Strategy
GROWING COMPANIES BEYOND SURVIVAL
Over the past few years the pressure on companies to perform to stay ahead of competition and keep their doors open, has changed the corporate and business arena dramatically.
Many willingly or forcefully left formal corporate environments with the intention of acting on life-long dreams to be their own boss, run their own businesses and change the world or wanting to earn more than what their salary paid them. Most of these individuals walked onto a new course with the one single skill they were good at, only to realise that playing the game is tougher than they though.
Then, as if this wasn’t enough Covid brought lockdowns and regulations which further limited growth potential. Businesses that were on par and doing well prior to Covid now only survived and businesses who were only surviving, now faced more obstacles than they bargained for.
Almost every small business owner we talk to blame either one or both of the above for the current pressures and difficulties they experience in growing or keeping their companies alive.
A farmer looking back while ploughing will most likely end up with a field that is untidy and not straight. Similarly a golfer who constantly looks behind him and focusses on the mistakes he made on the previous hole, will constantly land in the rough or the trees ….. definitely anywhere but on the fairway, causing frustration and constant negativity toward the game he initially started with so much enthusiasm.
SO HOW EXACTLY DO YOU GROW YOUR BUSINESS BEYOND SURVIVAL?
The easy answer is is to change your thinking from being a small business to that of an entrepreneur.
• Entrepreneurs see every obstacle as an opportunity. Irrelevant of what caused the current pressures and difficulty, there is a golf rule that says, play it as it lies. Entrepreneurs are adaptable and change direction quickly, eager to embrace every challenge they face.
• Change your perspective from focussing on what is behind to what is in front. Your actions always follows your thoughts. The success in both golf and business lies in taking the proper stance, focus on what is in front, forget what is behind and hit to reach the target.
•Be brave. Step out of your comfort zone. Success lies beyond your comfort zone. Set goals to grow yourself and your business. As a start, set one goal of doing something new, something that will stretch you, yet still give you the confidence that you can achieve it.
• Successful entrepreneurs are motivated to excel and know exactly what they want. They have clear goals, although sometimes set high. However, setting high goals started with constantly achieving smaller goals and building the muscle to want to reach higher every time a new goal is set.
• They know their strengths and weaknesses and have a strong drive for achievement.
• Entrepreneurs look for or create new opportunities and then exploit all the ways and options to achieve them. Think out of the box. Write down every way you can think of to expend your market and apply new ideas. Then when you have done this, become creative and write down the absurd or seemingly impossible ways and applications. Success often lies in the latter, the things that no-one else have thought of.
• While most small business owners … and most people for that matter … think you need money to make money, entrepreneurs look at what they have and then find ways to make it happen, with or without money. Reality is that if you have the what, the how will follow. Money is one of the least important ingredients needed for new ventures to succeed. If all the other pieces are in place and available skills and talents are fully utilised, money will follow.
• Entrepreneurs know that they don’t have the skills or time to do everything. Instead of learning and figuring out how to do everything themselves, they know where to find the people who can do it for them. Entrepreneurs act like CEO’s. Even if they don’t employ the skill they need to help them become successful, they outsource and find a supplier who can deliver. They realise the value of their time and understand that finding someone to do it could cost them less than what they are worth.
• Entrepreneurs who succeed are committed and determined, make decisions quickly, are good leaders. They are self-starters who do not wait for someone to tell them what to do. They take calculated risks, are resilient and have tolerance to stress.
Having said all this, the aim is not to discourage small business owners, but rather to motivate them to get out of their comfort zones and to start thinking like entrepreneurs. Every person has been created with what it takes to reach higher levels of achievement. Excuses are not an option and neither is failure. The difference between success and failure is often nothing more than a mind shift or attitude change.
The only person who can really help you achieve your dreams and your goals is the person in the mirror.
Many willingly or forcefully left formal corporate environments with the intention of acting on life-long dreams to be their own boss, run their own businesses and change the world or wanting to earn more than what their salary paid them. Most of these individuals walked onto a new course with the one single skill they were good at, only to realise that playing the game is tougher than they though.
Then, as if this wasn’t enough Covid brought lockdowns and regulations which further limited growth potential. Businesses that were on par and doing well prior to Covid now only survived and businesses who were only surviving, now faced more obstacles than they bargained for.
Almost every small business owner we talk to blame either one or both of the above for the current pressures and difficulties they experience in growing or keeping their companies alive.
A farmer looking back while ploughing will most likely end up with a field that is untidy and not straight. Similarly a golfer who constantly looks behind him and focusses on the mistakes he made on the previous hole, will constantly land in the rough or the trees ….. definitely anywhere but on the fairway, causing frustration and constant negativity toward the game he initially started with so much enthusiasm.
SO HOW EXACTLY DO YOU GROW YOUR BUSINESS BEYOND SURVIVAL?
The easy answer is is to change your thinking from being a small business to that of an entrepreneur.
• Entrepreneurs see every obstacle as an opportunity. Irrelevant of what caused the current pressures and difficulty, there is a golf rule that says, play it as it lies. Entrepreneurs are adaptable and change direction quickly, eager to embrace every challenge they face.
• Change your perspective from focussing on what is behind to what is in front. Your actions always follows your thoughts. The success in both golf and business lies in taking the proper stance, focus on what is in front, forget what is behind and hit to reach the target.
•Be brave. Step out of your comfort zone. Success lies beyond your comfort zone. Set goals to grow yourself and your business. As a start, set one goal of doing something new, something that will stretch you, yet still give you the confidence that you can achieve it.
• Successful entrepreneurs are motivated to excel and know exactly what they want. They have clear goals, although sometimes set high. However, setting high goals started with constantly achieving smaller goals and building the muscle to want to reach higher every time a new goal is set.
• They know their strengths and weaknesses and have a strong drive for achievement.
• Entrepreneurs look for or create new opportunities and then exploit all the ways and options to achieve them. Think out of the box. Write down every way you can think of to expend your market and apply new ideas. Then when you have done this, become creative and write down the absurd or seemingly impossible ways and applications. Success often lies in the latter, the things that no-one else have thought of.
• While most small business owners … and most people for that matter … think you need money to make money, entrepreneurs look at what they have and then find ways to make it happen, with or without money. Reality is that if you have the what, the how will follow. Money is one of the least important ingredients needed for new ventures to succeed. If all the other pieces are in place and available skills and talents are fully utilised, money will follow.
• Entrepreneurs know that they don’t have the skills or time to do everything. Instead of learning and figuring out how to do everything themselves, they know where to find the people who can do it for them. Entrepreneurs act like CEO’s. Even if they don’t employ the skill they need to help them become successful, they outsource and find a supplier who can deliver. They realise the value of their time and understand that finding someone to do it could cost them less than what they are worth.
• Entrepreneurs who succeed are committed and determined, make decisions quickly, are good leaders. They are self-starters who do not wait for someone to tell them what to do. They take calculated risks, are resilient and have tolerance to stress.
Having said all this, the aim is not to discourage small business owners, but rather to motivate them to get out of their comfort zones and to start thinking like entrepreneurs. Every person has been created with what it takes to reach higher levels of achievement. Excuses are not an option and neither is failure. The difference between success and failure is often nothing more than a mind shift or attitude change.
The only person who can really help you achieve your dreams and your goals is the person in the mirror.
