Posts Tagged ‘Job’
You can’t grow a business by yourself
Do you do everything in your business yourself – or just the important things?
Today I got into a bit of an argument on Twitter (nothing new there).
It started with someone moaning about having to get up at ridiculous hours to attend to their business and me responding by saying that as they own the business they should employ someone to do this particular task.
It’s an important part of the business and led to a discussion about whether critical tasks should be delegated or not.
My view is that yes, they should. (I actually shouted, *YES* they should.)
Business owners are there to manage the business, to make decisions, to keep track of cashflow and consistently review how the business is working and make improvements where they’re needed. As soon as the business is big enough, *everything* else should be delegated.
If the business owner is the only one who can be trusted with a critical task it means that the business is too vulnerable and at risk and is probably unsalable.
Then we got into “what if the person the critical task is delegated to doesn’t do it properly?” Well, it is the owner’s job to check that it is being done properly and make sure people are properly trained or replaced. Delegation doesn’t mean abdication.
If your business is so small that you’re still doing everything yourself and you’re happy with that that’s fine but if you want it to grow you need to have a plan and that plan will very likely involve you stepping away from all of the stuff you do now and managing other people who will do it instead – and that’s a whole other skill set.
Basically, if your business is big enough to employ people and it still can’t run without you, there’s something wrong.
Posted in 12 Steps to Success | 
Tags: Abdication, Business Decisions, Business Owner, Business Owners, Cashflow, Critical Task, Critical Tasks, Delegation, Important Things, Improvements, Job, Led, Ridiculous Hours, Risk, Stuff | 
3 Comments »
The only time management tip you’ll ever need
Photo RL Hyde
What’s the only time management tip you’ll ever need?
BE EARLY!
Why?
Being Early Saves Time AND Money
The bulk of the time we waste is spent trying to catch up on things that could have been done earlier, in less time.
By doing things before they need to be done we really SAVE time.
That old proverb “A stitch in time saves nine” is true.
Getting your car serviced before it breaks down, getting a new computer before it slows you down, getting a health check before you become ill, nurturing your relationships before they collapse, paying off bills before you get charged interest, getting more business before you run out of money. They all save both time and money.
Being early Pays Off
First come, first served is another true saying. Research shows that people respond more positively to the first person to respond to their request, whether this is to send in a quote, a tender for a job, information or recommendations. In other words, being early has a clear advantage.
Being Early Makes a Statement
If you want people to think you’re not in control of your life, unreliable, can’t be trusted, and don’t respect others, be consistently late for meetings, for deadlines, and for appointments. (See related post “Always” )
If you want people to think you’re committed, confident, and competent, show up early, and use the extra time to relax and prepare so you’ll be on top of your game.
Being in place when others arrive means you get to choose your chair, comb your hair, go to the loo, be the one to welcome others. It gives you control.
Try it …
…………………………………………………
Do you get irritated when people are late? Are you consistently late yourself? Tell us how this makes you feel in the comments below.
Are you getting your FREE copy of The A-Z of Business Success?
Posted in 12 Steps to Success | Tags: Appointments, Attitude, Bizarre Death, Business Success, Comb Your Hair, Control, Cue, Don Aslett, Extra Time, First Person, Game, Health Check, Hyde, Job, Laughter, Loo, Management Book, Manifesto, Nbsp, New Computer, Oil Filter, Oil Filters, Peers, Penny Worth, People, Post Office, Productivity, Protestant Work Ethic, Proverb, Relationships, Respect Others, Sales Person, Several Thousand, Simplicity, Spokesman, Spooky Voice, Stitch In Time, Stitch In Time Saves Nine, Thousand Pounds, Time And Money, Time Management Tip, Waiting In Line | 1 Comment »
Why LinkedIn is the Most Important Site for your Business
LinkedIn is great for small businesses
It may not be immediately obvious because LinkedIn was designed as a site for on-line CVs for professionals and high flyers but these days its also great for the owners of small businesses to show their expertise, make connections and build a reputation.
It’s all in the way you use it!
Here are a few tips that will help you to grow your business through LinkedIn
(there’s a podcast at the end that talks in more detail about using groups)
Build your profile
LinkedIn terms and conditions only allow profiles to be in the name of a real person – not a business. If you use a business name you’ll get away with it for a while but eventually the account will be removed.
You’ll get lots of prompts to complete your profile 100% but remember the site was designed for people looking for their next career move, not for owners of small businesses so don’t worry if you don’t fill in all the boxes – this is not the most important area for you.
Add a good photo
There’s a ton of research that shows that people are more likely to connect with you on line if you have a photo of you smiling and that clearly shows your eyes. More importantly, what you’re doing here is networking and its hard to do that with a faceless person. Don’t use a logo – you’ll just make people think you’re going to sell to them and they won’t connect or interact with you.
Ask to connect with people you know
Whatever LinkedIn suggests DON’T add your whole contact list. It’s likely to get your account suspended for two reasons: the first is that LinkedIn sets a limit for how many people you can invite to connect in one go, the second reason you’ll get suspended is when five people respond to your request by saying they don’t know you. Better to build your contacts slowly from people you know well.
Get some recommendations
One of the most useful areas of LinkedIn is where people can read testimonials from people who recommend you. Update this regularly but make sure the recommendations are relevant to your business and not for a job you used to do. Again, despite what LinkedIn suggests, resist the temptation do swap recommendations with friends, its easy to spot and makes you both look a bit desperate.
Join some groups
This is where you, as a business owner, can make a real impression. There are over a million affinity groups on LinkedIn and you can join up to 50. Its better to be active in a few than passive in 50! You can see how many members each group has and how many new discussions they have each week. You may want to join some groups to get information and others to add your voice to the discussions.
The nature of groups varies dramatically. Some are full of sales pitches – everyone talking and no-one listening and these are best avoided. Others are well moderated and have some genuine opportunities for you to add your opinions and expertise to the discussions, make some interesting connections and build your reputation. Resist any urge to make a sales pitch in a discussion, you’ll just piss people off, your comment will be flagged and a good moderator will remove it, making you look like a pillock. Instead, share ideas, ask questions, be helpful and supportive.
Things to avoid
Don’t link your Twitter account to LinkedIn. If your contacts want to follow you on Twitter they will (you can add your Twitter name to your profile). If you fill LinkedIn with tweets your contacts will stop following your activity on LinkedIn so you’ll defeat the point of being there. Twitter is social, LinkedIn is professional.
If you have a blog, don’t spam multiple groups with blog links. This is the equivalent of fly posting and one of the main reasons why people leave groups so again, you’re defeating the object of being there and its just rude and annoying.
Don’t spam your contacts.
Starting your own group
This can be real gold but takes a lot of work. As the owner you’ll need to prompt discussions, moderate discussions, invite people to join, monitor people who want to join, reject discussions, comments and people if they’re unsuitable or don’t fit the purpose of the group and generally devote a fair chunk of time to making it work.
Listen to the podcast
This is the recording of an interview with Jon Buscall of Jontus Media that explains in more detail how to build your reputation and contacts without selling and how to mesh face to face networking with on-line networking.
Click the speaker to listen
Posted in Social Media | Tags: Boxes, Business Name, Business Profile, Career Move, Contact List, Contacts, Cvs, Dross, Groups, High Flyers, How Many People, Job, Linkedin, Networking, Next Career, Podcast, Profile, Profiles, Real Gold, Real Person, Reason, Reputation, Small Businesses, Temptation, Testimonials From People | 7 Comments »
How to grow a business
Why so many businesses don’t grow
Lots of people have great ideas for businesses.
Lots of people start new businesses.
Not many grow them into thriving enterprises that provide employment and contribute significantly to the economy of the country.
Too many people spend all their time working IN their business and hardly any time at all working ON it.
There’s nothing wrong with “lifestyle” businesses if that’s what you set out to achieve but so many people set out with different aims: to build a business that can exist without them; that can be sold; that won’t die when they retire; that will provide them with a pension; that provides other people with a good living; that is more than simply swapping their time for money.
A good idea is not enough to grow a great company.
Being great at what you do does not mean that you have a great company.
Companies consist of three main things:
Product + Process + People
Many businesses have a good product and great people but it’s the processes that allow them to grow.
This means that any job does not rely on just one person being able to do it.
Invest as much in the processes as you do in the product and the people.
Poor pricing is what keeps most businesses small.
Too many new businesses think they have to compete on price in order to get into the market. This is only true if everything else you have to offer is unremarkable and will only work if your whole business model is based on very small margins.
Keeping control of cash flow and understanding management accounts is probably THE most important factor in growing a business.
Money allows you to take the right business decisions at the right time but often the biggest decision that needs to be made isn’t a financial one but “Are you the right person to run your business?” Just because you started it doesn’t mean you have the right skills or temperament to do the day to day work of managing it.
If your aim is to grow a business rather than create a job for yourself, assuming that you already have a great idea, these are the top tips to make it work:
- Get enough capital before you start. Working just to cover your own wages is not a business.
- Estimate what you need and how long it will take to turn a profit and then double it.
- Don’t do any job that you can hire someone else to do better or quicker.
- Understand the finances of how a business works. It’s the most important job.
- Invest in processes so that no one person is irreplaceable – especially you.
If you are frustrated because your business isn’t growing as you’d like it to, give me a call. Sometimes a fresh perspective finds simple solutions that you are too close to see. I’ve seen lots of ‘slap head’ moments when talking to business owners about what can be done to make real progress! Call me on 07711 705038.
Posted in 12 Steps to Success | Tags: Aim, Aims, Bu, Business Decisions, Business Model, Business Money, Cash Flow, Economy, Financial One, Growing A Business, Invest, Job, Lifestyle, Management Accounts, Many People, Margins, New Businesses, Right Time, Temperament, Understanding Management | 1 Comment »
You CAN Inspire!
This post was written by Katherine Connolly of Keeping HR_Simple on 19th August 2010
http://www.keepinghrsimple.co.uk/
Over 100 people listened to Richard McCann talking in the Cambridge Cancer Help Centre last night and many of us were moved by what he had to say. I have heard messages like these before – “you can do it”, “get out of your comfort zone”, “challenge yourself”. I’ve never once thought they applied to me. I’ve never once felt personally affected by any of them. For me, the speakers and writers were always talking to someone else. They didn’t apply to me because I didn’t want to feel challenged. I didn’t want to leave my comfort zone, thanks very much. I never wanted to release my potential because as far as I was concerned, maybe I didn’t have any. I’d rather not try than do it and fail.
I’ve never once felt personally affected by any of them.
Last night, Richard’s message got to me. I believe that things happen for a reason (Jason always says that things don’t just happen, things happen just) and that the time was right for me to get that message and what’s more, to act on it. Until we started this business, I was a PA. A very good PA, thanks very much. I went to work every day, stayed in the office, acted as the central point of contact for everyone and everything. If someone wanted to know where something was, guess who they came to? If someone wanted help or advice or to pass on a bit of gossip, guess who they talked to first? I knew everything that was going on and I was very comfortable. My feet were firmly under the table there and I loved it all; the job, the company and the people.
I’ve learnt that I’m capable of much more than I think I am.
Now I know that I was missing out. Doing that job was fulfilling maybe 1/10th of my potential. If even that. I’ve learnt so much in the last year but mostly I’ve learnt about myself. I’ve learnt that I’m capable of much more than I think I am. I’ve learnt that I can go out and talk to people – people I’ve never met before. I’ve learnt that I can survive difficult situations. I’ve learnt that I have a way to go before I could call myself a good public speaker. But I’ve tried it and I’m willing to keep trying it. I may never be as good a speaker as Richard McCann but I have the potential to be. I’ll never dye my hair ginger though – I don’t want to be an honorary member of “the ginger massive” 
. Most importantly of all, I’ve learnt that if I say “no” to the things that scare me or worry me or make me feel uncomfortable, I’m missing out. So, thank you to Richard McCann for bringing that message home to me. People probably tell you all the time how you’ve affected their lives but you should know how you’ve affected mine. Richard McCann
Posted in 12 Steps to Success | Tags: 19th August, Cambridge, Cancer, Comfort Zone, Gossip, Help Centre, Job, Point Of Contact, Richard Mccann, Speakers, Things Happen For A Reason | No Comments »
Why Tweeting Quotes is a Waste of Time
Quotations and aphorisms are generally just verbal Christmas presents; enticingly done up in pretty paper and ribbons, but once you get them open they generally turn out to be just socks. Tom Holt (2007)
I frequently have a rant about the uselessness of quotes on Twitter. Not ‘quotes ON Twitter’ as in “He who tweeteth quotes shall be deemed as wise as the person he tweeteth” because that’s just silly and most of the people who are quoted were dead many hundreds of years before Twitter came into being.
There is nothing so ridiculous but some philosopher has said it. Cicero (106-43 BC)
No, I mean the endless, indiscriminate parade of stuff that is so saccharin it makes you want to throw up, has no interest or meaning for most of the people who receive it and in many cases is just bullshit.
Some recent examples are “Thoughts become things so choose the good ones.” This is an example of such sloppy thinking that I’d like to slap the originator but instead devoted a separate post to it.
She had a pretty gift for quotation, which is a serviceable substitute for wit…W. Somerset Maugham (1926)
The next one was something along the lines of “Before starting a journey don’t ask advice of someone who has never left home”. Now, I get the idea of this but, you know, there are circumstances when the person who has never left home might be exactly the right person to ask. They may have studied the place you’re going to or they may have the best maps. Hell, they might have invented Google Earth! Does anyone really believe that the only person to consult on anything is someone who has had personal experience of it? (Pause until the screams of many coaches has died down). Frankly, I’d rather consult a doctor who is healthy than one who has the same illness as me.
At all events, the next best thing to being witty one’s self, is to be able to quote another’s wit. Christopher N. Bovee (1857)
Another was “The person who wants to demolish a mountain starts by moving a few stones.” You know what? If I wanted to demolish a mountain I’d hire a bulldozer. Even taking it literally, if I had a job that seemed insurmountable, I’d get help. Wrapping things up in allusions and metaphore doesn’t necessarily make them more powerful.
In a pinch, any orphan quote can be called a Chinese proverb. Ralph Keyes, “Nice Guys Finish Seventh”:
Then there was a quote from Einstein. Now Einstein was a great scientist but deeply flawed in other respects. He was widely regarded as oversexed, immature and lousy at sustaining meaningful relationships so forgive me if I don’t follow his advice unless it’s directly related to science.
Most people are other people. Their thoughts are someone else’s opinions, their lives a mimicry, their passions a quotation. Oscar Wilde (1905)
Quotations can be used to great effect when used in articles or essays. They serve as really good hooks or attention-grabbers and can give emphasis to a particular point but on their own, with no reference point to their significance, they are just brain fluff.
Given all this, why do people feel compelled to share a quote, apropos of nothing, with their whole list of contacts?
Famous dead people make excellent commentators on current events. Ralph Keyes, “Nice Guys Finish Seventh”
I guess its because something in that quote spoke to them, which means that they probably need to take action on something that’s happening in their lives. It most likely doesn’t have any significance to anyone else unless they are sharing the same issues.
The great writers of aphorisms read as if they had all known each other very well. Elias Canetti (1942–1972)
What would be interesting would be to hear what folk did as a result of reading a quote but sadly, I expect the answer would be not a lot except nod wisely and pass it on.
Meanwhile nothing changes. Its thinking for ourselves AND TAKING ACTION that changes things not taking someone else’s thinking and believing it can change anything.
Immortality. I notice that as soon as writers broach this question they begin to quote. I hate quotation. Tell me what you know. Ralph Waldo Emerson, Journals (May 1849)
Posted in Social Media | Tags: Allusions, Bovee, Bulldozer, Cicero, Circumstances, Creative Impulse, Doctor Who, Earth, Einstein, Google, Hundreds Of Years, Job, Journey, Maps, Meaningful Relationships, Mountai, Moving, People, Personal Experience, Philosopher, Pretty Paper, Quotation, Quotations And Aphorisms, Quotations Aphorisms, Quotes, Rant, Respects, Ribbons, Scientist, Screams, Serviceable Substitute, Somerset Maugham, Ston, Thoughts Become Things, Tom Holt, Twitter, W Somerset Maugham, Waste Of Time, Why Do People | 12 Comments »
