Whether you run your business as a solopreneur or have employees, you have to find out how to create momentum in your business so that it can grow fast and without too much effort on your part.
As the business grows, you’ll also discover that some of the skills and tactics that got you started won’t be useful anymore.
Here are some tips to help you grow and become an industry leader in the shortest time possible.
Simplify your business structure
Look through your business and identify areas where there’s conflict of roles or duplicated roles.
Purchase a copy of Michael Gerber’s The E-Myth Revisited: Why Most Small Businesses Don’t Work and What to Do About It and create your business structure with specific roles and responsibilities for each position. The simpler your business structure is, the easier it will be to manage.
Aim to have not more than 6 people reporting to you, and allow the leaders of each team to be in charge of their teams.
Hire only the best
Having talented people will create inspiration in your business. Hiring poorly can lead to loss of motivation and also chase away talented people.
Always hire independent thinkers who have a great attitude and can work with little motivation and supervision by you.
If possible find people who are ‘intrapreneurs’ – employees who have an entrepreneurial mindset. These will be your greatest asset as they can run and grow your business very fast.
When hiring, identify real life problems that the person will encounter in the specific position you’re hiring them for and let them solve the problems as part of their interview process.
Second, hire people whose personal values match your business values, and who are willing to explore their negative characteristics during the interview.
Take time during the interview as a lot of excellent interviewees end up as poor employees.
Be willing to take a step back and let the talented employees grow your business
First, you must get very clear about your company’s Values, Vision and Mission. Don’t have them as nice words written in a document or wall hanging. Live and breathe them and make them a part of your daily life.
Second, your work is to lead the team and not micro-manage it. You are the leader, the vision bearer, the one guiding the team to a clearly defined destination. Keep this destination at the forefront of everyone’s minds.
Finally, hand over day-to-day management to your competent employees. Give them clear targets and allow them to be creative in the way they achieve these targets. Keep an eye on what they do, but don’t breathe over their necks all the time. At the same time, be ready to call them out when you see them going astray.
Managing employees without being a dictator is skill that you will have to learn and become an expert in if you want to create momentum in your business.
Become a leader in thought, word and deed
Your business is a direct reflection of who you are and your employees will simply follow your lead subconsciously.
If you’re lazy and disorganized, then this is how your employees will be.
If you mismanage your money, this is what your employees will do with company money.
If you spend time talking negatively about others, your employees will spend time backbiting and backstabbing each other.
If you lack focus and keep changing your mind, guess what will happen to your business…
Your personal habits and actions are reflected in your business.
Take a close look at your business today. If you don’t like what you see, then change yourself first and the business will follow suit.
Your personal growth is a must and not a maybe. A strong business is only strong because the owner or founder has character. What is your character?
Make constant and never-ending improvement a part of your life
You can do this by reading books, attending industry and business forums, hanging out with other business leaders, being updated on new findings in business and your industry (through the news and internet), and mentors.
On the social side, read novels, watch movies that have lessons, spend time in nature, create time for your loved ones, get involved in your hobbies and community activities…do things that are not business-related.
One of the easiest ways to improve yourself and your business is to hang out with the leaders in your industry. Carefully select people who match your values, are a great fit with you, and who are at the level you want your business to be 3-5 years from now. Spend time learning from them.
Say “Yes!” to opportunities
Always be on the lookout for new opportunities and take advantage of the ones that present themselves. Don’t be afraid to take calculated risks. You never know which opportunity will lead to a breakthrough in your business.
For example, I started out as a Business Coach in Mombasa and within a year, I identified that what the women I was meeting really needed was personal growth. This was more of a need for them than starting businesses.
I had a life coaching program that was gathering dust in my computer and one day as I was talking to a prospect, I took a step of faith and told her that she wasn’t ready to start a business, but I could help her get clarity about what she really wanted in life and then together we could map out a plan for her to re-create her life.
That program took off and I was amazed at how fast it grew on its own – without any marketing on my side. I’m now thinking of having that program a foundation for all my programs.
This opportunity is an indirect answer to a challenge I was having. I’ve always wanted my business programs to be for women who have already identified their purpose and are now ready to implement it through their businesses. I was having a challenge in Mombasa as personal growth programs are not available here.
Saying “Yes” to this opportunity has pushed my business about 3 years into the future and started generating ideal clients for my business coaching programs!
So get clear about what you want to achieve in your business and keep an eye out for opportunities. Opportunities generally come disguised as something else and you can miss them if you’re not clear or keen enough.
Be consistent without becoming complacent
Have one mission and one vision only. You may have different ways of expressing these, but you have only one direction to go.
When you identify opportunities or growth areas in your business, take them up and turn them into projects and then complete these projects.
Many businesses fail to gain momentum because the owners never identified opportunities, were afraid to take advantage of the opportunities they saw, or they became complacent and gave up too soon.
For example, once you have identified the 3 main marketing methods that bring you the best customers, be consistent in using these marketing methods. Same with your marketing messages – focus on the few that are having the biggest impact.
One business mistake to avoid is the shiny new object syndrome. This will keep you moving around in circles and getting nowhere. You will also confuse your employees, suppliers, customers and prospects when you keep changing from one thing to another.
Growth requires a total mindset shift, a new way of looking at and doing things. Don’t get comfortable in your consistency. Be on the lookout for ways to improve your results and new developments in your industry. You then take advantage of the new information and use it to move to the next level.
(Image credit renjith krishnan at www.freedigitalphotos.net)
