In our last few blogs we have talked about whether or not your business is saleable and some ideas to help improve that. Here are some numbers that would scare you:
With only 10% of strategies being executed, business owners who want to work on their business are clearly running out of time somewhere.
So let’s talk about the ‘Three Legged Stool’ metaphor and how this analogy can represent your business: Getting the work, doing the work and collecting the money, or in other words…
Sales & Marketing, Production and Finance.
If any one leg is out of balance the whole business can topple, just like a stool that’s got three uneven legs.
Therefore, to run your business successfully you must focus on all three things together.
I know from my experience of working with business owners that most of us get caught up in doing what we are good at or like, but are putting off the things we don’t do well or don’t like. Worst case scenario, some things don’t get done at all.
How are you doing?
Do you know what your strengths and weaknesses are?
Do you know where you spend most of your time and what your biggest time wasters are?
To get a good handle on this you can look at your business using this ‘Three Legged Stool’ analogy (Sales & Marketing, Production, and Finance).
Start by listing the strengths and weakness that you think you have in each category.
The next thing you need to do is keep a time sheet for a month. Make sure you list exactly what you spend your time on.
When you have both types of data, you can start devising a plan to delegate those tasks that will free up some time for you to work ON your business, so you can start to implement growth strategies or introduce efficiencies to save costs.
Create a detailed action plan with steps you need to take before you can delegate a particular task or job area. This may include writing up a position description for a new staff member or contractor, documenting related processes and devise a system that anyone can follow.
Once you know what you need doing and how you want it done, you can start looking for the right help.
Working ON your business is such an important aspect for any business owner, but what you need is time. Without it, your business can easily get stuck in a rut, lose touch with your customers or miss many development opportunities to increase your bottom line.
I hope you’ll start thinking about this now and taking some action, as imperfect as it may be.
Always remember, Rome wasn’t built in a day.
As long as you’ve got a vision and a plan you can stick to, you’ll move your business forward and will reap the rewards.
If you are stuck for tools or templates to do this, just contact our office on 07 3333 2415 and we can help you out.
If you have any questions on how to increase your profits or prepare your business for sale, feel free to arrange a FREE No-Obligation Meeting with me.
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We’re happy to help you with any questions on how you could increase your profitability. If you have any questions on effective ways to create a Business Exit Strategy.
Copyright © 2017 Robert Bauman.
Photo by Frank Park on Unsplash