Business Strategy - Page 13

Last week you were challenged with the following, “So, decide what it is you want to harvest. It may be as simple as something like this: Over the next (enter time frame here) I expect to harvest (enter your goal here - number of sales, amount of revenue, new position(s) hired, another location opened, etc.).”

We went on to point out that in subsequent weeks, “we would look at the planning, planting, and cultivating needed to bring in the bumper harvest you expect.”
This week we will explore the planning.

It is "that" time of the year here in the Heartland of the United States, that time where tractors are being fired up and planters are being filled as they are readied to enter the fields to plant seeds. This doesn't just "happen," this is a task that is born out of a plan that begins with deciding what harvest the farmers want to have at the end of the season. The same should be true of all business owners; they should begin by asking the question, "What harvest do I expect this season?"

By beginning with the end in mind, it helps the farmer decide what preparations need to be made, what seeds need to be acquired, and what needs to happen throughout the growing season to cultivate the planned harvest. It is not as simple as only choosing what seed to plant, tossing it into the field and waiting - that is a great strategy to feed birds but not to harvest a bumper crop. The same is true for your business - what do you expect your harvest to be at the end of your season? What do you need to do to plan for the expected harvest? What seed needs to be planted? What needs to be done throughout the season to cultivate your crop? These are all questions that need to be addressed to help ensure that you harvest what you expected.

No matter how bad it seems at the time, your business will go on in the aftermath of a natural disaster. The office could be wrecked, the store destroyed, the inventory ruined, the computers gone but you will move past all of that because you had the foresight to put together essential information and tools that will get your business back on its feet. In addition to the disaster checklist, the following are three essentials to get your business back up and running after a natural disaster.

"It won't happen to me." Have you ever stopped to think about how many business owners have made that statement or thought something similar? The simple truth is we never think a natural disaster will affect us, even though we see proof nearly every week that disasters can, and do happen. The most current example of this is the flooding that happened in Boulder County, Colorado last week.

Checklist for preparing your business for an emergency or natural disaster.

September is National Preparedness Month - What do you need to make sure is in your preparedness kit to ensure that you are never taken by surprise?

Computers crash...it's a fact of business, but most small business owners are unprepared.  It's easy to think that it'll never happen to your business or that you already have a system in place to handle this. We know from experience that as much as we wish those two thoughts to be true, they are often not. So even if you have a system in place read these 3 tips and evaluate where your business is really at:

Systems are a means to an end. And that end is your vision. As we've discussed, some argue that systems are robotic and kill creative environments.  And they can be....if you let them. The simple truth is that as a business owner, you control how systems are written and operated which influences that end result.   If you don't want to have a robotic and uncreative environment, let your Entrepreneur personality kick into gear.

The E-Myth Revisited has a way of staying with readers long after they first picked up the book. Perhaps it's because business owners read it and immediately relate to the stories of Sarah. If you haven't read the E-Myth Revisited let us give you a biased opinion-you should! If you have read the E-Myth Revisited it is a good time to pull it out and be re-inspired. Here's a list of great topics in the book to check out.

"When you first start off trying to solve a problem, the first solutions you come up with are very complex, and most people stop there. But if you keep going, and live with the problem and peel more layers of the onion off, you can often times arrive at some very elegant and simple solutions. Most people just don't put in the time or energy to get there." - Steve Jobs

This week we ask you to set some time aside and ask yourself: "What problem in your business tends to keep reoccurring, because the solution is complex?"