Most people think that if you own your own business, you are super wealthy, everyone works for you, you are the big boss, and you call all the shots. The reality is usually the exact opposite. Business owners work a ton of hours, everyone else seems to get paid first, and nothing ever seems to get done on time – or the right way — unless they are at the wheel.
The disconnect occurs because most small companies are started by people who are very good at what their companies do, but they are not experts in business growth. They have not learned how to build and run a company that provides financial and personal freedom, and because they are responsible for everything that happens within their business, they buckle down and manage it all, hoping that enough dedication and hard work will create a different result.
How do entrepreneurs get stuck in this ‘work harder and longer’ trap?
- They try to learn through trial-and-error rather than tapping into the expertise of those who already know the tricks and tips for building a thriving, profitable business. Learning by trial-and-error is, by far, the best way to learn anything, but it is discouraging, time-consuming, and costly, and most entrepreneurs have a limited amount of time, money and energy to invest.
- We live in a world of information overload. More information exists today than ever before on every facet of business ownership. It is overwhelming, and because entrepreneurs are not sure what is valuable and what is not, often they do nothing. Or, they try to do a little bit of everything, but without a well-developed, centralized strategy to pull all of their efforts together, their hard work never generates the desired results.
- The owner has developed a solid strategy, but he wears so many hats and is pulled in so many directions that he never fully implements his plans, and nothing ever changes.
The keys to developing a company that provides financial and personal freedom are systemization, strategy, and focus.
Companies built on detailed, documented systems and protocols have an 85% success rate, while private, independently held companies that do not take the time to develop these critical operating tools have an 80% failure rate. Use systems to flip the failure rate.
A strategy is the development of a plan that looks beyond immediate results. It drives business success because it considers objectives, resources, timelines, and even obstacles, and then it outlines a series of inter-related actions. Without a strategy, businesses default to a shotgun approach when trying to reach goals. They try a lot of different things independently and hope something works. This approach, however, is disjointed, inefficient, and often ineffective.
The final key is developing a razor-sharp focus. Many small companies try to do too many things for too many people, and it hampers their success. In today’s business market, business owners face hyper-competition, and it is difficult – and expensive – to cut through all the clutter and noise. Businesses that focus on getting very good at one or two things can drive up profitability and even create marketplace domination.
Want to learn more? Register for our Grow Like a Pro report. This business growth tool helps increase revenues faster and improve profitability by focusing on the systems, strategy, and metrics that drive growth while avoiding ineffective, shotgun tactics.
Written by Danette Kohrs
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