This is my observation on the video I posted yesterday.
I talk about how community came through loud and clear and how that will be a competitive differentiator for 2023.
Hey everyone,
I found a digital copy of a home video from 1988 that captures a coming of age summer in Greece. It’s a glimpse of a world that no longer exists, with sun, sand, and carefree conversations.
It reminds me of how much has changed since then, with technology dominating our lives. But it also transports me to a time when we were young and carefree.
Watch the video and let me know your thoughts. I have an insight for business in 2023 that I’ll share later.
Looking forward to hearing from you.
one of the biggest mistakes is falling in the trap of thinking only about today or the week or the month ahead. It makes you reactive instead of proactive and that can mean the difference between growing a business or having one that stays stagnant.
You can’t please everyone and if you try you will have a business that finds it hard to attract anyone. It’s a common mistake and one I see often as well as when a company has no idea how much it costs them to acquire a customer and ends up spening too much or too little on their marketing.
Running a small business is challenging, and making mistakes is inevitable. However, by avoiding common mistakes and implementing the most effective solutions, your business can achieve long-term success
None of my friends growing up in Chicago wanted to end up owning their parent’s restaurant for one main reason – the restaurant was not a sellable business as it was too reliant upon the owners.
So owning a sellable business makes a lot of sense even if you don’t intend to sell anytime soon. It’s more predictable, earns higher profits, it’s more valuable, and ultimately gives you more freedom and enjoyment in running the business.
As you know, owning a business can be “exciting” but it requires hard work, often long hours, perseverance, and the dedication to turn your dream
As I celebrate my 150th daily email, let’s celebrate wins and reflect on where you could improve as you prepare for the next week. Prioritize tasks, meet deadlines and take care of yourself. Reflecting and planning are game-changers for business success.
Working smarter, not harder, is the key to driving growth and saving time. We touch on 7 of these:
1. Streamline processes to cut out waste and save time.
2. Delegate tasks appropriately and have a solid strategy in place.
3. Outsource tasks that aren’t your forte to free up time and deliver a better product.
4. Reassess goals and priorities every 6 months to ensure you’re on the right track.
5. Use data to your advantage to measure progress and plan ahead.
6. Don’t rely on guesswork – measure and track KPIs.
7. Focus on working smarter, not harder.
Failing to consider context can have serious consequences, ranging from hasty hiring decisions to flawed business strategies.
I know this firsthand, as it almost cost me my job years ago. I didn’t fully understand the company’s structure and the roles of those in positions of power.
Today, I see countless unforced errors that could have been avoided with a little more attention to context.
So, it’s crucial to ask yourself:
are you keeping the context in mind when making decisions for your business?
Do you have a clear understanding of why you’re in this business?
Are your decisions aligning with your “why,” or are they taking you further away from it?
Keep context top of mind to avoid costly mistakes and stay on track towards your goals.
it’s easy to get busy and to run a business in a robotic haze or assume your employees are all on the same page with you. And yet it’s often not the case because there is one element missing. An element that if everyone is not on the same page can lead to confusion and disappointment.
Are you building a successful business but haven’t thought about what happens when you’re ready to move on? This last day in our sprint is all about independent businesses and successful succession planning.
Whether it’s transferring ownership, training potential successors, and communicating your plan to key people, it’s never too early to start planning for the future of your business, your legacy, and your loved ones.
Want to own a business that is independent and can thrive without you? Then learn how to successfully delegate tasks and empower your team to handle the day-to-day operations.
Be free to focus on growing the business while your capable team takes charge of the daily tasks that kept you trapped inside. Learn some secrets to effective delegation, accountability, and decision-making.
Have you grown a business but feel stuck?
Are you working harder and seeing smaller progress like the end of a bad diet or a workout where you plateau?
There are common roadblocks that sneak up on business owners that trap them inside “a job”.
Here we talk about how to identify and ultimately remove them.
Discover the power of business valuation!
Unlock your venture’s true worth, financial health, and growth potential while comparing it to industry peers.
Use valuation insights for strategic decision-making, powerful negotiations, and measuring success.
Unleash your small business’s potential with upscaling! Investing in your team’s skills and expertise will help you make more money and stay ahead of the competition.
Evaluate current abilities, target high-impact skills, create tailored plans, and make upskilling continuous.
Here we go through 5 examples of winning sales processes so you can see what you might be able to adapt and use for your business.
Much of it is fundamentals which allow you to succeed without worrying about the latest fads and trends.
Are you looking to grow the business and increase its value without relying on a huge influx of new customers? We tackle that in Day 4 of this sprint.
Start by managing your cash flow like a pro. Here are five tips from creating cash flow forecasts to negotiating favorable payment terms, that can help you optimise your business for growth and success.
Want to make more money with your business? Then you need to start focusing on customer retention! Just a 5% boost in customer retention rates can dramatically increase profits – up to 95%, according to research. But how do you achieve lasting relationships with your customers?
Follow our heroine Sarah’s lead: she reached out, asked for feedback and implemented initiatives to enhance the customer experience. The rewards were greater than she ever dreamed of.
Feeling like your business is stuck in a Groundhog Day loop? Kickstart your growth with these six tips. From tracking your customers, to analysing performance to exploring new markets and targeting audiences, you can break free from stagnation AND unlock the keys to success.
Struggling to find the time to both run and grow your business? In Day 1 of our sprint, here are some practical tips and strategies that can help you become a master of time management while making sure you don’t burn out! Follow these simple steps and learn how to unlock the secrets of success – without having to pay top consultants thousands of dollars!
As we enter the Easter break, why not use this time to freshen up your business strategy? Take part in a 10 day sprint that touches on burning issues such as time management, customer retention, revenue growth and more.
With insights and strategies to implement, you can make sure that your business is well-positioned for success in the future. Let’s get started!
Succession planning is key to ensuring the long-term success of your business. As a business owner, it’s important to ask yourself: Who do you trust to take over the reins and lead your business forward? In my latest blog post, I delve into the critical topic of succession planning and share my thoughts on how to identify and groom potential future leaders.
As a professional, you should try to engage potential clients and partners effectively.
But sending out crappy, unsolicited emails isn’t the way to do it. Instead of generic messages, take the time to research your recipients and personalise your messages to show that you’re an expert and that you care.
Not only will this increase the likelihood of a response, but improve your reputation and credibility too.
To save on merchant fees, are you willing to delay payments by months or not even get paid at all? What does it cost you in terms of missed opportunity costs, working capital financing costs, etc?
Once money comes into your business, you have opportunities to invest it in your sales/marketing, service, or other opportunities which have an ROI much greater than 3%.
It’s not about the margin on every transaction, but the ROI and timing of it in your hands
Cash is king and your payment terms can sometimes be sabotaging your business by influencing customers to delay and extend the payments owed to you. This is part 1 of a situation that I came across about payment terms and cash flow, and how you can optimise both.
Cash is King, and this is clearly seen by business owners who have great margins and profitable businesses, but for whatever reason, getting paid takes a while and so they face the stress of having to scramble to meet payroll and other obligations.
The answer is to introduce recurring revenue models where possible and provide incentives and make it easy for your customers to pay you as soon as possible.
Ever been told you can’t bring a customer on board, or you can’t take the opportunity you dreamt about? If it’s from a non-business area of your company (such as the accountant or compliance) it’s worth pushing back 100% and having them give you a fully justifiable 100% reason why – and eliminating 100% risk so their jobs become easier is not a valid reason.
Is your path of success a nice paved multi-lane highway, Freeway, Potholed Freeway, street, dirt path, or pile of garbage no one can get around? Here is the opportunity to turn lemons into lemonade and pave clear paths of growth for a future that can transform your life and one you would not have expected.
Sometimes it’s best to hear directly from business owners on what it means to own a “sellable” business. I think you will find some of what my friend has to say inspiring.
My first hit on the high school baseball team? A home run.
Sounds impressive, right? But what happened before that might surprise you. Let’s just say I wasn’t exactly team material when I started out…
It took a mentor, some tough lessons, and a total transformation to make it to that moment at home plate.
The same kind of transformation your business needs to break through to its next level. Ready to see how?
“For she is more profitable than silver, and her gain is better than fine gold. She is more precious than rubies; nothing you desire can compare with her.” (Proverbs 3:14-3:15).
We’re talking about Sophia…
More specifically, the Greek word for wisdom.
And how tapping into Sophia or wisdom can transform what your business provides you.
“Sing us a song, you’re the piano man…”
Hearing those lyrics took me back to a snowy Christmas Eve years ago, driving through Chicago in a blizzard to pick up my friend Don. We slid into snowbanks, laughed until we cried, and celebrated late into the night.
Years later, Don built a thriving business and a life he loved abroad. But his story has always stayed with me—and not for the reasons you might think.
Profitability alone doesn’t guarantee a buyer will be interested in your business. In fact, many owners don’t realise that 7 out of 10 businesses fail to sell—not because they’re unprofitable, but because they lack what buyers value most:….
“I ain’t missing you at all… since you’ve been gone.”
That’s the song your business should sing when you’re away.
If your business misses you every time you step out—whether it’s for a holiday, a family event, or even a few hours—it’s a sign of trouble.
A friend of mine recently jumped on a plane for his 12th trip in just nine months. He’s headed to Europe for some skiing and a bit of downtime to enjoy a hobby he’s fallen in love with.
But here’s what’s remarkable: his business doesn’t miss him.
It wasn’t always this way. Just a few years ago, he was stuck working 80-hour weeks, tethered to his desk and overwhelmed by the daily grind.
The turning point? He decided ……
When you’re running a business, it’s easy to think buyers will see the value in everything you’ve built—the late nights, the sacrifices, the blood, sweat, and tears.
But buyers don’t care about brownie points.
They care about what your business can do for them. If you can’t answer that, your business could end up like Sally’s….
“I know kung fu.”
That line from The Matrix always stuck with me. Imagine downloading a lifetime of knowledge—mastering martial arts, business strategies, or customer service excellence—in seconds.
While we can’t quite do that yet, what if you could save years of trial and error in your business?