
“magic numbers” that show you your business is on track. Your daily, weekly
or monthly financials are critical KPI’s, but so are things like employee
turnover, number of new inquiries, average dollar sale and cost by product
line or service. Find your unique KPI’s and be obsessive about tracking
them!
6) Surround Yourself with Greatness - Great successes are usually not solo
efforts, so assemble a team that supports your dreams. Recruit employees and
alliances that compliment your strengths and are in tune with your goals.
Expand your circle of support with professional advisors, mentors, coaches,
a board of directors or a peer advisory group. Gain support from family and
friends by enrolling them in your vision. You’ll get honest feedback, a
sounding board, objective advice, sincere support - and better results -
when you engage the help of others.
7) Work Hard on Yourself as well as on the Business - Your business
potential has only one limitation - you. So work as diligently on your
personal growth as you work at your business. Read a business or personal
development book every month, attend workshops and seminars, and subscribe
to on-line newsletters and business magazines.
Overcoming your fears, getting out of your comfort zone, continually
learning, and taking full ownership and responsibility for your situation
will ensure that you do what is best for you and the business. In other
words, BE before you to DO, in order to HAVE what you want.
8) Bring Forward Your Uniqueness - If you’re competing on price, it’s
because no one can tell you apart from the competition. Even in a crowded
industry, there is always opportunity to find your point of uniqueness. It
may be your location, people, speed of delivery, guarantee…or dozens of
other variables. If you’re unsure about what makes you stand out, engage an
objective third party to survey your customers.
9) Emotions Rule Purchase and Business Decisions - Harking back to the 80/20
rule, remember that 80 percent of any business decision is emotional. The
other 20 per cent is the logical justification. Define the emotional
component of your brand, whether you are marketing a product to a customer
or a career opportunity to a prospective team member. Will your customer
respond to promises of prestige and exclusivity, or comfort and safety? Does
an employee value excitement and variety, or reputation and stability?
The right mindset, together with these guiding principles, will help move
you and your business up the curve. Apply them consistently and watch good
things happen!
Mara Osis of Amati Business Group works with business owners &
professionals who want more life for themselves & their business! For your
FREE subscription to Mara’s e-newsletter, call 225.0906 or
mara@amatibusinessgroup.com
|
