Four Mistakes That Can Kill Your Small Business

While every unhappy family may be unhappy in its own way, as Tolstoy famously said in Anna Karenina, businesses only fail for one of four reasons.
That's the assertion of author and business-management expert Mark Stevens. So, what are these four fatal flaws that could doom your business? Here is Stevens' list:


1. (Lack of) leadership. Management has lost command and control. The company becomes a group of people working under the same roof but rarely, if ever, rowing the same boat. I've seen this one a lot during management transitions, too. If there isn't a clear message from the top about what is going to happen and what the change means, employees are soon engaged full time in turning the rumor mill rather than doing their actual jobs.


2. Complacency. When business is good, managers are lulled into believing the company will always perform well. Moral: Never coast. This reminds me of how Blockbuster Inc. didn't see the need to change its business model until way too late and was left behind by Netflix.


3. Belief in conventional wisdom. Examples of how following the crowd can tank your business include trying to manage by consensus (impossible, Stevens says) or rewarding people based on seniority rather than performance (just plain wrong, according to Stevens).


4. "Lust to lax syndrome." This happens when your business focuses all its resources on landing desirable, lusted-after new customers, only to follow through with mediocre service once clients are signed up. Customers are less than thrilled and soon depart. I think all the big telecommunications companies fit in this boat. Don't they put on a big splashy marketing push and offer you incentives to switch to their service? Then you find you can't get any phone reception -- or anyone on the phone to help you fix it.
Those are all certainly reasons many businesses fail, but I have to add a fifth common culprit: Failure to do market research before opening the business or launching a new initiative. Essentially, the business ends up with the wrong premise, trying to sell the wrong products to the wrong customers in the wrong place or at the wrong price.


I've seen so many businesses fall down this hole -- opening a retail store where there isn't enough foot traffic, or stocking a product that's wrong for the market. You might be a great people manager, but if you haven't researched your market and found a need that you can address, the business is in trouble from the start.


Article Author: Carol Tice
Source: http://www.entrepreneur.com/blog/219751#

NATIONAL CONFERENCE IN NASHVILLE, TENNESSEE

          

JUNE 24 - JUNE 26

Capital Marketing Solutions is going to a leadership conference and we will:

• participate in valuable and informational workshops.
• receive important business updates.
• attend an award ceremony.
• discuss self-development and leadership styles. 
• network with amazing professionals.
• experience Nashville as a team.

    

5 CREATIVITY EXERCISES TO FIND YOUR PASSION!

Benjamin Disraeli, a 19th century British Prime Minister, once said, "Man is only great when he acts from passion."

For today's aspiring entrepreneur, exploring avenues of creativity to find your passion is likely the quickest route to increase your chances of launching a successful business. Where to start? Here, five exercises to help you uncover your passion.

Exercise 1 - Revisit your childhood. What did you love to do?

"It's amazing how disconnected we become to the things that brought us the most joy in favor of what's practical," says Rob Levit, an Annapolis, Md.-based creativity expert, speaker and business consultant.

Levit suggests making a list of all the things you remember enjoying as a child. Would you enjoy that activity now? For example, Frank Lloyd Wright, America's greatest architect, played with wooden blocks all through childhood and perhaps well past it.

"Research shows that there is much to be discovered in play, even as adults," Levit says.

Revisit some of the positive activities, foods and events of childhood. Levit suggests asking yourself these questions to get started: What can be translated and added into your life now? How can those past experiences shape your career choices now?

Exercise 2 - Make a "creativity board."

Start by taking a large poster board, put the words "New Business" in the center and create a collage of images, sayings, articles, poems and other inspirations, suggests Michael Michalko, a creativity expert based in Rochester, N.Y., and Naples, Fla., and author of creativity books and tools, including ThinkPak (Ten Speed Press, 2006).

"The idea behind this is that when you surround yourself with images of your intention -- who you want to become or what you want to create -- your awareness and passion will grow," Michalko says.

As your board evolves and becomes more focused, you will begin to recognize what is missing and imagine ways to fill the blanks and realize your vision.

Exercise 3 - Make a list of people who are where you want to be.

You don't have to reinvent the wheel. Study people who have been successful in the area you want to pursue. 

For example, during the recession, many people shied away from the real estate market because they thought it was a dead end. Levit believes that's the perfect time to jump in -- when most others are bailing out -- because no matter the business, there are people who are successful in it. Study them, figure out how and why they are able to remain successful when everyone else is folding and then set up structures to emulate them.

"If you want to be creative, create a rigorous and formal plan," Levit says. "It's not the plan that is creative; it's the process that you go through that opens up so many possibilities."

Exercise 4 - Start doing what you love, even without a business plan

A lot of people wait until they have an extensive business plan written down, along with angel investors wanting to throw cash at them -- and their ideas never see the light of day, according to Cath Duncan, a Calgary, Canada-based creativity expert and life coach who works with entrepreneurs and other professionals.

She recommends doing what you enjoy -- even if you haven't yet figured out how to monetize it. Test what it might be like to work in an area you're passionate about, build your business network and ask for feedback that will help you develop and refine a business plan.

It's a way to not only show the value you would bring, but you can also get testimonials that will help launch your business when you're ready to make it official.

"Perhaps most importantly, though, it'll shift you out of paralysis and fear," Cath says, "and the joy of seeing the difference your contribution makes will fuel your creativity."

Exercise 5 - Take a break from business thinking.

While it might feel uncomfortable to step outside of business mode, the mind sometimes needs a rest from such bottom-line thinking, says Levit, who has recently taken up Japanese haiku, a form of poetry. Maybe for you, it will be creative writing, painting, running or even gardening.

After you take a mental vacation indulging in something you're passionate about, Levit suggests coming back to a journal and writing down any business ideas that come to mind.

"You'll be amazed at how refreshed your ideas are," he says. "Looking at beautiful things - art and nature - creates connections that we often neglect to notice. Notice them capture, them in writing and use them."

Source: http://www.entrepreneur.com/article/219709
Article Author: Lisa Girard

5 Attributes Of The World’s Greatest Business Leaders

Theodore Roosevelt once said, "People don’t care how much you know, until they know how much you care.” Those business leaders that care the most have the greatest impact on their employees and will, in turn, be the most successful leaders.
When your employees know that you care about what they think and about their lives, they will feel more valued. In turn, they will pay that back to you in the form of being a dedicated employee and giving you respect. What more could a business owner ask for? Now it’s just a matter of making sure you possess the caring attributes you need in order to lead.
Here are the five attributes of the world’s greatest business leaders.

Be of the people
People usually identify with leaders from within. This is because they believe there is a “get me” feeling. When you lead by being part of the crowd, you will be much more embraced. The ones who are “above the crowd” are seen as elitist, and it is difficult to connect with those people, or to like them.

Be humble
Great leaders know that no one, including themselves, is better or worse. Everyone brings their own value, and collectively there is power in that. Great leaders position themselves so that if they leave the group, the group stays just as strong. Great leaders develop strength in the crowd and free everyone from dependency on any one individual.

Be simple
To be a great leader, avoid communicating over people’s heads. Instead, communicate on the same level as everyone else. This, in part, will make you one “of the people.” Good communication with your employees can be a key component in helping to grow your business. Besides, when you talk to people rather than down to them, you show respect. That, in turn, will get you respect.

Block and tackle
Great leaders defend, protect and help their team. They know their most important job is to make everyone else’s job easier. And they gladly do the dirtiest of the dirty work when it supports the achievement of team goals. When you show you are willing to get in there and get dirty, you are demonstrating to them that you are humble, and you are one of them.

Believe in them
Forget trying to get the people to believe in you. Instead, get them to believe in themselves. Let them know you believe they can do their job, they can help the company succeed and that they will do what is right. That’s what great leaders do, and when you can do that, they will automatically believe in you.

Mutual Stance
Often times, entrepreneurs don’t realize that they will get what they give when it comes to their employees. You have no doubt heard the axiom that to get respect you have to give it; it works like magic in the business world. Treat your employees how you want to be treated, especially when it comes to being a part of their group, respecting who they are and believing in them. When you do this, you will make your job, and theirs, a whole lot easier.
Focus on showing your employees that you care, and you will see the rewards come back to you. People who know that their leaders care want to see them succeed. They will do everything they can to give them the support, and productivity, that is needed. What helps make a great business leader, in turn, helps to make great employees. And the cycle continues.

Source: http://www.openforum.com/articles/5-attributes-of-the-worlds-greatest-business-leaders 
            Article Author Mike Michalowicz