At the beginning of last year, a friend, who is a successful business person, said that his theme for 2014 would be “mindfulness”. It was important, he said to live and act in the present. Mindfulness was also a source of opportunity because it enables one to discover opportunities that you may otherwise have missed. It seems that my friend got it right last year in saying that it would be the year of “mindfulness” because in about June 2014 Time magazine came out with a cover story titled “Mindfulness”. Inside the magazine was feature article discussing the concept of mindfulness, its advantages and the ground swell of proponents. Continue reading “Is this your year of action, action, action?”
Are you paralysed by fear or do you have the courage to get up and ride a new horse?
Two strategy consultants Al Reis and Jack Trout tell an interesting story about how the reluctance to face change held them back for 20 years. They knew that they would be more successful if they followed a new strategic direction but they didn’t have the courage to get off their agency horse.
In the end they realised that their agency was going nowhere and that they had to overcome the fear of change. They got rid of their agency, repositioned themselves as marketing strategists and faced their fears. Continue reading “Are you paralysed by fear or do you have the courage to get up and ride a new horse?”
Do you really think a cut-and-paste solution can succeed with a new business idea?
While on holiday at the coast, I was able to experiment with cooking food. One of the dishes I haven’t had for many years is snoek kop sop (snoek head soup) which my mother who was a food writer and author used to prepare so deliciously.
We went down to Millars Point in False Bay and bought a very large snoek (when I use the word “very” you will see what I mean shortly) from one of the langaaners (fish dealers). The head of the snoek was so big that I had to squeeze it into the largest pot I could find. Continue reading “Do you really think a cut-and-paste solution can succeed with a new business idea?”
Are you afraid to say no to a promising business idea?
The other day I saw a quote from Steve Jobs that got me thinking about how it is just as important to say no to some business ideas as it is to say yes to others. The quote:
“I am just as part of the 1,000 things we didn’t do, as I am of the things we did.” – Steve Jobs
In today’s new economy flooded with freelancers, part timers and consultants, there are many more ways to make an income than in the past. Technology, especially the Internet, has paved the way or open up the way to business opportunities that weren’t available just a few years ago. In this marketplace, you have a growth of marketing Wolverines who will incessantly try to push their business ideas your way. I’m not just talking about, artists and shysters here but also the well-meaning who believe that what they are offering is in your genuine interest. You only need to think of the diet supplements and the income-making claims associated with them to recognise how forcibly these schemes are pitched and promoted. Continue reading “Are you afraid to say no to a promising business idea?”
Is there such a thing as a perfect business?
A few weeks ago I had breakfast with an old friend and asked him about a friend of his who had for many years searched for the “perfect business”. I was curious whether this business person had found the “perfect” business. My friend said that his friend had been successful at a small manufacturing business for several years until he went to live elsewhere and left the business to be run by a manager. Trouble happened with the manager and eventually the business had to close down. His friend is now trying to restart the business. Continue reading “Is there such a thing as a perfect business?”
What prevents you from starting something of your own?
What separates the doers from the talkers when it comes to implementing new business ideas?
Sometimes it could just be that some people like the idea of talking about an idea that they want to implement but never get around to doing something about it. Others may justifiably be uncertain about whether they could really pull off starting something of their own or from scratch. Yet others may not be able to handle the uncertainty that comes with entrepreneurship.
Take one would-be small business person who has a number of sideline activities yet has a brilliant idea for a food business but talks about it all the time. Yet he’s never actually taken one step towards starting the business that he believes has a strong potential market. It’s not that he’s lazy. It’s just that when you remind him of the reality of what he needs to do to start such a business, he backs off. Continue reading “What prevents you from starting something of your own?”
Better to start developing your new business idea soon as possible than wait for the perfect thing
The glossy business magazines will feature entrepreneurs who got their promising business ideas up and running in six months. These are the exceptions or what researchers call outliers. It leads you to believe that starting something from scratch can be done in record time and that instant success is forthcoming. What about all the other would-be entrepreneurs who take far longer to come up with a new business idea and even longer to get it off the ground?
The reality is that starting something from scratch, something of your own, something from a promising business idea, takes three times the duration to get it off the ground and will probably cost twice as much as the business gurus would leaf you to believe. It’s far better to have a realistic sense of what to expect when trying to develop something of your own than live in cloud cuckoo land expecting overnight success. One Internet business, for example, took 10 years before it became commercially viable, gaining enough traction to start getting noticed by Internet users. Continue reading “Better to start developing your new business idea soon as possible than wait for the perfect thing”
How much risk are you willing to take in this economy?
A business owner running a large factory was closed down because of cheap imports. He then decided to become an importer himself. Things turned out all right in the beginning but he made one wrong move with a container load of goods because of a sudden currency decline and lost millions. He sat down, did some hard thinking and to rescue his dire situation started a takeaway and restaurant business. This business owner knew full well that the restaurant business is risky and made plans to take as much risk out of his new enterprise as possible.
His secret was to start small and keep things small. After opening up in a down economy, a year later he has done exceedingly well. Even halfway through his first year trading he had so many customers that the temptation was they to double up the size of these restaurant space. But he didn’t do this. Having been bitten twice before, he decided to increase his retail space only marginally more. This is meant that he has so many customers that he has an overflow on the pavement outside. Continue reading “How much risk are you willing to take in this economy?”
How do you look after yourself in your business in hard times?
In Australia a team of emotional resilience experts and a family business professional travelled more than 1,300 km across outback Queensland to give practical advice and inspirational to regional communities hard-hit by drought. The resilience experts provided practical advice on how to best manage personal and business change, challenges and opportunities.
One of the experts said that people can’t look after their businesses, family or property without looking after themselves. Their aim was to change the conversations around the dinner table on the need to focus on hope, strategy and action rather than despair and difficulties. The roadshow series reinforced the importance of emotional well-being and resilience during difficult times. Continue reading “How do you look after yourself in your business in hard times?”
After enduring much trauma, this small business owner finally made a personal breakthrough
I was talking to John, a small business owner a few weeks ago. He told me how desperate he had been for a personal breakthrough in his life.
He ran a factory with his brother but it was over when the Asian imports destroyed their market. He moved cities and thought that he could trade similar products, importing them from different markets overseas. On one of these shipments, a full container load, which he had financed himself, was hit by a sudden drop in the volatile local currency. He had not taken forward cover on the currency. He was devastated.
John is not a quitter. Over the next few weeks he began to plan for his future. An image began to form in his mind. He realised that the idea that he had for a new business is what he wanted to do. He would start a small takeaway and restaurant business but keep it to a size where if things went wrong he wouldn’t be over his head. Continue reading “After enduring much trauma, this small business owner finally made a personal breakthrough”
