The Essentials of a Successful Small Business

Build the business on a real opportunity – find a niche.

Create and maintain a competitive advantage – do it better – be unique.

Remember: Competitive advantage is temporary – constantly search for new opportunities – welcome change – if you are not different in 5 years you probably won’t be there at all.

Don’t try and be the biggest – be the best.

Seek and use professional advice – it is an investment, not a cost.

Manage all your resources: People – Cash – Time and Information.

Know the risk you take by being in business. Remember: If the business fails it will be you who wears the financial and personal consequences.

Build on your strengths. Do one or several things very well – you cannot do everything.

Continually update knowledge, skills and information.

Hire the right people for the job and then lead, motivate and reward them adequately.

Regard cashflow as the lifeblood of the business. Remember: You can run out of cash long before you are no longer profitable.

Maintain liquidity by effectively using budgets, controlling credit sales, maintaining effective stock levels, running on lean overheads and maintaining profitable margins.

To do this effectively you must keep good records.

Learn form past mistakes – and do not repeat them.

Watch for signs of personal stress - decide on the cause and fix it.

Keep a proper balance in all you do, your family and health are important.

Be decisive and assertive – decide on the best course of action and do it!

Above All – Believe In Yourself and Your Business Idea. Be Totally Committed To Succeeding – Or Don’t Even Start!

Big Picture For New Year’s Resolutions To Work

The reason a lot of New Year’s resolutions don’t last much beyond a week or a few days, is because they do not connect to a “bigger picture” . Usually they are just one “nice to do” type empty promises. You know, things I “should do”, like, give up smoking, lose 20 kg, go to a gym, etc. etc. If they are not part of a bigger picture or “Vision” we have for our lives, then there is no motivation to follow through. You need a roadmap for your life.

Whoops, I think I took the wrong road. I turn left, right?

Where is your road map to your destiny in life taking you?

Take some time to seriously identify what really matters most in your life and what you really want to be and do. To really begin your journey with the end in mind means to start with a clear understanding of your destination. It means to know where you’re going so you better understand where you are now so that the steps you take are always in the right direction.

Find your passion. What do you care about most? Allow your passion to take more priority in life.

Follow the big picture of your life. Allocate your time more efficiently and don’t waste time on things that aren’t important to the big picture.

Spell out to yourself a dream version of your passion. How does it feel? What does it look like? Where would it take you?

Get a move on. Don’t wait until a better time to move toward what you want. There is no better time. The time is now.

Stay open to changes. Just because things aren’t going exactly to plan doesn’t mean they are not in alignment. Trust the process.

Focus on the big picture or Vision for your life and continually check in with yourself and ask “Is what I am doing right now taking me closer to my life’s vision / goal?” If the answer is “No’ then do something else.

Good luck.

Attitude

The longer I live, the more I realise the impact of attitude in life. It is more important than education, than money, than circumstances, than failures, than successes, than whatever anyone might say and do.

It is more important than appearances, giftedness and skill. The remarkable thing is that we have the choice to create the attitude we have for that day.

We cannot change the past. We cannot change the way people act. We cannot change the inevitable. The one thing we can change is the only thing we have control over and that is our attitude.

I’m convinced that life is 10% what actually happens to us and 90% how we react to it.

Charles Swindall