The Key to Business Success - Part II
What is the most important determinant of a business's success?
o A Unique Selling Proposition (USP)?
o Having the lowest prices?
o Great sales people?
o The best location?
o The best products?
o Good customer service?
o A strong local economy?
As we discussed last month, while these are all factors, based on our experience working with all kinds of different businesses, the most important determinant is YOU - the business owner.
History is riddled with examples of successful businesses that have failed with a new owner and lackluster businesses that have flourished under new ownership.
As a result, you are your most important business project. You probably spend plenty developing and maintaining your business's physical assets. How much time and money do you spend on developing yourself?
The great motivator and speaker E. James Rohn advises: "Work harder on yourself than you do on your job ". In my opinion, if you are serious about your business and what you want to get out of life, you simply must dedicate 5-10% of your time to self-development. And, yes, you must set aside some money to pay for it. But rest assured, this money will likely give you the highest ROI (return on investment) possible. After all, you are the person that can increase your profits by 50% or more.
Last month we talked about the importance of a Winning Attitiude . This month let's look at the next 3 Key Attitudes:
2. In Business There Are No Mistakes
My daughter Natalie had completed some research on Thomas Edison for a school assignment. She said: Dad, did you know that Edison had tried 500 times, unsuccessfully, to make a light bulb. His assistant said to Edison: you have failed 500 times, how can you go on? Edison quickly responded: I have not failed once! I now know 500 ways not to make a light bulb.
If you want to be successful in business, you must be prepared to take calculated risks. Many things you try will not work the first, or second, time. You learned to walk by falling down. It is the same in business. You likely had parents that gave you a safe environment in which to learn. In business, you can seek out a mentor to help give you a safer environment.
3. What if Contrary Information was "Interesting"?
Have you ever had a vigorous argument? You knew you were right and the other person was wrong. But the argument was vigorous because the other person, who was also bright and articulate, was convinced they were right. So, there you have it, two people both right and both wrong at the same time. You argued but the other person would not relent. Several days later, you still were thinking about it when you realized that you were wrong after all.
Brad Sugars, the remarkable entrepreneur and founder of Action International, has an approach which has enabled him to continually innovate. When Brad hears an opinion that is contrary to his he says, "isn't that interesting?" This then opens his mind to the possibility that he will learn a new way.
You see if there is an up, then there must be a down, and a left and a right… If you have to prove yourself right, then you cut off all possibility that there may be a better way.
If you truly want to change the success of your business, you must be willing to change the way you think and the way you behave. So resist the urge to argue and instead say "isn't that interesting" and "how could I make that work ?"
4. I Know - the 2 most dangerous impediments to Business Innovation
Anyone with teenage kids, or who remembers their own teenage years, knows one thing about teenagers - teenagers KNOW everything. Just ask them. Now that you are a little older you realize that it is probably not polite to say, "I know" out loud to everyone. So as an adult we listen politely, cross our arms, all the while in the back of our mind saying, "I know".
Try this exercise. Close both your fists tightly. Now try to button your jacket or make a phone call or compose an e-mail. Your mind is like those closed fists. There are very few things it can do well when it is closed. And those few things are often combative in nature.
You need to forget the mindset that says "I know". It is what you learn when you think you know everything that counts.
Intelligence is the ability to draw even finer and finer distinctions on a certain subject. Remember how that movie you saw more than once, or that book you read several times was different the second time around. One of the fastest ways to make sure you never learn anything new, never grow and never create more income for yourself is to continually state that you know everything. Open your mind up, it is not the major realizations that will make you a fortune, it is the fine distinctions that gives you the edge over the rest of the population.
The difference between ordinary and extraordinary is that little bit extra.
Business Coaches specialize in helping owners do that little bit extra. Click here to arrange for your Complimentary Business Consultation.
"Committing your goals to paper increases the likelihood of achieving them by one-thousand percent!" Brian Tracy
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