How to Walk the Walk for Business Success

Operating a small business and navigating through the many changes that have to be made requires a set of skills. Some of these skills you already have, and some need to be gathered via additional staff or training.

There are numerous suggested skills or components required for successful change. While they seem basic and simple, like “vision,” and “incentives,” one or two of these may get lost in the shuffle and if you’re minus just one of these components, dysfunction occurs, and change may not be made, may be delayed, but definitely, profits will be lost.

For example, take stock of your business inventory

One big time taker, which sometimes makes us lose sight of the important stuff, is what I call “fighting the alligators,” or the day to day demands of the job, leaving little room for another term I like to use, which is “cleaning the swamp.”

To that end, take an inventory of your business:

Do you have enough excellent staff?

Have you instituted quality and security practices?

Have you developed financial, marketing and operational plans to avoid short term crises?

I cannot tell you many clients fail to consider “operations” or the practical running of the business, and end up short of inventory or short of cash because sales did not develop fast enough.

Similarly, we tend to be very comfortable in our regular habits and reluctant to try new things. New managers, who are presumably hired to bring new ideas to the table, frequently make expansive changes before looking at simple solutions. I’ve heard story after story about businesses that waste so much time in meetings, committees, and reading e-mails. One client recently shared that that they had formed a committee to study how to reduce committees!! Yikes.

In considering change, we need to remember that new approaches are not permanent, and that any new testing can be tweaked or even abandoned at any time. The opportunities for using the internet to test, and then adapt, are extremely significant – there is virtually no risk, but the returns can turn the tide on whether you make that business change or not.

Walking the walk is also frequently dependent on suppliers, financial sources, and consultants

What do you do if you have suppliers, financial sources, or consultants who basically commit and then don’t deliver? While optimism – yours or theirs — may be the cause, failure still results in missed plans or crucial deadlines. The best solutions are to use reliable or tested resources, get references, have written plans, and develop contingencies. Don’t forget to measure and evaluate results, and then adapt or find new resources, as recommended.

Probably, the most important aspect of walking the walk is everyday behavior.

Most impressions are made within 30-60 seconds, and we sometimes overemphasize content and ignore appearance, training, perceptions, presentation, and simple courtesy.

The most important is showing respect in our communications. Pleasantries, like “please,” “thank you,” and “how are you?” are really and truly necessary, and remembered.

Stay positive about every aspect of your business, and, as that famous song suggests, “don’t worry, be happy.”

In summary, it’s not enough to have great ideas and programs. You must execute and know where any particular component is lacking, especially in your prioritizing and the measurement of results. Be willing to spend energy on things that are not especially fun to do, or where you feel results may be disappointed.