How to be the Best - It's easier than you think

I had a boss who once told me that in order to be extraordinary in this business, I had to be just a little bit better than pretty good, because the business world is filled with a lot of mediocre players. His advice was simple: do what you say you're going to do, return phone calls/e-mails promptly, thank customers for their business, treat people fairly, smile, and then, when you think you've done everything you can, do a little bit more. Oh, he had other advice too, such as "get to work before the boss and stay a little bit longer than he does", and of course, my personal favorite, "don't cr*p where you eat." And the truth is, to be the best in any business takes adherence to these principles, but you also need to know a little bit about accounting and finance and marketing and sales and psychology and a million other things. Running a successful business cannot be reduced to a handful of well-worn phrases.

However, these phrases can certainly provide a framework from which you build a successful business. It sounds so simple, so "business 101". And yet, how many times a day do you find yourself wondering, why is my business not doing better?

Well, times are tough, according to the national news media. So, blame it on the recession, blame it on your customers (who can't manage their business), blame it on Bush/McCain/Obama, blame it on your neighbors, maybe it's China's fault. But before you place the blame elsewhere, look inward and ask yourself, "Have I done everything I can today to increase or improve my business?"

• Before you leave work tonight, make one more phone call.
• Send a handwritten note to someone.
• Thank an employee for a job well done.
• Thank a customer for a recent order.
• Start a big project, so when you get in the next day, you can build on the momentum of the night before.
• Review your goals on a regular basis and take a positive action on each of them.
• Read a business magazine.
• Share the successes of the day with someone else.
  
  There are many ways to excel in the business world. Most of us measure success in financial terms. Notice that none of the suggestions in the previous paragraph have anything to do with selling or making money. But I promise you, if you begin to think daily about what you've done to increase or improve your business, and learn to act on them, your financial success will be assured.

Strategic Plan for Success in 2008

Here we are, it's early August. For some, it feels like this year can't end soon enough. Others are so busy they can't believe it's August already. Before we know it, it will be 4th Quarter, 2008 and we'll all be planning for 2009.

It's time we take a look at the months that have passed, and plan for the remaining portion of 2008. If you haven't reviewed your plan since you wrote it, it's time to pull it out, review it, and start checking your successes and failures against what you thought you could make happen.

Evaluate what worked and what has not. Look at those activities that have brought you PROFIT, not just income. This economy is not going to turn around anytime soon, so spend your time wisely. Know what actions impact your bottom line.

Review your goals. Have they changed since the first of the year? Have any been accomplished? Is it time to modify what you have or add new ones?

Be specific. Review the details of each goal, especially any that have numbers associated. These are easy to track and evaluate. Don't just say you want to increase your sales by 5%. List each product or service you provide, and then set specific goals by number of customers, income, types of products, etc.

Develop steps to accomplish each goal. You probably did this when you wrote your initial plan. Again, it's time to evaluate the actions you've taken and the results you've experienced. What should you modify?

Know your costs. Make sure you understand any costs involved with reaching each goal. For instance, you want to introduce a new service to your customers and your goal is to have $635,000 in sales by March, 2009. Budget for advertising, travel, sales meetings, etc. Anything you'll have to do to achieve your goal will more than likely have a cost involved. Budget it.

Estimate your time frame. Maybe at the beginning of this year you had hoped to launch 3 new products, but you've only gotten 2 out to your customers. You did not take enough time to estimate the time you'd need. This is important because it can also impact the number of people working on a project.

Estimate people. Are you going to be responsible for everything? Or are there projects you can delegate or out-source? All these can be "hidden" costs.

Prioritize. You know what you have to do to survive. Make sure those action items get accomplished. You know what you have to do to thrive. They should be your secondary level. You know what has the best chance of success. This should be level three. Realize that it's unlikely you'll get all your goals accomplished. It's smarter to get the important ones completed, than to get all of them partly completed.

Write an action plan. This is your daily guideline to getting things done. Schedule the time during the day, week or month when you will work on something. Then, do it on time and get it done.

Last item: Reality Check

Can these goals be met with you and your current team? Discuss the plan with your team, get their commitment, and you're back on track to achieving your goals and being successful in 2008!

Four Cornerstones of Success

Jack Bennett, retired Head Basketball Coach of the University of Wisconsin at Stevens Pt. recently made several insightful remarks regarding success at the ETI ToolTech in Carefree, AZ.

In business, as in sports and life, we deal with two things:
Prosperity, success, good times. This is when we need to remember where we came from and stay level-headed. If you win, stay humble.
But we must also deal with failure and disappointment. Then you must maintain your ability to stay focused and confident. It is character that is most important and the values you choose to live by. If you lose, don't lose heart.

His four cornerstones of success are:
1 - Humility: know who you are, know what your are good at and what you're not so good at. Remember Paul's words in his letter to the Corinthians, "when I am weak, then I am strong". Learn from mistakes.
2 - Passion - Someone who genuinely loves what they are doing will stick with it through good and bad. Passion is in short supply in some instances around this business.
3 - Perseverance - This is a close cousin to Passion. Perseverance is the ability to be resilient, to be knocked down 7 times and get up 8. Success is not always about pure ability and talent. Sometimes it's about being good from the neck up. Don't quit when the going gets tough.
4 - Courage: Do what's right, not necessarily what's popular. Leaders inspire because of their principles. Do what's right and what's best. Make everyone around you better.

His presentation was brief, but his words are long-lasting. Hope they inspire you to be a better person, and a greater success in whatever you endeavor.