2005 is just around the corner. What are some of the obstacles that stop business owners from reaching their Biggest Vision for their business each year? There are four that come up over and over with my business owner clients. They are:
1. thinking small
2. marketing issues
3. time management issues
4. not enough money
Just like many success blocks, these are often fear based. Let's look at them one at a time.
1. I've had clients who felt so elated each time they made a sale that they took time to just "float" for a day or two afterward. Rewarding yourself after you've closed a big deal is a great idea; thinking you've got it made is not. If you have a Big Vision for reaching your ideal business and life goals and a roadmap to get there, it must include clear bottom line profit goals for the year and for each quarter. Each sale represents just a step toward this goal. By keeping the big picture in mind, you can feel satisfied and even more motivated to go out the next day and take another step toward your goal. Business owners who think small tend to skip setting clear sales and profit goals. Without these goals, you can have lots of sales and barely break even, because you haven't looked carefully at profit margins and pricing. Now don't tell me you just don't have time for this kind of planning. To Think Big you need to Plan Big. If you're feeling uncomfortable with this step, some inner focus work and self-assessment may be needed to uncover what's causing you to hold back so you can breakthrough it.
2. We're all skilled at what we do or we wouldn't start a business, but marketing is a specific skill set that requires highly creative, "out of the box" thinking. Marketing is not a haphazard activity. If you own a business and aren't getting results from your marketing, a wealth of affordable help is available. You don't need to have a big company marketing budget to implement a profit producing plan. But you do need to have a reasonable budget and a detailed, focused marketing strategy and plan. Again, please don't skip this step! Anyone who tells you that you can market your business without spending a dime is probably from another planet!
3. With today's frenetic pace, we all suffer from struggles with time management. More and more it requires laser-like focus on priorities to use our time wisely. Time management is also about outsourcing tasks that are not profit producing for us, or are in areas where we are weak. Although we may not be able to do this from Day One, we can plan it as part of our Big Vision Roadmap. Business owners who like to micro-manage and are afraid to give up some control are doomed to stay small and overworked. There are dynamic self sustaining systems that you can put in place which will assure that your outsourced tasks are completed properly. This is key. I can't stress enough how important it is to schedule time to quiet your mind as well, and to reflect and plan. This is how you'll be able to refresh and renew and when you'll have access to some of your best ideas. In addition, visualize daily in detail how you'll look, feel and act when you reach your goal. It's very powerful.
4. Finally, even if you're a start-up, running a business without a business building budget is simply not possible. Do big companies operate without a well planned budget? Sit down right now and make a simple plan, answering such basic questions as:
· In the next 12 months, what are your projected sales?
· How will you generate these sales?
· What percentage of gross sales will you spend on marketing, accounting, consultants, new product development, employees, insurance, benefits, administrative help, etc?
· What will it cost you to generate each sale?
· Are your products and services priced right?
· What's your profit margin on each sale?
· Can you increase your profit margin?
· Can you reduce expenses?
· Assign a budget to each expense area of your business.
· How will you use this information to project you toward your goals?
If you're just starting your business and have no current income you're going to need to borrow enough money to do all you can to get your business off the ground, doing a business plan will help you figure out how much you'll need. If you're already up and running, look at the past year to help you predict what you'll need next year, but remember to Think Big. Don't short change yourself.
Just following these simple suggestions can result in a remarkable leap forward for your business!
Copyright 2004, Janis Pettit
Janis Pettit, Team Member of Solo-E (http://www.solo-e.com) and President of SmarTrack (http://www.smartrack.net), that specializes in improving profit and productivity through small business marketing and growth consulting, business coaching, workshops and tele-classes. As well as owning 4 successful businesses over the last 18 years, Janis hosted her own TV business talk show. Her articles have been published locally and internationally.
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