Start with the End in Mind
Start with the End in Mind
Why then do so many small businesses fail? At some point in the life of their business, business owners will face challenges. They can range from raising capital, what they need to focus on now, when to hire staff, when & how to expand, infrastructure etc.
When in doubt, some business owners will stick to what they like to do, which doesn’t always equate to what’s best for the business. Most people have heard of needing balance in their lives.
What about balance in your business? Below is a list from the Wheel of Business by Noel Posus and Sarah Hue-Williams. They list the following areas worth looking at for businesses:
Vision, Mission, Objectives, Values and Strategy
Partnering and Networking
Marketing and Promotion
Service Delivery
Systems and Administration
Researching
Training, Feedback and Shared Knowledge
Continuous improvement – People, Process and Technology
Team Ownership
Social Responsibility
This list is useful to take a snapshot view of where your business is in each area. It doesn’t mean you need to give each area equal importance all the time. If you were to give each area a rating from 1-10 ( with 10 being the highest for your satisfaction level in each area), this can then be used as a barometer for which area you need to target at any given time.
You may find that you are totally focused on service delivery to the detriment of other areas. You may find that you are working in the business rather than on the business. For a business to grow you must work on the business.
For many this may be totally foreign to them as they may be hairdressers, lawyers, plumbers, personal trainers and sensational at their craft, but needing a little assistance with some of the other areas. For some it may be a time challenge or growth challenge.
Therefore it is always a good idea to start with the end in mind when starting a business. Take a look at your values, why you are in business, where you want to go with your business. Once you have these answers, they will act as a road map for all your activities and decisions.
It is also a great idea to know your own strengths and which areas, you could use some additional knowledge or support.
You might develop mastermind networks where you meet and share knowledge with others. You might bring in consultants to set up systems or you might use a business coach to aid your professional development and to keep you accountable. You might do all three and more! Just know where you are headed!
Start with the End in Mind - To learn more about this author, visit Sophie Robertson's Website.
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Many small business owners go into business to do something, they love and to have control over their management of family and work time. This is clearly evidenced by the increasing number of women going into business. The passion, drive, inspiration and motivation are there from the outset.
Why then do so many small businesses fail? At some point in the life of their business, business owners will face challenges. They can range from raising capital, what they need to focus on now, when to hire staff, when & how to expand, infrastructure etc.
When in doubt, some business owners will stick to what they like to do, which doesn’t always equate to what’s best for the business. Most people have heard of needing balance in their lives.
What about balance in your business? Below is a list from the Wheel of Business by Noel Posus and Sarah Hue-Williams. They list the following areas worth looking at for businesses:
Vision, Mission, Objectives, Values and Strategy
Partnering and Networking
Marketing and Promotion
Service Delivery
Systems and Administration
Researching
Training, Feedback and Shared Knowledge
Continuous improvement – People, Process and Technology
Team Ownership
Social Responsibility
This list is useful to take a snapshot view of where your business is in each area. It doesn’t mean you need to give each area equal importance all the time. If you were to give each area a rating from 1-10 ( with 10 being the highest for your satisfaction level in each area), this can then be used as a barometer for which area you need to target at any given time.
You may find that you are totally focused on service delivery to the detriment of other areas. You may find that you are working in the business rather than on the business. For a business to grow you must work on the business.
For many this may be totally foreign to them as they may be hairdressers, lawyers, plumbers, personal trainers and sensational at their craft, but needing a little assistance with some of the other areas. For some it may be a time challenge or growth challenge.
Therefore it is always a good idea to start with the end in mind when starting a business. Take a look at your values, why you are in business, where you want to go with your business. Once you have these answers, they will act as a road map for all your activities and decisions.
It is also a great idea to know your own strengths and which areas, you could use some additional knowledge or support.
You might develop mastermind networks where you meet and share knowledge with others. You might bring in consultants to set up systems or you might use a business coach to aid your professional development and to keep you accountable. You might do all three and more! Just know where you are headed!
Start with the End in Mind - To learn more about this author, visit Sophie Robertson's Website.
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Joe DagerJoe Dager is President of Business901, a progressive coaching company providing no-nonsense direction in areas such as Lean Six Sigma Marketing and organized referral marketing. What others say: In the past 20 years, Joe and I have collaborated on many difficult issues. Joe’s ability to combine his expertise with “out of the box” thinking is unsurpassed. He has always delivered quickly, cost effectively and with ingenuity. A brilliant mind that is always a pleasure to work with.” - James R. If you want to learn more about Business901, start a conversation with us. We can be found @ Web/Blog: Business901.com Web/Blog: FundingYourNonprofit.com LinkedIn Profile Follow me on Twitter - Visit Joe Dager's Website |
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Staging DivaDebra Gould, aka The Staging Diva®, is President of Six Elements Inc., an internationally recognized home staging company. Inspired by many requests from aspiring home stagers wanting to start similar businesses, Gould created the Staging Diva Home Staging Business Training Program. Gould has trained over 1000 Staging Diva Graduates worldwide to start staging businesses. Buying decorating and selling six of her own homes in four years lead to an interest in real estate staging which she turned into a career with the launch of sixelements.com in 2002. Since then she has staged hundreds of homes in addition to teaching home staging training. Gould is the author of several home staging resources including a series of popular ebooks made up of a Design Guide, Color Guide and Portfolio Guide. For more information about Debra Gould visit stagingdiva.com. - Visit Staging Diva's Website |
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Jeff FosterWebBizIdeas.com is a Minneapolis website design company founded to help people start an internet business by providing them with website, business, and internet resources that help foster the growth of successful online businesses and develop innovative Internet business ideas. We specialize in internet consulting & internet marketing. - Visit Jeff Foster's Website |
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Linda RichardsonLinda Richardson is the Founder and Executive Chairwoman of Richardson, a global sales training and performance improvement company. As a recognized leader in the industry, she has won the coveted Stevie Award for Lifetime Achievement in Sales Excellence and she was identified by Training Industry, Inc. as one of the “Top 20 Most Influential Training Professionals.” Ms. Richardson is credited with the movement to Consultative Selling and is the author of ten books on selling and sales management, including Sales Coaching — Making the Great Leap from Sales Manager to Sales Coach, and Stop Telling, Start Selling. She teaches sales and management at the Wharton Graduate School of the University of Pennsylvania and the Wharton Executive Development Center. Linda is a frequent speaker at industry and client conferences, has been published extensively in industry and training journals, and has been featured in numerous publications, including The Wall Street Journal, Forbes, Nation’s Business, Selling Power, Success, and The Conference Board Magazine. Learn more about Richardson's sales training and performance improvement solutions at http://www.richardson.com web - Visit Linda Richardson's Website |
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Stephanie RobeyStephanie Robey is President and CoFounder of Pivot Positive, LLC - an Internet marketing business focused on helping people start work at home ventures. Previously, she was employed at The Search Agency with over 20 years experience in graphic design and 10 years experience in online marketing. She was responsible for launching the Conversion Path Optimization (CPO) unit where she and her team have conducted hundreds of optimization tests for online companies across multiple verticals. She is a successful entrepreneur having started and sold 2 companies and remains on the board of directors of the third, PhotoSpin.com Stephanie began her career in the direct marketing realm creating and producing direct mail for many of the major cable television companies and directly attributes her understanding of Internet marketing to those early offline experiences. Stephanie is a graduate of San Diego State University with a BFA in Graphic Arts and also holds an Executive MBA from the Graziadio School of Business and Management at Pepperdine University. Read Steph's Blog Meet Steph and Dave Sign up for our Free 7-Day BootCamp: Self Employed & Rich - Visit Stephanie Robey's Website |
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