Every Successful Business Owner Employs 6 Things

A note from peter@thewealthyattitude.com for Thursday July 7 2008

Welcome to this very fine Thursday. On a whim yesterday, my wife and I decided to get out of town for a couple of days. We drove a few hours to the place where my wife grew up. Very rural indeed this small farming community. We visited the family farm, strode the grounds of the country school she attended (no longer standing), booked into the local motel, and, visited one of the very past country drive-in theaters still operating. We’re still here and enjoying the country experience. As we continue the theme of getting ready for a vibrant marketing season, today’s offering will give you some thoughts to ponder.

Every Successful Business Owner Employs 6 Things
By Rob Tendick

All successful entrepreneurs employ the same 6 basic business techniques, no matter what the business or industry is. They might be bred into them, or taught to them; but the basics are the same. If you want your business to grow, memorize these basics and get to work applying them.

Be True To Yourself: You need to know yourself thoroughly if your business is to be successful. That may be an obvious statement, but plenty of people don't realize their true abilities, and ignore or deny their weaknesses. Be true to yourself and think about what you're good at and what you cannot do well, and write it all down. Don't focus on your weaknesses, rather, find ways to compensate for them. Instead, focus you energy and efforts on improving your strengths. The book “Now, Discover Your Strengths,” distributed by the Gallup Organization, shows that the way to succeed is to build on your strengths rather than trying to get rid of your weaknesses.


Customers Are the Main Concern: Every successful business must keep their customers first; without the customers, the business can't thrive. If you forget this, you will have little chance of advancing your work. Everything you do must be directed at your consumers and clients. Don't pretend to care because they can smell a fake a long distance away. You need to understand where your customer is coming from. Ask many questions and really note the answers given. Remember to listen to what is not being said. Pay careful attention to their gesticulations and mannerisms. Your potential success will be a measure of how well you know your customer


Relationships Rightfully Rule: Networking represents a time- honored aspect of thriving entrepreneurship. Building and sustaining solid relationships with such key people in your life as mentors, experts, and colleagues ends up paying dividends again and again. A strong network of relationships can keep your business stable and growing in bad times, and encourage its growth in good times.

Accept What Happens: Everything is always in flux. Businesses show growth and development, transformations and maturity, much like the human body. Ready yourself for that change and welcome it when it happens. To respond to growth or set backs without panic or paralyzing fear, adaptability and flexibility will help you. If you don't expect your business operations to deviate from the plan, you invite disaster and failure. Being mindful that plans rarely ever go through without deviations, and coping with them is to be expected. Take a deep breath, look at your choices, and go forward to embrace your situation.

Always Move Ahead: No successful company or CEO ever stops cold. Productivity at every level is a sign of a strong company. To drive an increase in sales and profits, spend time focusing on creative ways to increase productivity. Look into new technology that might help you increase your business productivity You may consider automation or outsourcing to help with production problems or your internal workload, respectively. When it comes to increasing productivity, you have more options than you might think. Work out the things useful for your business, separate them from the things that are not useful, and then do them. You will quickly recoup the costs associated.

Balance Everything: Any business has the possibility to take over the life of its owner. If left unbridled, it will. Not only the bottom line, but also the top line can identify the greatest successful owners of businesses. They keep their businesses from taking over their lives by keeping their personal and business lives in balance. Many find it helpful to actually make appointments for family and personal time. That's correct. Make actual calendar entries in ink for such things as a "half hour workout" or "family dinner" and treat these just as you would a crucial business meeting. Careful attention to maintaining your daily schedule will ensure a proper balance to the way in which you spend your time.

When you're successful in your personal life, you'll be successful in business.