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Three Things to Help You Succeed in Business
Written by: Brian MoranArticle Overview: Random Thoughts on Life and Entrepreneurship
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Three Things to Help You Succeed in Business
(1) A Strategic Goal; (2) An Operational Plan; (3) Focus
“All great battles are won before the first shot is fired.”
“People don’t plan to fail; they simply fail to plan.”
How many times have we heard quotes like those above? Probably the same number of times we failed at something. There is always someone, surveying the wreckage that used to be whatever it was we were doing, hitting us with one of those two by fours of wisdom. The funny thing is they’re usually right.
Most businesses failures are caused by a combination of three things: No strategic goal, no operational plan and/or no focus. I’m not saying that if we had these three items in our bag of tricks, we would never fail. But, our win-loss percentage would certainly move in the right direction.
In order to prevent our businesses from failing, the first step we need to take is to define the terms above. A strategic goal is simply the finish line. It’s where we want to be at the end of the race. A strategic goal is specific and measurable. An operational plan is the map we create for ourselves to get from start to finish. The more intricate and specific the map, the better our chances are of finishing the race in the allotted time. Focus is keeping both eyes on the road until we need to reference our map. Then we pull over to make sure we’re still headed in the right direction.
It sounds simple enough, doesn’t it? We want to go from New York to Chicago. We map out the best route, check our supplies, get in the car and hit the open road. So how come so many people get so lost so often? We forget where we’re going. We lose our maps. We don’t bring enough supplies. We don’t foresee potholes or detours in the road ahead. We get lost, get worried, give up and go home.
And we do the same thing in business. We create annual budgets that, once they are completed, get shoved into a filing cabinet until the following year when it’s budget time again. We can’t explain where the new business is coming from or where the old business went. At some point, when the stuff hits the fan, we panic and make decisions that could ultimately lead us to closing our doors for good.
If this sounds like your company, the good news is that you can fundamentally change the way you approach business…and you can do it starting today! Set strategic, measurable goals for your company (e.g. $5 million in revenue in 2007). Then put together your operational plan (how you plan to get from today’s sales to $5 million). Your operational plan should be as detailed as possible (by rep, office, new business vs. repeat business, specific accounts, etc.).
Once you have the plan in place, refer to it on a regular basis (e.g. weekly, monthly). Why? Because the plan will most likely change so much from start to finish that you won’t recognize it in December as the plan you started with in January. Stay focused on the plan but keep your eyes on the road. Accounts that you thought were sold suddenly go away. Other business comes in but not at the level you expected. These are the “potholes” and “detours” that you didn’t have on your original map. It might require finding new business. It might mean increasing revenue from existing clients. If you know you’ve hit a pothole, you can react to it.
Sometimes it’s not a pothole. It’s bigger. Much bigger and it dramatically changes your business. Natural disasters, death of a business partner or a major financial loss is something that no one can predict, but it is something we all need to consider. On our web site, we have a “must-read” article called Flirting with Disaster. Read it today and incorporate the suggestions into your business tomorrow. Then, you will be ready for all the unexpected twists and turns on your road to success!
Article Tags: best route, budget time, budgets, eyes on the road, filing cabinet, finish line, funny thing, great battles, loss percentage, map, maps, new business, operational plan, potholes, quotes, right direction, time focus, wisdom, wreckage
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About the Author: Brian Moran RSS for Brian's articles - Visit Brian's website Brian Moran is the Founder and President of Moran Media Group (MMG), one of the largest providers of relevant and practical information to business owners, helping them start, manage and grow their companies. MMG currently publishes three national magazines for the small-to-midsize business market, including: Small Business Success, Urban Success and Winning Bids. In addition to the magazines, Moran Media Group partners with many of the leading small business organizations to host workshops, seminars and national conferences aimed at the various segments of small business. In 2007, Moran Media Group launched SmallBusinessEdge.com, a web site dedicated to maintaining the ongoing dialogue between Moran Media Group, its partners and business owners. Click here to visit Brian's website Words of Inspiration Are You Still In the Game Guidelines for the 2009 Class of Entrepreneurs The Wit Wisdom of Al Maguire Play Ball |
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