Step in, step up, step out: learning to lead

In the first years of life we learn to roll over and then crawl, we learn to toddle and then walk, and we learn to mumble, repeat sounds and then talk. We develop new skills by watching, listening and practicing, by falling down and getting up… over and over. As we grow, we build our strength, self-confidence, skills and understanding about other people and ourselves.

Becoming the leader of a business can be a similar process. We step into the role (sometimes before we are ready) and we step up to the opportunity (even if we stumble along the way). Finally, we learn to step out of day-to-day management and into a leadership role. We develop the personal perspective and skills to take our businesses to the next level.

TIMING IS EVERYTHING
Your business will have different needs at different times. As a new start-up or a home-based business, you need to figure out what you are doing, convince others to buy from you, and close the sale. As you expand, you can go after more clients and customers and adjust your services and products to fit the market. As your businesses matures, you as the owner need to mature as well. You need to know when it is time to step away from the day-to-day running of the business and bring in additional support. This becomes a leadership opportunity.

LETTING GO
Giving up control over certain aspects of your business is one of the hardest things to do as a business owner. Yet it is essential if you want to grow your business. To be successful, your time needs to be spent on the future of your business, not just the day-to-day needs.

GETTING READY
But how do you recognize the gaps that you need to fill? How to define the complexity of your business and bring your business skills into alignment? How do you know you are ready to hire people and train them to operate the business the way that you have proven is successful?

As a small businesses owner, you may be forced to make quick decisions, reacting to opportunities as they appear instead of strategically setting your course. And, you may have to make things up as you go along, essentially “building the plane as you fly it”. Yet when it comes to hiring people, good preparation is key. It is critical to to first ask yourself why you need help, what type of person or skill set is best suited for the job, and how you will train, direct and assess new hires so that you can incorporate them smoothly into your business.

JUMPING IN
Here are six important tips to consider when planning to hire employees and step into a position of leadership.

1. Understand the financial impact
Before jumping into a hiring process, you need to be able to afford it. Financial costs and revenues forecasting comes first. Hiring the right person comes second.

2. Look for people who complement your skill sets
It is important to hire people who can do the type of work that is important to the business but that you don’t do well. Do you struggle to track your expenditures or manage your budget? Bring in someone with strong money management skills. Do you love making the product but shy away from reaching out to potential customers? Hire someone with great people skills and a sales or marketing background.

3. Spend time on training and then get out of the way
You might be eager to get a new person working as soon as possible but it’s important to put energy into training so the new hire not only understands how to do things the right way but also understands why it’s important to do them that way. Once a new person is trained, it’s time to get out of the way. The business is your “baby” and you may have been responsible for all tasks until now. But the only way a new hire can be motivated, loyal to the business and successful, is if you let him or her own some of the work, too.

4. Set the right tone and others will follow
You, as the owner, set the business culture. If you are motivated and happy in your role, if you are transparent, open, consistent and fair, then others will follow your lead. As the owner, you must be a good communicator and in particular, you must communicate your vision and goals with the people who work for you. Without clear business goals, it’s easy for everyone to get lost in the details and lose sight of the big picture. You all need to be on the same page.

5. Continually take the pulse of your team
A good leader takes time to give clear directions, solicit feedback and listen to suggestions. By scheduling regular check-ins, team meetings and performance reviews with your employees, you create a productive space for communicating goals, addressing concerns and answering questions. Your employees can then feel confident that they know what is expected of them, and you can feel free to give them the space they need to do their jobs well. How you communicate with your employees (and how your employees communicate with each other) makes all the difference!

6. Get help through the process
You don’t have to figure it all out on your own. We help small business clients all the time to assess their needs, make the right hires, create training programs to build strong teams, and implement better management systems. Your support network of advisers and other small business owners can be a guide or sounding board as you develop leadership skills and systems for better management.

It is important to invest time, money and attention in your people. They are key to your business success!

Where did the time go?

This is the question we all ask, and perhaps small business owners ask the most!

Fresh Air’s Terry Gross recently interviewed Brigid Schulte, author of the book, Overwhelmed: Work, Love and Play, When No One Has the Time. Schulte says that the key to time management is “figuring out what’s important to you, and then making time to do what’s most important first.” It sounds simple and yet it’s hard to do when so many things compete for our attention and everything feels urgent.

Many of us keep detailed to-do lists. Our list will grow and grow and can become so long that it’s easier to focus on the “simple stuff” we can quickly complete and check off the list. We put off the tasks that will be most strategic for our business, the tasks that will help us grow and be a success. Schulte calls this tendency to spend time on the small stuff, “virtuous busyness”.

As small business owners we wear many hats and must often multi-task. We have the tendency to want to do it all ourselves (even when we are stuck) and we don’t want to delegate (or don’t know how to). We are often completely consumed in the business without making time to work on the business, or we let personal stuff get in the way of how we run our business.

There can be a lot of emotions tied up with how we spend and “manage” our time, too. When we have too much to do we can get overwhelmed and frustrated. Our actions become non-productive. We procrastinate (ignoring what we know we must do) or we sabotage ourselves (purposely doing something counterproductive), and we end up paralyzed – blaming ourselves and sometimes even giving up.

One way out of this overwhelm is by paying attention to the Pareto Principle or what is often referred to as the “80/20 Rule”:

If you can figure out which tasks are producing your business’ results, you can spend more time on those activities and less time on others. Often if a task makes you feel uncomfortable or if you are putting it off, it’s probably a sign that it needs your attention!

As a simple way to start, Perry Marshall, author of 80/20 Sales and Marketing, recommends that we flip our daily to do list. “If there are 10 things you need to do today, odds are that one task is worth 10 times more than the rest. It is natural to want to put it off and get the other tasks done first but you need to switch it around and first focus on that one thing that is most important.” Do you need to write your marketing plan, call a disgruntled customer, create financial projections or go after a new client? Focus on that key task first.

When I talk to my business students about time management I share the same essential message. The first step is to identify the priorities — or BIG ROCKS — for your business and then structure your time to put them first. If you are a small business owner (particularly if you are just launching your businesses) you really cannot do it all. You need to focus on the key 10-20% of your business that can bring the best results now. Once you have some comfort in or mastery over that area, you can expand your focus.

Now, it’s time to take action! Starting first thing tomorrow…

Look at your to-do list and pick only three tasks for the day – tasks that are the most important for your business right now. (What task will help you make money now? What task will build a key business skill now?)
Tackle only one task at a time.
Set a start time and end time for each task to keep yourself focused.
Share what you are doing with someone else so that he/she can hold you accountable.
Don’t forget to get rid of all distractions. Clear other work off your desk, turn off email, put down your phone… and get to it!

The reality is that your to-do list will never go away and it will probably always be long. It may be helpful to write down all your tasks so they don’t keep swimming around in your head. But the goal is to not get distracted by your list.

And, it is important to put away the list entirely sometimes. Our best business breakthroughs often come when we aren’t focused on our business. Sometimes it is only when we take a break, that we can gain perspective.

Wisdom from Melissa Joy Manning

Design Sponge recently posted a great profile of jewelry designer Melissa Joy Manning, a graduate or Renaissance Entrepreneurship Center’s business planning class. She talks about why she started her own business and she shares some of her lessons learned in running a sustainable artisan jewelry enterprise.

Melissa says that it was with my help that she learned about the importance of setting well-defined goals:

“I was lucky enough to have an amazing teacher, Paul Terry, at the Renaissance Center in San Francisco, who taught me the importance of vision. He taught me to envision my success and what it would encompass. I used these goals as benchmarks when building my brand. Every time I reached one, I would sit down and create another. As the ‘visions’ kept coming true, they emboldened me to think bigger and more creatively each time.” (Thanks Melissa!)

Here is some of Melissa’s great advice for others considering a small business of their own:

Make sure it’s what you want to do. If you really love doing something consider how it will change when it becomes a business. I meet a lot of people who loved a hobby but when they had to economize it on a daily basis, found that they lost all joy in it.

Know that your life will change: your friendships, relationships, how you view the world…everything. When you take charge of your life by forging your own path, a lot of lessons will come forward that you didn’t consider. In some ways, it’s like a veil lifts in how you see the world. Remaining true to yourself and your passion will carry you through any unexpected reaction or loss that success may bring to you.

Always, always, always listen to your heart. If you are true to yourself you will always succeed.

You can read Melissa’s full profile here.

Planning for Business Success

Many people start small businesses and many seem to fail. Risks always exist in business.

You can reduce those risks if you set aside time to plan in advance. This means defining your business offerings, doing specific market research, recognizing the essential management skills you need, and projecting realistic financial expectations… in short, you can reduce risks when you write and use a business plan.

Small business owners often say they don’t have time to write a business plan. There is too much to do and they want to get on with running the business. (Or, they may be intimidated by the planning process or simply be procrastinating.)

It’s true that some small businesses start without planning and do very well. However, once a business is launched and things get complicated, it can be confusing to figure out next steps. A good business plan helps sort out your options and can help you focus.

Business experts disagree about the importance of writing a business plan. Though some research has found that writing a plan greatly increases the chances that a person actually goes into business, there are business school professors out there, like Steve Blank, who say that real entrepreneurs don’t write business plans.

Although it may not sound like it, I actually agree with Blank’s approach. In his Lean LaunchPad classes, he’s pushing students to constantly talk to people and test their theories as they plan. A hands-on, real world approach is central to how I teach entrepreneurship, too. You cannot write a business plan in a vacuum and expect it to serve you well. You must get out there, connect with people, and constantly test your assumptions.

Writing, implementing and maintaining a business plan is hard work. Planning means learning to take the pulse of your business — over and over again. You have to be open to new ideas and be willing to learn from your mistakes. There is a reward for all that hard work, though. You end up with an operational management tool, a marketing plan, financial projections, and a means of communicating your business to others.

The primary purpose for writing a plan, though, is for the process itself. It forces you to be objective and critical, identifying weaknesses, challenges and opportunities and setting benchmarks to track progress. Doing research, talking to people, and analyzing your operation will give you confidence to continue with the business.

It’s really important that the plan reflects your unique owner perspective. The plan is a foundation from which each owner’s business judgment, personal feelings and intuition are measured. You should write it in such a way that you can use it, in a format that is easy to update. To be truly useful, a business plan should be a dynamic document — current, accessible and appropriate for the business. Don’t spend a lot of time making a pretty document unless a formal plan is needed to present to a bank or other investor. It doesn’t have to be perfect looking; the key is that it is useful for you and your business.

A business plan doesn’t guarantee success but it can help prevent serious mistakes. It is a great way to stay attentive to the important details of your business, to industry trends and competitors, and to new directions and business growth. A good business plan will help you maintain profitability, acknowledge and minimize potential risks, and develop confidence for future opportunities.

So how do you find the time to write a business plan? As Tim Berry says, “You don’t. You are always planning. Your plan is never done but your planning process is your key to good management.”

So, write that plan (or revisit your old one). It will be well worth your effort!

Resolve Conflict

Being in business is challenging. You can’t be in business without running into conflict at some point… your landlord raises the rent, your largest client reduces your hours, your reliable vendor is three weeks late with inventory, your wait staff calls in sick at 5:00pm and/or your key employee gives notice. Wow! What to do?

Winged Wisdom, part of Presidio Habitats, a site-based exhibition created for the Presidio of San Francisco

Perhaps the answer is to quit…start a new business or…as we all say to ourselves at one time or another, “I need to get a job!” Most of us don’t go and get a job. Sometimes we try and go through the motions of an interview and think this will resolve all the conflicts…but then realize that’s really not what we want. Working for someone else does not resolve or eliminate conflict. It is still there and now we don’t have the “power” to implement a change!

The idea is not to instigate conflict or prolong it, or try to win the argument. The process of running a business is to minimize conflicts and if a conflict arises, to face it and try to resolve it. The owner has to build the business, take care of the employees, satisfy the clients or customers, and create a balanced life for themselves.

There are solutions to the conflicts. Sometimes it is a genuine transparent management style; at other times, it is direct conversations with key employees; or it could be recognizing the error before the client or vendor sees it and suggesting a solution before there even is a conflict. (When I ran a gourmet food business, I noted right after the holidays that we did not sell all the extra inventory that we had bought. I called the vendors immediately and negotiated a 6 month payout plan…before they noticed we were late with payment and got upset with us.)

To find the right solutions we can look to supportive mentors or professionals who can listen and advise, talk things through with key employees, meditate on the right action, and then forge ahead and explore new approaches. If you run your business with integrity, honesty and transparency and confront your stumbling blocks head on, you can make it through. But if you don’t resolve a conflict…guess what comes back for you another day? So, resolve conflict!

The To Do List: Getting it done

There is too much to do and not enough time to get it all done. In fact, there are two facts that time management experts seem to agree. You will never really catch-up and you will never get it all done. So what can we do, if anything?

Christopher Robin was explaining this issue to Pooh Bear in one long walk in the woods. His wisdom went like this; ” Well, Pooh…there is so much to do. So organized is what we do, before we do it, so when we do it, it is not all mixed up”. Too much to do; too many interruptions from so many people who want your attention. What to do. Do whatever you want when you feel like it? Only do what is most important and only that? Make sure you only do what you like to do? Only do what makes sense for your clients and customer service? Do what makes money first and then pay attention to what you need for you, last?

Hard to know what to do and what tools we can use to make a difference. Sometime it can be an on-line solution with an application or a bell that rings. Sometime it is simply a short hand-written sheet of paper.

The real issue is what do I NEED to get done!

In running our small business…what is the key matter to get done now. Can I build skills that make this issue better? Is there a tool that works for me? What is the best solution for me? Do we write it out; do we use an on-line tool; do we post it on our screen; do we tell others so they will remind us; do we have a regular schedule so that we have the time set aside.

Yes…all or some of this list. Whatever works for you and moves your business forward. It is good to have a balance of the big three – work; family and health. Bring that into a daily balance and it can only get better. One more thing. If your time management system no longer works, try something else. Do not let the procrastination rule you. Keep moving!!!

Time for Action: Seven Steps

Planning and managing your time effectively is the single most important factor for the launching and management of a successful small business. You may have great ideas, a great product or service and a receptive marketplace. However, you still have to find and take the time to do all the work. How do you get things done?

Does any of this sound familiar:

you feel pressured and overwhelmed with too many tasks and not enough time
you work harder than anyone else with endless meetings, calls and interruptions
you have ideas on how to improve but no time to implement.

Therefore, you become paralyzed, tend to sabotage, procrastinate or simply give up. All of the above conditions are a common reality. There is simply too much to do and simply not enough time to do it. There is no one who is available to help you and only you, of course, can really do it right anyway. So the only other solution … you stretch, juggle and squeeze!

However, it is possible to get things done without such a “squeeze”. You can change and learn to work smarter so you can meet deadlines, be creative and then celebrate each success with a reward. You can start right away with one successful strategy and build from there. Pick a routine, a time management tool, or office procedure. Make it something simple and easy to initiate. Then include a monitoring or reward system to acknowledge that you have made this technique your routine and it is making a difference. We are talking about CHANGING BEHAVIOR…and we can do it one step at a time.

Here are seven simple suggestions that, if implemented, can really help:

1. Write out a goal that is very specific and measurable. (You want to open your business for the holidays. You must be ready with inventory and marketing collateral by the end of August or you will be too late.)

2. Use the master “to-do” list and match each task to pre-set goals. (Use a prioritized list of very specific action steps each with an estimated start date AND completion date).

3. Prioritize your “to-do” list based on effective criteria that will help your business now. (Make sales calls to new and old clients before you procrastinate to file old client files.)

4. Eliminate unproductive meetings or any personal phone calls during the business day. (Have meetings early in the day and make personal calls after 5 p.m or not at all.)

5. Establish a predetermined place where you get things done efficiently (For example, try to answer all calls right at your desk near client files when you first arrive at work and make all appointments right there).

6. Revise your plans constructively. If something doesn’t work out, you have learned from a “mistake”. (Learn from your OWN experience. This is NOT a failure but a discovery of what didn’t work. Take this lesson learned and change your next action accordingly.)

7. Take your predetermined reward. (Set up a reward in advance for your efforts. When you have achieved the “success” that you have set for that hour, day or week and take the reward when you are “done”).

Plan and use your time well. If your business is to be exciting and profitable, your attention to developing time management expertise will have a significant impact on your success!

Great Customer Service: 7 Tips

When we think of the most important issue in business, we always come back to customer service. In every consultation, workshop or class, we ask two questions and get amazingly similar results:

• What small businesses do you like to do business with?

• What small businesses do you NOT like to business with?

What is the common answer: It is good (or bad) customer service. Customers, clients, vendors and professionals all want to do business with businesses and business owners they like – that treat them well, give excellent service and follow-up and have consistent and fair policies for exchange.

Now, it is ALSO important that businesses offer excellent and effective products or the services the customer really wants, that the price is fair, that the location (retail or on-line) is convenient and the information is clear and consistent. The people providing the service must be qualified and come well recommended. BUT, to get repeat business and referrals – the business owner and staff MUST pay attention to customer service!

As business owners, we do NOT want any of the following to happen:

• A client or customer calling about a “late” delivery before you get a chance to call first

• Finding out that the “wrong” information was provided without correction for the client

• That you failed to follow-up on a request for additional information as promised

• That a client was left on hold without appropriate information of what to do or where to go next

• That the client finds that the service does not work as promised and cannot reach someone to complain or get help and support

A negative buying experience (and the results from thousands of students in classes and workshops) is almost always linked to “lousy and shoddy” customer service. Good customer service is essential for all businesses to exist for the long-term! Being able to provide it with all transactions and on a consistent basis is not just possible but must be essential for small business owners.

Here is some basic behavior we need to have as small businesses. This is directed by the owner and needs to be followed consistently if there is really going to be a commitment (by owners and managers) to customer service.

1. Commitment to quality service.

Everyone in the business is committed to creating a positive experience for the customer. The goal should always be “exceed customer’s expectations”. This should happen on every encounter – from the first point of contact and throughout the period of service. It should be included in the follow-up reminder in person, by phone or on-line.

2. Know your products and your policies.

You and everyone who works for you must know what they are doing – know about your product line or your service offerings – in order to gain and keep a customer’s trust and confidence. There should be complete clarity on what you offer, what guarantees you give and what would be done if there was any error or mistake made in the process!

3. Know your customers.

The objective of every small business is to “get and keep customers.” To do this, you need to know everything you can about your customers. Talk to people and listen to what they say so you can prepare in advance for any key issues. If there ever is a problem, get to the core of customer dissatisfaction BEFORE it happens.

4. Treat people with courtesy and respect.

Every contact with a customer — by email, phone, and letter, casual contact or face-to-face meeting — leaves an impression. The impression is often stronger than the service being offered. If you can “manage the impression”, you can affect the customer’s behavior! Always focus on how to fix any issue that “went wrong” Most customers will do business with you again if you resolve a complaint in their favor. They often become your advocate!

Customers want immediate resolution, and if you can give it to them, you’ll probably win their repeat business. Research shows that 95 percent of dissatisfied customers will do business with a company again if their complaint is resolved on the spot.

5. Always provide what you promise.

Fail to do this and you’ll lose credibility — and customers. If you guarantee a quote within 24 hours, get the quote out in a day or less. If you can’t make good on your promise, apologize to the customer and offer some type of compensation or restitution. Stay in touch and “get back to them.”

6. Focus on making customers, not making sales

Remember that keeping a customer’s business is more important than closing a sale. Research shows that it costs six times more to attract a new customer than it does to keep an existing one. You need to keep the client – and not always make the sale. Referrals work too!

7. Make it easy to buy.

The buying experience in your store, on your website or through your catalog should be as easy as possible. Eliminate unnecessary paperwork, help people find what they need, explain how products work, and do whatever you can to facilitate transactions. Make it an effortless and pleasant experience so that people will tell others, and will come back.

To be competitive and stay in business within these economic times, we need to treat our clients, customers and vendors with respect. They are our stakeholders and we need their loyalty, referrals and repeat business to stay and thrive in business. “At your service” is a practice without question.

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