Business success experts have identified specific operational factors and personal abilities that contribute to high performance. Don’t worry if you and your company don’t have all these things now. An AdviCoach Business Coach can help you learn and develop everything you need to succeed.
Operating factors
Set a goal for the company. Write down the overall goal you are working towards. Decide where you want to be in five or ten years. You may want to: be the leader of your company; expand your team to a certain number; run a sustainable business with a small carbon footprint; or offer your products or services across the country or around the world. Once you have defined your goal, run your business to achieve it.
Attract and retain the best talent. People are the most important asset of your company. Attracting and retaining the best people can allocate the most to the success of your business.
Understand your customers’ needs. Successful companies recognize a weak spot or gap in the market, research what customers are looking for, and then offer a solution that meets the needs and desires of these customers. Some companies, especially in the Fashion and Technology sectors, have managed to create demand, but they are the exception. The rest of us have to explore the client’s needs and dreams and then fulfill them. This customer-centric approach to business development leads to a more customer-centric approach to sales and service—and creates another difference.
Record everything. Documenting everything you do can help you gather ideas, build credibility, and resolve disputes. It is especially important to collect all the data about your market, your revenues and your operating costs, because today there are tools that provide you with useful information from this data with a single click.
Establish strong business relationships. Create a professional network of suppliers, customers, collaboration partners, mentors, opinion leaders and other industry players. These are people who can be a source of business, talents, ideas and advice. Attend in-person events and become active on LinkedIn.
Know Your Competitors. They want to know where their competitors are vulnerable. And you don’t want to be left behind or blinded by a competing offer that you didn’t know existed. Successful companies pride themselves on being proactive and not reactive.
Personal Skills
Be prepared to learn. There is always something to learn. It could be something to help you become a superior version of yourself—or technology to help you work more efficiently. The willingness to learn pushes you to places where it would take you longer to reach them if you reached them at all.
Be disciplined. Successful businessmen have the will and determination to do what needs to be done when it needs to be done. You work hard and stay motivated in a world of distractions.
Be patient. Success in business comes from calm and consistent efforts over the years of work. Don’t get distracted by a big sale or a bad week. Stay on track with a slow and steady approach. They minimize peril and build trust in your team.
Be transparent. Successful companies rely on a culture of trust by having completely transparent leaders. Communicate your values and live them. Ask your team to make decisions. Keep your promises. Admit your mistakes and pledge not to make them in the future.
Be determined. As a leader, you always have to make the difficult decisions. The male stops with you, and there may be times when success depends on making quick and confident decisions. You may not have all the information you want, but during these times, success comes from leveraging your experience, paying attention to your instincts and committing to your calling. An imperfect decision made on time smacks a perfect decision that comes too late.
