Another clip from Stefan. What are your thoughts regarding discipline and regret? One has a short-term pain, the other a very long-term gain. Do you have a story to share? Feel free to comment below, or even at youtube. If you receive this message via email and can’t see the clip below, then please click here.
For more information about Stefan's services and coaching programs please visit his website
Feb 29 2012
The aim is not to work harder, it’s to get better results.
The concept of leverage is all about achieving ever more with ever less, do more with less, work once and get paid forever. However, when we are getting started in business this concept can seem as elusive as the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow. New business owners often find that they become stuck in the day to day activities of running a business, learning ever more about each discipline, juggling plates and losing time, sleep and hair.
As a Business Coach, I see this happen a lot and a business doesn’t have to be new or unsuccessful to find itself in this position. The business owner tries to work longer, harder and with more vigor but the reality is that the only way to get out of this cycle is to focus on getting better results. There are four distinct areas to ‘divide and multiply’ to achieve true leverage and these are:
- People: Getting your people to achieve more with less effort
- Marketing: Getting your advertising to return more sales with less dollars
- Systems: Getting your processes to produce more predictability with less ambiguity
- Finance: Getting your cash flow management to produce more profits with less stress
Most businesses focus on growing what they believe is a business, however, without the right foundations in place often all they are doing is adding problems onto problems. Eventually for many, it all gets too hard and begins to fall apart. Why is it that 8 out of 10 businesses fail in the first 5 years? It’s not that the owners are wrong, it is usually because they simply don’t know what to do and apply massive amounts of effort to ‘re-inventing the wheel’ without knowing it.
This is why business coaching can create such a huge impact to the bottom line. The Business Coach knows the structures and processes that should be employed to create strong foundations; they know what is needed to create momentum, improve profits, create better teams and focus on creating unique value for your customers. Rather than spending precious time reinventing the wheel or applying a trial and error approach, this knowledge and ability can be applied straight away.
To get better results you must be prepared to learn new ways of doing things and attempt new strategies – with the greatest or most probable chance of success. What you learn is also less important than what you do with that knowledge. Creating leverage in your business is a systematic approach of influencing each of the areas mentioned above. And my advice is that the smartest and most expedient way of achieving this is to employ the services of a Business Coach who has a proven track record of success. If you’re aware you have created more of a job than a business, consider a professional business coach who can help you break the cycle.
My name is Stefan Kazakis and I’m the guy to call when you need to think BIG (ger)
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For more information about Stefan's services and coaching programs please visit his websiteFeb 28 2012
The only Failure is not to Participate
We all know the statistics about business failures but what can we learn from those who have tried and failed, how do we achieve the kind of business success we want or dream of? As a Business Coach to small business owners I can confidently say, “the level of business success you get will be directly proportionate to the level of commitment you put into your business. The level of participation required by the business owner should never be less than 100%.”
In my opinion business owners fall into one of these three traps.
- The reason many business owners don’t participate at 100% is that their expectations might be larger than their skill set and therefore, they prefer to stay put. Not extending beyond what they themselves are capable of doing, not growing because it is comfortable and the alternative can stay in the too-hard basket.
- Having ‘a go’ is the difference between doing something in the unknown rather than continuing to do something in the known. Stepping into the unknown is scary so action can often be overruled by a fear of failure. The business owner is prevented from taking the first step toward creating a new norm or a new level because they fear the unknown.
- Having a strategy, plan or vision and failing to execute it. Every strategy is dependent on execution. You can have the greatest strategy in the world but if the strategy is not executed, then the business will ultimately falter.
My experience has proven that one of the biggest failures businesses make is failing to set a strategy that is consistent with the business owner’s skills and ability to execute the plan. The key to success is devising a strategy that is both sustainable and ensures 100% participation on the part of the business owner.
Success requires enormous commitment, passion and relentless action on the part of the business owner or driver. Making sure that action is sustained and focused on the right activities is where a Business Coach can often be a real catalyst for success.
A Business Coach helps the business owner get involved and stay involved in core aspects of their business and importantly, helps the business owner coordinate resources to achieve the outcomes and perform activities that lie beyond the business owner’s skill set. On a personal level, the Business Coach helps the business owner skillfully navigate the fears that may have been keeping them in a cycle of non-activity or thinking that may be stifling the business or preventing it from reaching its true potential.
My name is Stefan Kazakis and I’m the guy to call when you need to think BIG (ger)
Please feel free to share this blog with your closest friends
For more information about Stefan's services and coaching programs please visit his websiteFeb 27 2012
Rocket Scientist need not apply…
Warren Buffet, one of the world’s most successful investors and one of the wealthiest, says, “It is not necessary to do extraordinary things to get extraordinary results.”
In fact, the more we simplify business by creating processes such as following a plan and knowing the critical numbers (key performance indicators) the easier making money in business will become. This is a logical and non-emotive approach to business success.
On the flip side too, we also know that the most successful entrepreneurs are fuelled with passion and an unrelenting drive to succeed. This allows them to accept the “truth” about their businesses. If the numbers prove the business is lagging rather than flourishing, they will strive to root out the problem, firstly by accepting total responsibility for the current situation and secondly by holding themselves accountable for changing the outcome.
This combination is the most effective way to make money in business and various studies of successful companies and entrepreneurs show that when these elements are present, businesses are successful regardless of the academic achievement of the business driver.
Many businesses owners will hire a Business Coach to help them create the logical structures such as advising the strategy and creating the systems that are needed to allow the business to grow on strong foundations. A Business Coach can also have huge influence on the business driver by fuelling their passion and encouraging their desire and will to succeed.
Regardless of your academic achievements, here is some business coaching advice about the elements you do need to bring to the table if you are passionate about making money in business:
- be enrolled with and inspired by your plan and journey to grow your money and cash flow in your business – you must be prepared to consistently give it 100%.
- you must always take ownership of your situation and accept the “truth” of your position – good and bad, you are the driver – this also implies that you must have measures in place
- you must be accountable for all the outcomes that are achieved or not achieved
- you must be responsible for all results by taking appropriate action and communicating your message with clarity
So if you’re committed with clarity of your position, you’re prepared to give it 100%, look after your customers with exceptional customer service, deliver product and service with predictability, take ownership, responsibility and be accountable for the growth of your business profits, you will make money in business. And if you want to get there faster, a Business Coach can help you put structures and systems in place immediately rather than losing time on trial and error. Either way, you don’t have to be a rocket scientist to succeed.
My name is Stefan Kazakis and I’m the guy to call when you need to think BIG (ger)
Please feel free to share this blog with your closest friends
For more information about Stefan's services and coaching programs please visit his websiteFeb 03 2012
Help People Buy from you…
As a business coach assisting business owners and their teams to get a higher or improved conversion rate is critical to achieving a greater return on investment and therefore profit from your sales team resource. The challenge with most businesses and their team is that they have a poor way of expressing the clear facts in the quote or proposal and they suffer from ‘Follow up call reluctance’ which is purely explained in the following way> I’m going to get my quota of quotes out and then I’m going to hide under a rock and not follow up the prospect because they might say ‘Boo’… and I say > ‘Boo-Hoo’… get on with it gang!
So…
Re-Write Quotes, Tenders & Proposals Into Action Plans …
Instead of just writing a standard quote (you get X for $Y – take it or leave it), why not write the prospect a letter. Include the price near the top, and then explain everything that makes you different. There’s more to their decision than price, so make your letter or Plan of Action, reflect that. End with ‘I’ll call in the next few days to discuss further’…. beat the Follow up call reluctance > you know you can…!
This is important if your product or service is more expensive than your opposition’s. Explain to your prospect, how much better off they’ll be if they chose you. Even if you’re less expensive than your opposition, don’t rely on price alone to win you the job. Some people may view the cheapest as not being good enough. Use your quotes, tenders and proposals to sell to your clients and you’ll dramatically increase your conversion rate.
Are you or your team suffering from ‘Follow up call’ reluctance?
My name is Stefan Kazakis and I’m the guy to call when you need to think BIG (ger)
Please feel free to share this blog with your closest friends
For more information about Stefan's services and coaching programs please visit his website
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