The idea of a business plan is very comforting. It makes people feel safe and secure to know that there is a plan guiding business activities in the “right” way.
"I feel like I've bitten off more than I can chew, Larry."
Your starting point: Developing a clear vision The starting point of designing, or redesigning, a business to be something exceptional, vital, and profitable in the marketplace is to develop a clear vision of what the business will look, feel, and act like. This includes developing brief descriptions of your uniqu...
The approach
Have you ever played that game where you repeat a particular word over, and over, and over until suddenly, it just doesn’t sound right anymore? At a certain point, it stops making sense. The phenomenon is called semantic satiation and it happens in business all the time! We have a tendency to overuse terms until, ...
Anything that can go wrong, will go wrong.
I read a statistic the other day that said on an average day, you will be interrupted every eight minutes. Every eight minutes your attention will be taken away from what you’re supposed to be doing, and directed toward something else. Every eight minutes you’ll lose focus. You’ll shift gears. You’ll have to start...
In 2009, almost 560,000 new businesses were started every month. Interestingly, however, a large number of these were classified as “non-employer” businesses – in other words, sole operators with no employees. Many consider these individuals to be freelancers as opposed to “business owners” although the distinctio...
One of my clients, a veterinarian, recently questioned me about an article he’d found on the Internet written by a business coach (not affiliated with EMyth in any way). This article implied that the EMyth perspective mandates that the Technicians of the world: the plumbers, the doctors, the contractors, the desig...
If you’re familiar with EMyth, you already know a bit about what we affectionately refer to as “the EMT,” or the three roles every small business owner plays: the Entrepreneur, the Manager, and the Technician. Defining the business is entrepreneurial work, doing the hands-on work is technical work, and managerial ...
Time management skills In these modern times we are turning to more advanced tools - such as automated machinery and advanced software applications - to increase productivity. But as our use of these tools grows, the more responsibilities and activities we are able to add to our day, which results in the need for ...
I was reading through this month's Inc. magazine, (one of our favorites) and I came across an article titled, "The Business Owner's Bookshelf: 30 Books You Should Read And Put to Use."
Let’s say you’ve gotten yourself completely organized.
Imagine for a moment a completely debt-free business. No loans to payback. No investors to answer to. Imagine a completely self-sustaining business. A business funded purely by the cash flow your business produces.
For most of us, our business is separated from our home life. If we have a bad day, we go home and vent to our loved ones, maybe get a little sympathy and then move on. But what if your family and your business are one in the same? What if you can't vent at home because the person you vent to is your business part...
In the March 2009 issue of Entrepreneur magazine, Mark Henricks' article 5 Must-Read Business Books lists books that "have stood the test of time and deliver advice no startup should be without."
The manner in which you serve your customers is the foremost way to either support, or negate, your business growth.