Business Briefing December 2010

 
Welcome to our Business Briefing newsletter for December 2010.

"The best way to predict the future is to create it."

(J Kaufmann)

Setting your targets for success  in 2011

The success of your business in 2011 may very well depend upon your ability to set and achieve both small and large goals during the year. However, in order to be a true success you need to be able to do more than simply set goals. You must also be able to create goals that are achievable, actionable, inspiring, and that the people who work for and with you will be proud to adopt as their own. Setting realistic business goals may seem like another challenge but if you want to create and maintain a business that is destined for growth it is a necessary challenge nonetheless.

Set your personal goals first

If you want to take your business in a new direction, and begin implementing serious goals setting for the sake of achievement, it is best to start by looking in the mirror. As the head of the company you need to have your own personal goals and plans for your future success and the betterment of yourself and your family.

Once you’ve set goals for yourself you’ll be better prepared to serve as an example to others when you set goals for your business. You’ll also have a little perspective when it comes to planning for the successful achievement of these goals.

Set goals that are realistic and visionary

Your goals should be big but achievable. It isn’t a goal to achieve something you’re already doing or even something that is easy to reach based on what you’ve already done. Your goals need to challenge you, your business, your employees and your business model while leaving you all room to succeed and achieve those goals.

Why is it important to set realistic goals? If you set the bar so high that no one can conceivably achieve the goals then you’re setting yourself, your business and every member of your team up for failure. No one likes to feel like a failure day in and day out. Eventually people will stop trying to reach goals they feel are impossible.

Create an atmosphere of positive attitudes, ideas, plans, and dreams for your company and rely on the people that are making your business grow now for truly visionary ideas for expansion and growth in the future. Some of their ideas may surprise and inspire you.

Creating a plan to meet your goals

It isn’t enough to set goals you believe to be challenging but achievable. If you truly want to inspire everyone involved in your business to help you meet those goals you need to roll out a plan of action designed to make it happen. A great way to do this is to have smaller goals that make steps in the right direction leading up to the larger goal that is your primary objective. Small changes in attitude, work habits, and business attitudes can mean big changes for the bottom line and future of your business. When everyone in the company is on board making these changes each and every day there is no limit to how far your business can go in 2011.

Can we help?

Talk to us if you would like us to sit with you and help you implement your goals.

Tactics for getting new business ideas

The best way to grow a business is to constantly add value and innovate with new products and services. Remember there are others out there who compete with you and will often provide the same services at a lower price. Your task is to keep ahead of the competition by adding value and by being different in the way you provide your products and services.

We often get asked how to come up with new business ideas so here are five tips to help you:

1. Believe you CAN come up with new ideas and be positive about your creativity. Keep an open mind; some ideas can seem a little weird or strange but don’t dismiss anything.  Brainstorm with your team about new ideas regularly.
2. Write all business ideas down; when you write things down you are more likely to remember them and refer back to them. Keep a log of ideas; you never know!
3. Talk about your ideas. Talk about your ideas with your team and to others. The key here is that in explaining the idea you’ll usually spot flaws or areas for improvement.
4. Do regular research. Examine potential competition and keep notes on what you find. Use the search engines to look for similar ideas, businesses or products and take notes on them. Keep them in your Ideas Log.
5. Sleep on it. Go away for a while and think of something else, often your subconscious mind will continue to work on the problem and will come up with new ideas or refinements on the ideas you already have.