One of the things that I admire about the way that President Obama does things is the way that he thinks. Now, put aside your partisan hat for a moment and think about this and how it applies to your business…please.
Small Business Goals
One of the things that is very difficult for new business owners to do is imagine how their business will look when it’s “cooked.” I’m not sure if this is because they are afraid they will be stuck with a vision, or that it might be the wrong one, but I know that many of my clients struggle with this concept. It’s similar to asking them to define a niche. We get so afraid that we will miss something that we are like children who won’t go to bed because there’s too much going on and they want to be part of it all.
But trying to be everything to everyone isn’t sustainable. Big companies that are now sloughing divisions are realizing that again. This happens every time that there is a resession.
Next time Mr. Obama speaks, listen to the words behind the words. If you listen carefully, you will hear that he has a vision of how the country should be. Now, you may or may not agree with him. That’s not important. What is important that you understand that he has an idea in mind and everything he does is directed towards achieving that vision.
Is the same true with your business?
Flip-flopping in Business
I spoke with a client today who’s been going back and forth with her partner for several months about how her business should look. As a result, they’ve been rather “stuck” for these months. The recession isn’t helping them, as they have had to reduce expenses and put more energy into selling because of the shifting economic sand.
I see a lot of people do this. They go in one direction and become impatient waiting for results. Then they change direction and quickly become impatient with those lack of results. A third direction is tried and then a fourth and finally they are back to where they started.
Dr. Wayne Dyer talks about developing patience for the long term. Just like you don’t dig up a tomato seed the day after you planted it to see if it’s germinated, you need to give business strategies time to succeed. It’s important not to become stuck in a particular strategy that isn’t working. But you need to give something time to grow and work. This is particularly true with relationship development that is so important to consistent sales and long term business growth.
Your Small Business Plan
Take time to create a vision for how you want your business to look when it is thriving. Measure everything you do against that vision. Does it support it or denegrate it?
Develop strategies to make that vision a reality….then give them long enough to yield a tomato!
