The Perfect Marketing Strategy
June 14th, 2010 // 6:04 pm @ John D. Laslavic
“Perfection is something you should strive for every day but realize you may never reach!”
If someone was to ask me what the most important thing to do in marketing a professional service these days, I might suggest a number of marketing strategies.
But what I’d emphasize, above all else, would be taking action on something, anything, and not worrying if it was perfect enough.
Last last year I had an imperfect campaign to launch a new idea.
Then I designed an imperfect campaign and launched it.
I sent imperfect emails to announce it.
I put on imperfect teleclasses to promote it.
I did imperfect interviews with marketing experts.
I led imperfect coaching calls with members.
I tried several imperfect introductory pricing strategies. And the clients are getting imperfect results.
I now have about 650 new clients, and that’s perfect!
I will continue in my imperfect ways.
I just designed imperfect Groups. And no doubt I will manage those imperfectly as well.
If you are waiting to do things perfectly before you get started, you may just be a perfect idiot. Perfection is something you strive for, realizing it is never reached.
The Bottom Line: Got a marketing idea? Jump in and do it imperfectly. Your imperfect idea with the imperfect plan and the imperfect implementation may just attract all the new customers you need.
What do you do imperfectly and get great results anyway?
ThistleSea Business Development, has the resources and the expertise to help you grow a “sustainable” business even if a bit imperfectly.
Adapted from an eZine by Robert Middleton, President , Action Plan Marketing, http://www.actionplan.com.
Is Everything Sustainable?
June 14th, 2010 // 5:58 pm @ John D. Laslavic
Sustainability – Creating value for customers, investors, and the environment
The buzz word I heard the entire month was “Sustainable”.
Everything is about and everyone seems to have some angle on this word. It is vogue I guess. It is touted on news, at seminars, in businesses, trumpeted by business leaders, law makers, in articles, from government officials, foundations, foreign countries, politicians, economists and comedians, just to name drop a few.
Believe it or not, I heard the spokespersons apply the term sustainability to issues from firms large and small; in the reference to farming, manufacturing, insurance, hospitals, banking, construction, design, engineering, sciences, medicine, pharmaceuticals, energy, utilities, chemicals, sports, services, architecture, finance, educaton, not-for-profits, entertainment, fuels, law, transportation, and even the government. And I probably missed hundreds of others.
From McDonalds, to Nike, to Starbucks, to Home Depot, to NASA, to the Pittsburgh Convention Center for the G-20, they all are talking about their efforts to develop a more sustainable businesses or sometimes called a greener business. Even the Cleveland Browns and the Dallas Cowboys are looking for sustainability.
So if you’re curious like me, you’ve got to dig into the term sustainable to find out how this really applies to a business coach (since I didn’t heard business coaching in the dialogue all month) and what it might mean to my clients and your business.
According to the Wikipedia; “a Sustainable business, or green business, is enterprise that has no negative impact on the global or local environment, community, society, or economy-a business that strives to meet the triple bottom line. (Editors Note: The use of no negative impact might just cause a few disagreements.)
A sustainable business is any organization that participates in environmentally-friendly or green activities to ensure that all processes, products, and manufacturing activities adequately address current environmental concerns while maintaining a profit. In other words, it is a business that “meets the needs of the present world without compromising the ability of the future generations to meet their own needs.” It is the process of assessing how to design products that will take advantage of the current environmental situation and how well a company’s products perform with renewable resources.
The Brundtland Report emphasized that sustainability is a three-legged stool of people, planet, and profit. Sustainable businesses with the supply chain try to balance all three through the triple-bottom-line concept-using sustainable development and sustainable distribution to impact the environment, business growth, and the society”
As a business coach, I work with clients on a continual basis to assist them adopt best business practices. As a practical matter, it is yet to be seen how the economic landscape will evolve to adapt to this movement to a more sustainable or greener world. The economics will be one critical factor where my clients will lean on me a bit more to provide leadership, guidance and partnering with them to assistance in implementing sustainable solutions that improve their businesses.
Watch with a critical eye what opportunities exist with this movement because there is money to be made. I could be wrong, but I believe T. Boone Pickens, for example, just might make a few bucks on his movement for sustainable and “green” natural gas. For example, he continues to lobby congress to mandate that all new freight trucks be required to burn only natural gas instead of diesel fuel. If this is good economics, why isn’t it being done today? And if it happens, it may be a tremendous opportunity for your business!
Adopting these sustainable practices can be good for us all and for future generations and might even improve our profitability. On the cynical side, I hope we are not mandated into a position where our hands become so tied and we lose our freedom to compete in the marketplace and are forced to mis-allocate our precious resources just because the new policies and legislation are labeled as sustainable or green.
By: John D. Laslavic, LPBC
Business Coach/President
ThistleSea Business Development, LLC
If you have any thoughts, email me at info@thistlesea.biz.
© 2009, ThistleSea Business Development; All Rights Reserved
Can Extraordinary Leaders Double Profits?
June 14th, 2010 // 5:53 pm @ John D. Laslavic
Is there really a connection between leadership and increased profits? The answer is YES!
In recent work by Jack Zenger, Joe Folkman and Scott K. Edinger they found that decoding leadership revealed patterns that can be used to develop leaders that inspire and motivate employees to higher levels of productivity and deliver profits as a result. As a matter of fact, extraordinary leaders can double profits.
So what is the connection between leadership and the bottom line?
Zenger, Folkman and Edinger through their study, found a growing body of research supporting the conclusion that leaders, good and bad directly affect the bottom line of companies. Analyzing a database of 300,000 360 degree feedback reports on approximately 30,000 managers collected in hundreds of companies around the world revealed concrete performance metrics that allowed them to compare measurable business results with leadership effectiveness. This data reveals how to identify extraordinary leaders and how to develop leaders.
A leadership study for a commercial bank revealed that poor leaders represent 10% of the management and lost the bank money; good leaders represent 80% of the management and made a profit and the bank’s extraordinary leaders more than doubled profits in comparison to the other 90 percent. During the period studied poor leaders (10%) in the study lost 1.2 million dollars; good leaders’ (80%) results provided net income of 1.2 million dollars; while the extraordinary leaders (10%) produced net income of 4.5 million dollars.
While extraordinary leaders don’t double profits in every case, it is proven that good leaders create more economic value than poor leaders and extraordinary leaders create significantly more economic value as compared to the rest.
What factors have the most powerful impact on the ability of a leader to perform at the level of extraordinary? Measurement of a leader’s impact on the bottom line reveals focus on the factors of employee retention and turnover; employee commitment and morale; customer satisfaction; and productivity. Because these factors can be objectively measured, the trend lines throughout the studies reveal these same factors every time.
Developing Extraordinary Leaders
Organizations of any size can capitalize on the research by following a business development model that focuses on leadership development that defines the competencies that will make a difference as show by the best companies. The studies reveal a clear path to extraordinary leadership, increased productivity and more profits. This path is to build and develop your company’s leadership on 16 competencies and strengths. These 16 competencies can be divided into 5 categories of behavior, as outlined below:
- Focus on results.
- Drives For Results,
- Establishes Stretch Goals
- Takes Initiative
- Leading change.
- Develops strategic perspectives,
- Champions change
- Connects the group to the outside world
- Character.
- Displays high integrity and honesty
- Interpersonal skills.
- Communicates powerfully and proficiently,
- Inspires and motivates others to high performance
- Builds relationships
- Develops others
- Collaborates and teamwork
- Personal capability.
- Demonstrates technical professional expertise
- Solves problems and analyzes issues
- Innovates
- Practices self-development
These 16 competencies were most frequently and consistently those that separated the extraordinary leaders from the rest. While not all leaders will possess all the above traits, most extraordinary leaders will possess strengths in at least 3 or 4 competencies.
One Most Important Competency
The one pivotal competency that distinguishes the extraordinary (10%) leaders was interpersonal skills behaviors. These leaders do their jobs well but also inspire and motivate their people to succeed. And the process is simple; develop leaders in your company with the competencies that support the behavior of inspiring and motivating people.
Empirical analysis in the study revealed that some of the traditional methods of motivating where less effective than applying use of competency companion behaviors which were not often intuitive. For example:
- Setting stretch goals for employees.
- Establishing a clear vision.
- Developing others.
- Practicing greater teamwork collaboration.
- Demonstrating greater initiative.
- Being a role model.
Developing leaders in your company with these competency companions and developing a system for follow-up, accountability and practicing new skills are critical for your company’s leadership success and key to doubling your profits.
It is possible to measure leadership in dollars. Good leaders create value and extraordinary leaders create far more value that good leaders. Wisely choose to develop yourself and the leaders in your company.
If you want to learn more about this topic or how to apply these competencies in your company, call ThistleSea Business Development, LLC at 724.935.1930.
Adapted from: CLO Magazine, How extraordinary leaders double profits, by Jack Zenger, Joe Folkman and Scott K. Edinger, July 2009
By: John D. Laslavic, LPBC
Business Coach/President
ThistleSea Business Development, LLC
© 2009, ThistleSea Business Development, All Rights Reserved
13 Questions: Is your company growing too fast?
June 14th, 2010 // 5:49 pm @ John D. Laslavic
A recent national shipping company’s television advertisement began with a company manager in a panic describing all of the issues he is facing has because of a great spike of growth in the business. Following the manager’s tantrum, a worker simply asked the raving manager, “But isn’t growth the reason why we are in the business?”
Growth should be a goal of any business, but growth should also be carefully planned. Impatience can lead to a number of common mishaps: the failed launch of a new product or service, expanding into an unfamiliar field before the company is ready, buying new equipment before you can actually afford it, or making an acquisition without proper due diligence. Should you curb your current growth plan?
Answer the following 13 questions, True or False and find out.
- Every day you’re running in a constant crisis mode.
- You don’t have any time to each month to evaluate what’s going on in your industry.
- You’ve hired more temporary help than permanent employees in order to keep up with demand.
- You seem to get less financial return for every dollar you add to the payroll.
- Your posted job openings outnumber the number of workers you currently employ.
- Your back orders have grown substantially beyond your standard lead time.
- Your adoption of new technology is either well ahead or well behind a company of your size.
- Customer complaints are increasing.
- Your overhead costs are skyrocketing.
- Your existing customers are not getting the attention they deserve because you’re pursuing new clients.
- Cash flow is tight because of your expenses and debts.
- Employees or a product group are putting a strain on the overall profitability of the company.
- You don’t have a good handle on accounts receivable management or the finances.
If you answered True to more than three of these questions, your company is probably at risk of becoming out of your own control.
Take a step back and analyze what degree of growth is sustainable, profitable, and feasible for your business, and adjust your operations to make that growth a reality. This might require you to sideline some projects, or hold off on your dream of bigger offices, or even wait before adding staff. But in the end, your company will emerge stronger.
ThistleSea Business Development, has the resources and the expertise to help you grow a sustainable business. Give us a call at 724.935.1930 to schedule a confidential session to discuss your specific situation.
Adapted from Inc Magazine. Is your company growing too fast for you to keep up? – Gray, Keaton; August 2009.
Surviving And Thriving In The Economic Downturn (Part 2)
June 14th, 2010 // 5:46 pm @ John D. Laslavic
Part 2 – By: Denise Hebb, CPA – Certified Public Accountant & Certified Fraud Examiner
PAY ATTENTION TO THE DETAILS. Just as you did when your business began, now is the time to pay attention to all of the small details of your business. As you expanded, you likely hired additional employees and delegated much of these small details.
Review employee expense reports. In good times, employees are likely to claim excessive reimbursement for “business-related” expenses. It is standard practice, a little perk for a job well done. But, as your profit margins decline, it is just such expenses that can sink you. Take the time to review these expenses, don’t hesitate to refuse excessive reimbursements, and consider establishing a less liberal reimbursement policy. For instance, mileage reimbursement does not have to be that allowed by the IRS. Many companies routinely reimburse mileage at a lower rate – if you are paying the maximum, now might be the time to reduce this cost.
Be alert to fraud and abuse. It is a fact, employees steal. Whether it is cash and inventory, taking excessive paid time off, or slacking on the job, employees are often self-serving. In the current economic turmoil, employers should expect an increase in such behavior.
The fraud triangle describes three conditions that must exist in order for fraud to occur: pressure or incentive, rationalization, and opportunity. As businesses suffer through hard times, employees are also experiencing their own difficulties. Making their mortgage payment or meeting other obligations becomes more difficult, creating an incentive to take advantage of their employer. Pay cuts, layoffs, or uncertain continued employment enable the employee to rationalize that, in these difficult times, it is reasonable for them to look out for themselves. The incentives and rationalization naturally arise even more frequently in the face of economic uncertainty. There is very little that you can to do curtail these factors.
This leaves just one condition that you can impact – opportunity. Making sure that you have adequate controls over assets such as cash and inventory, closely monitoring the behavior of your employees, and independently reviewing business transactions is your best defense against employee theft. Employees, even dishonest ones, want to appear honest. Implementing proper internal controls will increase the employees’ perception that they might be caught. It is the threat of being exposed that deters most employees from taking advantage of you.
Monitor inventory levels. Inventory represents an investment. You manufacture or acquire goods, hold them in stock until they are sold, and hopefully sell them at a profit. While held for sale, inventory is an idle asset – not making you any money and, in fact, compromising your cash flow. Now, more than ever, you should avoid unnecessarily high inventory levels. Monitoring your “days in inventory” ratio is critical. Cut back your orders or production to meet your current demand. Consider selling inventory that has been on the shelves for a while at a discount. It is better to breakeven or even take a small loss on the sale of unproductive assets than to continue to have cash tied up in them.
Focus on service. It is exceptional customer service that sets you apart from your competition. Exceptional customer service is appreciated and can make or break any business. It is often an intangible asset that drives repeat business. Make sure that everyone in your organization understands the importance of exceptional customer service.
I am a loyal Costco customer. Their prices are right, but their customer service routinely exceeds my expectations. I purchased a leather sofa and loveseat in August 2006. My family had enjoyed this purchase for nearly three years, when I noticed that the leather on the armrests has seemed to melt. It is not just wear and tear, but appears to be some sort of problem with the treatment of the leather. I approached the service desk at Costco to inquire if anything might be done. Considering that the furniture is nearly three years old, I did not expect much. But, to my great pleasure, Costco informed me if I was not satisfied with my purchase; they would gladly accept a return and give me a full cash refund. Threes years later, a full cash refund – once again, my expectations were greatly exceeded. Wonder why I am a loyal Costco customer? I buy everything from furniture and appliances to food, clothes, and books from Costco. As I said, the price is right, but it is the customer service that really knocks my socks off.
Know your competitive advantages. You need to know what you do that sets you apart from your competitors. You need to able to clearly articulate your competitive advantages. Identify your strengths and highlight them to your customers. In tumultuous times, it is best to stick with your core competencies. Use your core strengths to make your business shine.
Focusing your efforts on existing customers. As sales decline, competition for business increases. This makes keeping close contact with existing customers more important than ever. Ignoring them simply gives your competition an opportunity to get their foot in the door. Your existing customers are your biggest asset – work with them to increase their orders and to obtain referrals.
In addition, while sales to your customers are important, cash flow is even more critical. Keeping close contact with your existing customers allows you to continually assess their ability to pay their bills. Be alert to downturns in their businesses and pay close attention to your accounts receivable. Changes in payment terms might indicate they are having trouble paying their bills. Don’t be afraid to call for your payment, it is often the squeaky wheel that gets the attention.
Focus on profitability, not growth. Growing a business often requires a substantial investment, one that might not be possible during down times. It is better to focus on your bottom line. While it is tempting to reduce your prices to spur increased sales, this is not always a wise course of action. Reduced prices decrease your profit margins and, even when the economy recovers, your customers may be resistant to price increases.
In addition, before reducing your prices, you must consider how this might harm your “brand”. Remember, for most businesses, price is not the only factor customers consider when making their purchase. Even products that might be considered commodities are often differentiated and sold at various prices.
Continue marketing your business. It is tempting to cutback on advertising during down times. Many small businesses are likely to decrease their advertising, so use this to your advantage. Maintain or even increase your efforts. Marketing builds businesses; this is especially true when the economy is down. Consider some low cost alternatives to your current advertising.
Direct mail works. I have successfully used direct mail to market a number of successful businesses. I have consistently found that it provides more results per dollar spent than traditional advertising.
Reactivate past customers. Approach inactive customers and ask why they are no longer customers. Determine what can be done to make them customers again. If your company has failed in some way, vow to remedy the situation and ask for the business back.
Take the time to call on potential customers yourself. Everyone likes to feel appreciated. Calling your customers is one of the best ways you can convey your appreciation. A lunch, a quick cup of coffee, or dropping off a small token of your appreciation will go a long way towards making your customer feel important.
Do anything you can to get yourself in front of customers or potential customers. Speaking at events or hosting workshops enables you to hold yourself out as an expert and gives you the opportunity to meet new people – potential new customers.
Newsletters are a great way to get your name in front of both existing and potential customers. Often you can purchase a prewritten newsletter that can be modified and used to enhance your marketing efforts.
Update your website. Often websites are developed and then just left to be. Doing so is not making the best use of your investment and the monthly hosting fees you must pay. Update your site, add links, and actively promote it. Entire businesses thrive on marketing efforts linked to their website. Use your site wisely.
Finally, don’t worry unproductively. Worrying about things outside of your control increases your stress and distracts you from areas that are controllable. Focus your time and energy on the things that you can control. Let others worry about the world economy while you control your own attitude and actions. Identify strategies to highlight and increase your business. Even in down times, businesses survive. Do what you must to ensure that your business is one of them.
Guest Contributor: Denise M. Hebb, CPA is the owner and president of D. Hebb & Company, LLC, located in the Wexford Professional Building II, 11676 Perry Highway, Suite 2105 Wexford, PA 15090. Denise can be reached at (724) 935-5480 or dmhebb@cs.com.
ThistleSea Business Development, LLC is proud to have Hebb & Company, LLC, Certified Public Accountants as a client. © 2009, ThistleSea Business Development, All Rights Reserved
Surviving And Thriving In The Economic Downturn (Part 1)
June 14th, 2010 // 5:42 pm @ John D. Laslavic
Part 1 – By: Denise Hebb, CPA – Certified Public Accountant & Certified Fraud Examiner
As a small business owner, it is almost inevitable that the current economic climate has caused you to panic. Decreased sales, lower profit margins, and slower collection of receivables certainly creates a stressful situation. But, for most small business owners, the current uncertainty is not something new. Just think back to when you first started your business or to when you weathered the last economic downturn. While you probably worried about whether your business would succeed or fail, there was also something exhilarating about the path you had chosen.
I have spent the better part of my professional career making my own way. I often describe it as flying without a net. There is something exciting and liberating about making my own way. Making my own rules, setting my own goals, and executing my own business strategies is what makes going to work every day seem worthwhile. Even as I work much harder than any “real” job might demand, I feel free. Free to set my own path, free to make my own mistakes, and free to succeed beyond my wildest imagination. Even a long-term consulting gig begins to feel like a cage to me.
Such freedom requires that I bear the burden of the risks associated with running my own show, but it also allows me to reap the rewards of a successful endeavor. My biggest fear is that my business ventures will be unsuccessful and I will be forced to get a real job. It is this fear drives me. I work hard, but as soon as I achieve a goal I move the goal line. It is a constant push forward, always waiting for the next sign of my success. I am incessantly impatient and cannot wait to see the results of my work. So, a slow down in the economy concerns me.
I liken the current economic environment to starting a new business venture. While there is a lot of uncertainty and risks prevalent in the current economy, there is also an enormous opportunity for success. Not every small business will weather the storm, but those that survive might benefit from less competition. Taking advantage of current opportunities might be as simple as getting back to basics and behaving as if you just started your business. Starting any business required the right mindset and the willingness to do whatever it takes to succeed.
Don’t be afraid to get your hands dirty. When starting a new business, you had to be prepared to do whatever it took to succeed. You did not have the resources to hire someone to perform many of the required tasks. So, you rolled up your sleeves and did whatever needs to be done. You answered phones, took out the trash, or delivered a customer order yourself. And, if you are honest with yourself, you happily did whatever needed doing. A downturn in you business might require you to step into some of the roles you originally fulfilled.
Now is the time to evaluate your staff and determine if it makes sense to outsource or insource some of the work to yourself or family members. While your current staffing levels might be ideal, you may simply not be able to afford ideal. Just as you did when you first started, you must critically evaluate your current employees and determine if cutbacks are required for your business to succeed. Waiting too long to make this assessment might mean the end of your business.
But, be warned, do not act too hastily. Good and loyal employees are hard to find. Cultivating talent is often a lengthily and costly process. Partial cutbacks may be a better alternative to cutting positions entirely. For instance, employees will often accept a reduction in their pay if it means that all employees get to keep their jobs. As a business owner, you must carefully evaluate your employees and their efforts against the needs of the business.
Expect to make sacrifices. I’ll admit it. I am used to a certain standard of living. I hate doing without. Yet, each new business I started meant that I might not receive a weekly, or even annual, paycheck. This is the price paid for the freedom that running your own business. If you want a steady, predictable payment for your services, then maybe a “real” job is for you. Having your own business means that you must be prepared to sacrifice some of your financial security and be willing to go into debt – responsibly, of course – if necessary to ensure that your business succeeds. It can be a frightening road, but a road that should be familiar to many small business owners. While doing without a paycheck is stressful in the short-term, it can have many long-term benefits. There is no doubt that I have earned many times over the salary that I could have expected from a regular job. The greater risk has certainly resulted in much greater rewards.
When business is booming, we all have the tendency to more freely expend our resources. We expand of lines of business, hire additional staff, and fail to carefully scrutinize our purchases. When the profits are flowing, spending doesn’t seem quite as important as it did in the beginning. But, now is the time to postpone nonessential expenditures and focus your efforts on your most profitable lines of business. Just as you did when you first started your business – you must evaluate all expenditures. Are they necessary? Are there lower cost alternatives? Can the expenditure be postponed? Take a long look at all expenditures including inventory, occupancy costs, payroll and employee benefits, and travel and entertainment. Just as you did in the beginning, you need to get by with a bit less.
Renegotiate your office lease. Has the market rate for your space declined? Does your building have an excess of vacant offices? Is your lease about to expire? Are you paying for space you don’t need or use? Use the downturn in the economy to your advantage by trying to renegotiate more favorable terms. Perhaps agreeing to a lease extension will allow for a significant cost reduction. Not surprisingly, you may find your landlord more than willing to renegotiate the terms of your least. But, if you don’t ask, you will never know.
Review your telephone and Internet services. Are there lower cost providers in the area? Do you need all of your existing lines? Just as when you started your business, shop around for the best value.
Review your routine office supply purchases. Often, as a business becomes more profitable, the purchasing of supplies is delegated to an administrative staff member. As time goes by, the plethora of supply choices in the office expands. Anything the staff desires is automatically ordered. Shopping for the lowest price takes a backseat, supplies are ordered ad hoc and without much consideration. Your review of such purchases can save you a significant amount of money. A small investment of your time can reap huge rewards.
I had recently worked at a small CPA firm. A new office manager was hired and placed in charge of purchasing office supplies. We had a good year of getting anything the staff wanted. I mentioned that I would like to have a laminated set of tax return assembly instructions placed at the front-desk, a single page document – a laminating machine and all required supplies was promptly ordered. I mentioned that we should have binding combs available in various sizes – a file drawer full of binding supplies (more then could be used in a decade!) arrived shortly thereafter. Needless to say, we had any type of pens, pencils, paper, calculators, desk lamps, or other office supply that we wanted. The office staff was ecstatic, but the bill for these supplies had to be enormous.
Review service contracts. Whether it is your IT support, office cleaning, or payroll service, many services are commodities. Paying a premium for such services makes little sense when your profits are soaring, but they make even less sense when things are a bit tight.
Pay attention to your “cringe” factor. When signing checks, notice if there are expenditures that make you cringe. You are most likely not getting value out of these expenditures. Now is the time to review them and find a way to reduce them or find a better provider.
Contributor: Denise M. Hebb, CPA is the owner and president of D. Hebb & Company, LLC, located in the Wexford Professional Building II, 11676 Perry Highway, Suite 2105 Wexford, PA 15090. Denise can be reached at (724) 935-5480 or dmhebb@cs.com.
ThistleSea Business Development, LLC is proud to have Hebb & Company, LLC, Certified Public Accountants as a client. © 2009, ThistleSea Business Development, All Rights Reserved
Another ThistleSea Client Success Story: RoPro Design, Inc.
June 14th, 2010 // 5:38 pm @ John D. Laslavic
Business success is typically measured in terms we understand, “PROFIT” and sometimes it’s measured in new terms, that of RACING!
RAY RUSSELL, President, RoPro Design, Inc.
Ray Russel, President, RoPro Design
I met Mr. Ray Russell, President of RoPro Design, Inc. for the first time in October 2007. At the time Ray shared with me his love of engineering, designing robots, building robots and competitive bicycle racing. As a matter of fact, his love and passion for bike racing was the reason why he started his own firm in the first place. He could train during the day and work in the evening. This was a perfect combination to keep his competitive spirit alive and him in the physical shape to race at the top level in his age class.
However, Ray also shared with me that when he hired his first employee, things began to change. Why? Because he had to work the same hours as his employees! And, as the business grew and became more successful, more employees were hired, more work was added and his reason for starting the firm, his dream and what he personally wanted to achieve by starting the firm, to train and race, that dream began to die.
Below are some excerpts of a letter Ray wrote to me in October 2007:
“We (RoPro Design) are basically a design / fabrication company that specializes in robotic prototypes (for major universities) and other local robotic start-up firms.
I would like to talk about is my own role within RoPro. I have a clear understanding of both my strengths and weaknesses and know that I need specific help with my weaknesses in order to grow. In short, I’m an engineer – I like being an engineer – I’m good at being an engineer. I really enjoy a good engineering challenge. I enjoy meeting with customers – traveling to their locations and helping them bring to life whatever robotic creation they have in mind. So the engineering, design and customer interaction side of the business is solid.
I’ve been told, (by others), that the answer is to relinquish my engineering duties and hire an engineer. This would free me up to be the CEO I should be.
Unfortunately all the things I really like about the business are on the engineering side – and all the things I really detest about the business are on the management side. I know most business owners ultimately do this but in my particular situation I don’t see that as being an option.
The areas where I struggle are the day-to-day non-engineering aspects of running the business. I have hired a new bookkeeper who already has taken a large burden from me but I’m still stuck with reviewing contracts, writing proposals, managing the daily task list of others, and answering the cell phone which rings non-stop.
The obvious course then seems to be to hire a CEO and get on with it. I’m all for this except for the fact that a CEO would be an immediate huge expensive overhead hit to the company. We simply aren’t big enough yet to handle that sort of indirect cost. Which puts us in a chicken-egg sort of thing. Can’t grow w/o a CEO – aren’t big enough to afford a CEO. We make a good living – the bills get paid – but ultimately nothing changes. I think that needs to change or we are going to stagnate and die.”
RoPro Design began working with ThistleSea Business Development in late 2007 and remains an exceptional client today. With our help, Ray designed a strategic business action plan and has consistently worked on his action plan. By applying best business practices, Ray has not only continued to achieve success at RoPro Design, Inc. but also on the RACING CIRCUIT.
This month Ray wrote me the following on July 13th:
“John, since our company measures its success in bike racing terms rather than profit/loss – we had a very successful weekend.”
I rode in the Tour of the Valley stage race in Ohio. 4 races over 4 days. I was in 3rd place in the overall points going into the road race on Saturday. Won the race and took over the yellow jersey. Went to Youngstown, OH yesterday morning and raced the final criterium. In the sprint for the finish, a rider went down in the front of me. I managed to miss him but ended up 7th across the line. When they announced the final results, I had won the overall championship by 1 slim point. $225 into the racing account. Sweet…. Also got to kiss the pretty trophy girl…also sweet.”
Ray Russel receives first place and a kiss.
While Ray, after the kiss, works to restore his relationship with his wife! (Actually, his wife took the picture). His success in both RACING and his business is a testament to the power of coaching in sports as well as business. He loves his firm, his profession, his business and RACING. Oh, don’t forget his wife.
That’s true success and what ThistleSea’s Business Coaching is all about; the Abundance in the life of the business owner.
By: John D. Laslavic LPBC, Predisent, ThistleSea Business Development, LLC
Learn more about RoPro Design, Inc. at www.roprodesign.com.
© 2009, ThistleSea Business Development, All Rights Reserved
9 Cannots – A Message Worth Repeating
June 14th, 2010 // 5:33 pm @ John D. Laslavic
Can Do!
- Support thrift. You cannot bring about prosperity by discouraging thrift.
- Strengthen all. You cannot strengthen the weak by weakening the strong.
- Help the wage payer. You cannot help the wage earner by pulling down the wage payer.
- Support cooperation. You cannot further the brotherhood of man by encouraging class hatred.
- Encourage rich and poor alike. You cannot help the poor by discouraging the rich.
- Establish a strong financial foundation. You cannot establish sound security on borrowed money.
- Save. You cannot keep out of trouble by spending more than you earn.
- Fight for freedom. You cannot build character and courage by taking away man’s initiative and independence.
- Take Responsibility. You cannot help man permanently by doing for them what they could and should do for themselves.
Attributed to Rev. William J. H. Boetcker, who lectured around the United States about industrial relations at the turn of the twentieth century. And used by Ronald Reagan at the 1992 Republican Convention.
Throwing A Wrench In The Gears of Your Business
June 14th, 2010 // 5:29 pm @ John D. Laslavic
CASE STUDY
I recently was referred to a business owner by one of my clients. At my first meeting with this business owner, he expressed how absolutely fed up he was with his business. The dream of a successful business had vanished for him. He informed me that he had already gone back to a full-time job with his former employer working for this airline on the graveyard shift as a mechanic. Not a job he wanted, but it paid the bills.
Throwing of the Wrench
What transpired was an accident by a subcontractor who did not have insurance while working for him. This subcontractor threatened to hold this business owner liable for the accident. Medical bills, pain, suffering, attorney’s costs, and the insurance issues all lead up to him being overwhelmed. After struggling with the business for 8 years, this event was the final wrench that was thrown in the gears of his business and his dreams of having a successful business,
On the advice of his legal counsel, he was advised that his subcontractor agreements did not meet the IRS guidelines for a subcontractor relationship and he would be held liable. On this advice, he should make a settlement payment. Fortunately, the subcontractor released the business owner from this liability with a financial settlement.
Under this pressure, he decided to get small again. The business owner continues to serve his existing customers himself after releasing all other subcontractors. He works this business in the day and the full-time job with the airline as a mechanic at night.
He has stopped answering the phone for the business while his current customers continue to refer new clients to him. In his words: “I just can’t take it anymore. I want out. I want to sell.” The fear of continuing to run the business has overwhelmed him.
Decisions of the Business Owner
Did his dreams of a better life and a great business have to end up this way? What drove him to not seek help and to continue to defend what he really didn’t know? Was it fear, pride, greed, inability to communicate, pressure, lack of knowledge, thinking that it cost too much to seek help? Most likely was some or a combination of all these factors? He revealed he did have an informal coach, which was actually another business owner with a similar business, running that business the same way. Not too successfully either, he mentioned.
This business, as with all small businesses for that matter, is the sum of all of the decisions of the owner. 10 examples of the decisions he made includes:
- Having actual employees is a bad thing!
- Hiring good employees is impossible!
- Not ever wanting to have a payroll!
- Paying worker’s compensation insurance would never work for his business!
- His pricing could not be changed!
- He could never put together a budget for his business; it’s just not for him!
- Planning just would not work!
- Legal services are to be used only when you’re in trouble!
- I know what I am doing and if I work hard producing for my customers, everything will work out!
- I just can’t find good people!
- I can always trust the advise from another business owner!
- Just to name a few!
Selling the Business?
Naturally, this business owner wants to sell his business for the highest amount he can get for it. “So how much is it worth,” he asked me? How much will the market (buyer) be willing to pay him for this business?
Some quick research revealed that most businesses in his market space are selling and in some demand. This business owner made a small profit for 8 years, but in retrospect did he really have a business? What does he have to sell?
After our discussion, he realized that all he has to sell is some equipment and a list of clients / prospects. Not much after 8 years of hard work. If he is very, very lucky he might get a buyer to pay him a small amount for the equipment and some goodwill. This ending was not at all what he had dreamed. How unfortunate.
Was he disappointed? YES. Did it have to end-up this way? Absolutely NOT.
Leading your Company
It was too late for the business owner to save the business in this actual situation above. He had already given up. However, if you’re under some pressure from your business you still have the opportunity to build a great business and the life a great business creates for you and your family.
There are many lessons that can be learned from this unfortunate situation. Could this business owner have changed this outcome? Would this outcome be different if some of the decisions made by the owner had been different? Is the business a reflection of the owner’s thinking? The answer to all the above is YES.
ThistleSea’s business coaches’ work with business owner’s everyday to help them to improve the performance of their businesses and the business’s value. We offer a Business Effectiveness Evaluation that can help pinpoint your business’s strengths and weaknesses in order to develop an action plan for improvement. This plan provides a road map of small steps you can take each day to help you achieve your dreams for your business, leading to a great life.
Isn’t it time you sat down with ThistleSea Business Development. Invite us in for a discussion. Call (724) 935-1930 to set-up your free meeting with a ThistleSea Licensed Professional Business Coach. I encourage you take action today!
By John D. Laslavic, LPBC , Business Coach / President, ThistleSea Business Development, LLC
© 2009, ThistleSea Business Development, All Rights Reserved
How Mentally Tough Are You?
June 14th, 2010 // 5:24 pm @ John D. Laslavic
A Short Quiz for Business Owners
Just how mentally tough are you? Take a few moments to fill out this questionnaire that covers several component skills of mental toughness. When you’re finished, send us an email to receive a self-evaluation for
“Scoring Your Results” to determine your mental strengths and weaknesses:
Answer T for True and F for False for each statement:
- I frequently worry about making mistakes.
- I get really down on myself when my business performs poorly and I mess up.
- It’s easy for me to let go of my mistakes.
- If I start out badly, it’s hard for me to turn my performance around.
- I get distracted by what the coach thinks whenever I screw up.
- I bounce back quickly from setbacks, bad breaks and mistakes.
- I do my best when there’s more pressure on me.
- I get too nervous to really perform to my potential.
- I do better in preparation than I do when it really counts the most.
- I tend to get easily psyched out or intimidated.
- I can keep myself calm and composed under pressure.
- I don’t want the ball/dread competing at “crunch time.” (big business opportunity).
- My coach’s comments makes me loose my focus.
- I tend to get easily distracted.
- Certain outsiders can get into my head and throw me off my game.
- Lousy business economic conditions or events (weather, politics, legislation, news, etc.) negatively affect me.
- I have no trouble focusing on what’s important and blocking everything else out.
- I think too much about what could go wrong right before and during important business actions, (the “what if’s”).
- One or two failures do not shake my confidence.
- I tend to compare myself too much with outsiders and competitors.
- I’d rather compete against a better competitor and lose than go up against a weaker competitor and win.
- I am a confident and self-assured business owner.
- I tend to be too negative.
- I have trouble dealing with negative self-talk (thoughts).
- I get more motivated after failures and setbacks.
- It’s easy for me to consistently prepare my business at a high level of intensity.
- I think about how today’s learning will help me get to my goals.
- I find myself just going through the motions a lot in preparation for business improvements.
- I have clear goals that are important for me to achieve.
- I am a highly motivated business owner.
If you are interested in learning how you scored go to: ( http://www.competitivedge.com/questionnaire_athletes.htm )
Request “Scoring Results” – How Mentally Tough Are You?
(Adapted from: Competitive Advantage, Dr. Alan Goldberg, 226 Strong Street, Amherst, MA 01002)
ThistleSea Business Development provides business owners with many strategic advantages. Set-up an appointment to talk with a ThistleSea Business Development coach today.
(c) 2010 all rights reserved, ThistleSea Business Development, LLC