Main Idea
Last week we celebrated the Fourth of July, which was the 232nd anniversary of our independence. That holiday is very relevant for most small business owners because they went into business looking for freedom. However, most small business owners aren’t free because they are held captive by their business because of either a lack of strategy, a lack of clarity about their strategy, or a lack of execution.
Expansion of Idea
How do we gain freedom? We need to be crystal clear about what our strategy is. Only then can our team can help us get to our destination. Do you know what your strategy is? If you aren’t clear, then you need to work on your clarity. One simple way is to start defining what you are not and then actually start a “Not To Do” list. After you do this for awhile you will start getting closer to your true strategy.
Several years ago, I eliminated almost all of the personal tax returns for clients who live in other states. Some of which had been with my firm for over 15 years. This was a hard decision, but I didn’t add as much value to those returns. They were unlikely to start businesses that we could work with and used very valuable time during tax season that I could spend more productively with my business clients.
There were some important lessons for my team as a result of this. They realized that we needed to spend more time with these business clients to help them achieve their goals. Taking this step also helped the team see that I was serious about doing more for the small business clients, allowing them to concentrate on a more narrow focus and not have to worry about 25 different states. Deciding what you are not going to do will free up valuable time and resources.
Areas to Look At
Systems
Customer Selection
How you and your team spend time
Customer Profitability
Product Profitability
Employee Profitability