A Manifesto For Start Ups and Business Who Keep Behaving Like Start Ups
Just a quick thought for the day. I had run across this manifesto a couple of months ago but I couldn’t remember who had done it. It turns out it is from entrepreneur Steve Blank. I don’t work with a lot of start ups but I do work with a lot of business who, after several years of business, still behave like they are a start up without the testing and analysis that allows them to move forward. At some point your business has to grow up. Find what your business can excel in, find out who loves what you do and start selling to them. No matter what
Who Says Money Isn’t Everything? Losers.
Let me get one thing out of the way right up front. You most likely got into business because you have a big vision that will ultimately create a lot of value for people. You probably didn’t start your business for the sole purpose of making money. I don’t think there is anything wrong with that but if you think that money isn’t everything and you run a business, be careful what you wish for. Dollars Follow Value The primary function of your business is to create value for the public through producing a good or service that people want/need. Primary function 1a is to make money. As a good
Making Planning Easy- Podcast
Sometimes the best things for us are the hardest things to engage in and do. Put planning at the top of that list. Planning doesn’t need to be seen as a difficult task for your business. In fact, when done right, planning will make your life easier in four different ways. 1. You can’t do it all yourself. When you get good at planning, you realize that you need help and that there are some things in your business that you shouldn’t be doing. Rather than focus on what you shouldn’t be doing, it’s better to look at your top five most important activities. When you know what you
The Team That Plans Together, Builds Together
Your busier than ever, working harder than ever. Your business has been trending this way for some time which seems good. One thing that you have noticed is that you can only do so much. For goodness sake,”you are just one person!” At least, that’s your story. The big question is why isn’t business growing at the same level as your to-do list? The main reason is that you have become a rugged individualist and you don’t even realize it. Instead of getting the freedom and upward potential that your business can offer, the reality is that you are overworked and overwhelmed. There is a better way. That better way
Taking Your High Level Vision To Ground Level Action
I am going to go out on a limb here and say that entrepreneurs don’t have a problem coming up with a big dream or vision. It’s what happens next that trips business owners up. How do you take your high level vision and turn it into ground level action? Having a vision, a why as well as values is an important first step to creating projects and starting businesses. For visionary business owners who already think high level, this is the easy part. However, when you start asking the question of what needs to be done and how they are to be done, this is where things start to
Make A Simple Plan For Your Business With Three Questions
If you’re reading this, you may not be much of a planner. In fact, for most people setting plans and goals sucks. So with that being said, thanks for reading this far. Planning can be difficult as you sit and try and figure out what the right goals are and not make those goals feel arbitrary. For you haters of planning, here are three simple questions to get you started. Answer these and you are well on your way to having a plan that will make your year better. These questions are questions that we ask ourselves and our clients frequently. It’s also part of our Alignment Blueprint that we
Success This Year Starts At The Core Of Your Business
As another year comes to a close, this is the time where we start to reflect on the past year. What went great. What didn’t go so great. Where we would like to improve. We then put together a plan or a set of resolutions on how next year will be different. Before you finalize your plans for world domination, I have one piece of advice, don’t ignore the core of your business. What’s the core of your business? The core of your business consists of why you exist, where you are going and what your business values. You may know the core of your business by another set of
Your Business Is Simple, You Are Another Story
Starting something that is new is always a challenge. There are a lot of variables that go into a new business, new project or a new job. If you aren’t careful, uncertainty can take over and ensure that you never hit the ground running. It all starts with the following statement. “I don’t even know where to start.” Have you ever made that statement? It usually comes after you have taken stock of all that needs to completed in a project or in your business. The solution for most? Don’t do anything. Usually Our Problems Are Much Simpler To Solve Than We Think I learned a lesson about making the
What’s Your Client’s Story?
One of the tools that is so powerful in engaging a tribe in your business and what it has to offer is by telling your story and telling it in an authentic manner. Getting too focused on your story means that you aren’t taking enough time to think about your end user’s story. It’s not because we’re selfish it’s that there are times in our business when we get really focused on ourselves. Chip and Dan Heath talked about the “Curse of Knowledge” in their book about crafting a message that sticks with people. The idea is that we get so wrapped up into what we know and what we
What Do You Stand For?
What do you stand for? When was the last time you asked yourself that question? That question is relevant for you, your business or any other organization you are involved in. When I talk about standing for something, I am talking about taking a stand but what I am really talking about is clarity. Having clarity, particularly as a new business owner, is critical. Without clarity you lack the ability to properly position the way that you create value for the world and solve problems. One asset that clarity gives you is the ability to differentiate yourself. Whether you are a business owner or an employee of a company, you
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