Thursday, February 9, 2012
Are you ready to begin with the end in mind?
I meet so many business owners who want to make a change in their business but do not know where to start. So I say maybe you need to stop thinking about what you want now and start thinking about what you want five years in the future and work back.
We all get bogged down in the day-to-day constraints and as a result do the same thing over and over. The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting a different result.
Imagine you were five years in the future – you have gone through some tough times and now all that hard work has paid off.
• What does your business look like? Take the time to describe your ideal business.
• If you were to sell or transfer your business what would it be worth?
• Why would anyone be interested in taking the business over?
• What do you need to get the business ready for sale?
Studies show that 7 out of 10 business owners do not have a plan for the future.
Here is my challenge to you. Think of your own list of questions and then work backwards in time. The process might just help you to move forward.
Expect the best.
Sunday, January 15, 2012
Are you ready to take our Want to, Need to and Can do Quiz?
* Want to do - Every leader has aspirations for their organization. So what is it you want?
* Need to do – Since we are not able to do all that we want to do, you need to look for ways to resolve the conflicts between the want and can.
* And let’s face it, in this crazy world where we work and play, what we can do is a factor.
Can we find a way to harness our wants, needs and abilities to leverage results? More and more, organizations are discovering that they need to proactively move to the future, because the environment is changing more rapidly and leaders need more time to react. Proactive leaders estimate how their environment will change in the future and consequently change the direction of their organization. Basically you start acting and behaving like a designer.
Therefore, now is the time to understand what you want to do, what you need to do and what the organization can do.
What a great way to drive your success towards the future.
Thursday, January 5, 2012
KFC Challenge
Are you ready to take our KFC challenge?
* Know what you want.
* Find out what you are getting.
* Change what you do until you get what you want.
Would it surprise you to learn that most business owners have never taken the time to consider what KFC means to them? As a result many of them are not getting the things they want personally or professionally.
These three questions can be applied to any problem that you are looking to address. For example: Many companies want loyal and productive employees. But what they are actually getting is a mixture of results and inconsistencies.
So what would you need to change in order to get what you want? Maybe it is your leadership style? Studies have shown that Leadership has a direct impact on the success of a business.
So go out and get what you want! Take the KFC challenge.
Tuesday, December 13, 2011
Cash/KASH
Coaching is like having a spring board to propel your business to new levels. Are you looking for ways to generate more Cash? Did you know that you already have the KASH you need.
Knowledge
Attitude
Skills
Habits
In French –Connaissances, Attitude, Savoir-faire, Habitude
Knowledge
Did you know that the sum of your knowledge, your education, and your experience is what enables you to do what you do? How skilled are you at making use of this ability?
Attitude
Attitude is your way of thinking and your approach of thinking. For example when you are faced with a challenge, do you say to yourself “I can do this’ or do you say "I am unable to do this”. Your attitude can hold back or spring board you beyond the limits of most people. How skilled are you at controlling your attitude?
Skills
We all have a variety of skills to meet the objectives of the business but leadership enables you to connect and deal effectively with people. How would you rate your Leadership skills?
Habits
We need to have effective habits that enable us to focus our time and energy and on the high payoff activities that get the greatest results.
Now may be a great time to top up your cash account!
Friday, August 12, 2011
Now is your chance to change your history
I was reading the book Disciplined Dreaming by Josh Linker recently and it was another great reminder of how important it is to continually challenge your business model. If you are not tinkering with your business at least once a week, sooner or later one of your competitors will start to tinker with you.
Lets face it, your competitors are probably not actively plotting to take market share or business from you but if you are not actively expanding your creative vision you could wake up one morning and fine someone else has implemented your dream.
Complacency is not an option. Every day a new business opens and an old one closes. So you need to take control and be the one with the audacity to decide what the future will be and not wait until circumstances force you to a corner. You have to be disciplined enough to spend time working on your business while working in your business.
‘Today is tomorrow’s yesterday’ - take a moment to let this really sink in. You are in fact living your past today. Now is your chance to influence and change your history today. Think about it.
In a recent news story on business management, it was suggested that you “Think like a designer”. Good designers look at the world with a different viewpoint and awareness. They have unique views that enable them to come up with new products and innovations. They tend to think about people, not just customers. For every one new product they come up with, they have four more on the drawing board waiting to be launched. As an example I have never seen a survey asking if I needed an iPod or needed the ability to text messages. Please let me know if you have. These things did not just happen but just appear on the market overnight and became indispensable. They came about through a plan carefully developed, implemented and adjusted as required. Designers move beyond asking what customers want and think they need. They create something that they feel people will yearn for. You could say that is a risky but essential way of doing business.
How do you begin such a process? One way might be to work with a business coach who can help you to explore multiple ideas. Help you to tap into your creative side in order to establish potential future trends in your particular area of business. You could also hire innovative and inventive people that have the ability to look at things upside down instead of right-side-up. Another way might be to get out in the world, scrutinize and observe what people do. We have to move beyond the traditional thinking constraints we all have. We have to see through what people tell us they need (or think they need) and start to really observe what they are actually doing and how it is accomplished. You might be quite surprised to learn how the need and actual the end-result is accomplished differ and how large the gap is between what they say, what they are actually doing and how they are doing it. Many of us are too focused on the present but the designers who live in the mystery of the future can foresee the future needs. They live by credo ‘Yesterday is history, tomorrow a mystery, today is a gift, which is why today is called the present".
To all business owners reading this article my challenge to you will be to take advantage of this great gift that is the present we all have and start crafting what people will need tomorrow by stepping out of your current beliefs to start thinking like a designer.
Call to action;
The question you need to answer after reading this article is,
• What will you start doing differently tomorrow? And how do you propose to keep score?
• Are you capable of being a disruptive force of change? In order to bring out the best you can be and the best your employees can be.
• Can you or your employees do one thing differently that would drive the business results to a new level over the next 6 to 12 months? Remember it takes 60 to 90 days for the change to be internalized your quit line will need to be longer than most of the people your know.
In one business we worked with, the owner was doing twice as much as the employees. She was working 60 to 70 hours a week and had no time to take any vacation. Today she works more on her business and less in the business as a result of developing improved leadership skills that have enabled her to tap into her employees’ underused potential - a seemingly impossible task only a few years ago. She is now able to take a three week vacation twice a year and everyone contributes to the overall business objectives. Each person is working not only on delivering services; they are now acting in the best interest of the business and the customers. Interdependencies have been developed and along with the owner, they have become an integral part of the business.
For this type of change to happen one must be open-minded enough to allow employees the opportunity to bring ideas to the monthly team meetings that contribute towards overall short tern and long term strategy. The employees who work with the customers, in turn, listen to the customers and what they are looking for and want. Prior to the change turnover was high and very little communication to take place. Remember that what can differentiate you business from another are those breathless moments in time that all customers and you as a customer yearn for. What to learn we are just a phone call away. Expect the best from tac-coaching.com
Lets face it, your competitors are probably not actively plotting to take market share or business from you but if you are not actively expanding your creative vision you could wake up one morning and fine someone else has implemented your dream.
Complacency is not an option. Every day a new business opens and an old one closes. So you need to take control and be the one with the audacity to decide what the future will be and not wait until circumstances force you to a corner. You have to be disciplined enough to spend time working on your business while working in your business.
‘Today is tomorrow’s yesterday’ - take a moment to let this really sink in. You are in fact living your past today. Now is your chance to influence and change your history today. Think about it.
In a recent news story on business management, it was suggested that you “Think like a designer”. Good designers look at the world with a different viewpoint and awareness. They have unique views that enable them to come up with new products and innovations. They tend to think about people, not just customers. For every one new product they come up with, they have four more on the drawing board waiting to be launched. As an example I have never seen a survey asking if I needed an iPod or needed the ability to text messages. Please let me know if you have. These things did not just happen but just appear on the market overnight and became indispensable. They came about through a plan carefully developed, implemented and adjusted as required. Designers move beyond asking what customers want and think they need. They create something that they feel people will yearn for. You could say that is a risky but essential way of doing business.
How do you begin such a process? One way might be to work with a business coach who can help you to explore multiple ideas. Help you to tap into your creative side in order to establish potential future trends in your particular area of business. You could also hire innovative and inventive people that have the ability to look at things upside down instead of right-side-up. Another way might be to get out in the world, scrutinize and observe what people do. We have to move beyond the traditional thinking constraints we all have. We have to see through what people tell us they need (or think they need) and start to really observe what they are actually doing and how it is accomplished. You might be quite surprised to learn how the need and actual the end-result is accomplished differ and how large the gap is between what they say, what they are actually doing and how they are doing it. Many of us are too focused on the present but the designers who live in the mystery of the future can foresee the future needs. They live by credo ‘Yesterday is history, tomorrow a mystery, today is a gift, which is why today is called the present".
To all business owners reading this article my challenge to you will be to take advantage of this great gift that is the present we all have and start crafting what people will need tomorrow by stepping out of your current beliefs to start thinking like a designer.
Call to action;
The question you need to answer after reading this article is,
• What will you start doing differently tomorrow? And how do you propose to keep score?
• Are you capable of being a disruptive force of change? In order to bring out the best you can be and the best your employees can be.
• Can you or your employees do one thing differently that would drive the business results to a new level over the next 6 to 12 months? Remember it takes 60 to 90 days for the change to be internalized your quit line will need to be longer than most of the people your know.
In one business we worked with, the owner was doing twice as much as the employees. She was working 60 to 70 hours a week and had no time to take any vacation. Today she works more on her business and less in the business as a result of developing improved leadership skills that have enabled her to tap into her employees’ underused potential - a seemingly impossible task only a few years ago. She is now able to take a three week vacation twice a year and everyone contributes to the overall business objectives. Each person is working not only on delivering services; they are now acting in the best interest of the business and the customers. Interdependencies have been developed and along with the owner, they have become an integral part of the business.
For this type of change to happen one must be open-minded enough to allow employees the opportunity to bring ideas to the monthly team meetings that contribute towards overall short tern and long term strategy. The employees who work with the customers, in turn, listen to the customers and what they are looking for and want. Prior to the change turnover was high and very little communication to take place. Remember that what can differentiate you business from another are those breathless moments in time that all customers and you as a customer yearn for. What to learn we are just a phone call away. Expect the best from tac-coaching.com
Monday, July 18, 2011
‘Today is tomorrow’s yesterday’
In a recent news story on business management, it was suggested that you should “Think like a designer”.
Good designers look at the world with a different perception and have unique views that enable them to come up with new products and innovations. They tend to think about people, not just customers. Think about it.
I have never seen a survey asking, if I needed an iPod or the ability to text messages. Please let me know if you have?
These things did not just happen they came about through a plan and strategy.
Designers move beyond asking what customers want and think they need and then they create something that they feel people will yearn for. You could say that’s a risky way of doing business or is it?
So how do you begin such a process? One way might be to look outside the box you have created and start to hire innovative and creative people that have the ability to look at things upside down instead of right-side-up. Another way might be to get out in the world and watch what people do. We have to move beyond the traditional, thinking constraints we all have. We have to move beyond what people tell us they need and start to observe what they are doing. You might be quite surprised to learn, how they differ and how large the gap is between what they say and the actual do. Many of us are too focused on the present but the designers live in the in the mystery of the future. "Yesterday is history, tomorrow a mystery, today is a gift, which is why today is called the present".
So my challenge to you will be to take advantage of this great gift that is the present we all have and start to design what people will need tomorrow by stepping out of your current beliefs, to think like a designer.
I look forward to your feedback
Expect the best
Good designers look at the world with a different perception and have unique views that enable them to come up with new products and innovations. They tend to think about people, not just customers. Think about it.
I have never seen a survey asking, if I needed an iPod or the ability to text messages. Please let me know if you have?
These things did not just happen they came about through a plan and strategy.
Designers move beyond asking what customers want and think they need and then they create something that they feel people will yearn for. You could say that’s a risky way of doing business or is it?
So how do you begin such a process? One way might be to look outside the box you have created and start to hire innovative and creative people that have the ability to look at things upside down instead of right-side-up. Another way might be to get out in the world and watch what people do. We have to move beyond the traditional, thinking constraints we all have. We have to move beyond what people tell us they need and start to observe what they are doing. You might be quite surprised to learn, how they differ and how large the gap is between what they say and the actual do. Many of us are too focused on the present but the designers live in the in the mystery of the future. "Yesterday is history, tomorrow a mystery, today is a gift, which is why today is called the present".
So my challenge to you will be to take advantage of this great gift that is the present we all have and start to design what people will need tomorrow by stepping out of your current beliefs, to think like a designer.
I look forward to your feedback
Expect the best
Saturday, October 9, 2010
Are you 20/80 or 80/20?
by Ken Ingram President of www.tac-coaching.com
To run a successful and competitive business it is essential to follow a set of rules, principles and laws; more often than not failure to do so will result in a short and regrettable business venture. That being said, it’s interesting to learn that one of the laws that can have the biggest impact on your profits is being ignored by most businesses. Are you aware that in 1906, Italian economist Vilfredo Pareto created a mathematical rule of thumb that states 20% of something will result in 80% of something? As an example 20% of your clients represent 80% of your revenues and the inverse is also true: 80% of your clients represent only 20% or your revenue. It’s come to be known as the Pareto Principle, and if you’re not utilizing it, you probably should be.
As a business owner, the value of applying the Pareto Principle in most aspects of your business is that it should remind you to focus on the 20% that matter the most.
You need to take the time to identify and focus your energy on that group because during any given day you’ll end up fire fighting and this saps your time. So you must remind yourself that your top priorities always need to be addressed first. If something in your schedule slips, or if something is not going to get done, make sure it's not part of that key 20%.
The importance of using this system is to remain focused on ways to increase revenue without working harder. You can make equal or greater income in less time, reduce the stress on the business and all your employees by working smarter. If you have the option, and I believe that you do, than develop a strategy for choosing your customers. Reflect upon where you can get the best return on your investment of time, energy and marketing dollars.
So what can you do? Profile the top 20% of your client base who represent 80% of your revenue by:
• Uncovering existing ‘marginal clients’ who have the potential to become profitable clients’ and open the door to selling them more products or services.
• Define what constitutes a profitable client based on your ten clients who give you the most business each year.
• At every opportunity ask the people in your network for someone to contact who match your criteria.
If you could develop and groom 10 more clients just like the ones in your top 20%, you would see a huge jump in your revenue.
So what's holding you back? Why aren't you already leveraging your profitable clients and reducing the time you spend with marginal clients?
The process makes perfectly good sense, but very few businesses - set themselves up to win by creating a strategy focused on the high payoff group of clients. As a bonus you can now pay more attention and provide WOW customer service to the people who earn you the most profit. I assure you, they’ll love the special treatment.
In reality, you probably can't convert all of your marginal clients because they might not all agree with your plan. Maybe my suggestion doesn't even make sense in your business.
• But I challenge you to take a good hard look at where you are spending your time.
If you are hesitating, determine your real reasons for not pursuing this strategy with enthusiasm.
Below are Five Steps to help put Parato`s Principle at the top of your agenda:
1. List all your clients - preferably in a spreadsheet program. Enter the clients’ name, the revenue that they generated this year and last year. Estimate the average revenue from them over the past five years and the potential revenue for next year. Is it going up or down? What percentage of your total revenue does this client represent for your SPA business?
2. Sort your columns by the margin of revenue and you should be able to identify a pattern. Who are your profitable clients and who are your marginal clients? If something is changing, what are the reasons? Predict which ones will be in your group of profitable clients next year. Do you have all of their business or are you sharing it with others spas? What percentage of their business do you have now?
3. To determine what are the common traits of your profitable clients consider:
a. What are the products or services they purchase?
b. Do they have untapped potential?
c. What is the strength of your relationship with them?
d. How did they become a client?
Also consider what benefits your profitable clients are receiving by dealing with you. I suggest that once you have identified this niche group, call and ask them to help you define your business more clearly. Every important client will value the opportunity to help you grow your business and appreciate that you value their suggestions and feedback.
• Look at your marginal client group to see if you've overlooked people who, with some effort, could be moved up into the profitable client category in order to increase the amount of business they do with you.
• Develop a specific plan to give away, or manage your marginal clients in a way that is relative to their business value.
If you react blindly to your customer base and treat all clients the same, then you are definitely working harder - not smarter. Therefore develop a client strategy that enables you to intelligently identify your top clients and spend more time with them and others like them. Are you 20/80 or 80/20?
To run a successful and competitive business it is essential to follow a set of rules, principles and laws; more often than not failure to do so will result in a short and regrettable business venture. That being said, it’s interesting to learn that one of the laws that can have the biggest impact on your profits is being ignored by most businesses. Are you aware that in 1906, Italian economist Vilfredo Pareto created a mathematical rule of thumb that states 20% of something will result in 80% of something? As an example 20% of your clients represent 80% of your revenues and the inverse is also true: 80% of your clients represent only 20% or your revenue. It’s come to be known as the Pareto Principle, and if you’re not utilizing it, you probably should be.
As a business owner, the value of applying the Pareto Principle in most aspects of your business is that it should remind you to focus on the 20% that matter the most.
You need to take the time to identify and focus your energy on that group because during any given day you’ll end up fire fighting and this saps your time. So you must remind yourself that your top priorities always need to be addressed first. If something in your schedule slips, or if something is not going to get done, make sure it's not part of that key 20%.
The importance of using this system is to remain focused on ways to increase revenue without working harder. You can make equal or greater income in less time, reduce the stress on the business and all your employees by working smarter. If you have the option, and I believe that you do, than develop a strategy for choosing your customers. Reflect upon where you can get the best return on your investment of time, energy and marketing dollars.
So what can you do? Profile the top 20% of your client base who represent 80% of your revenue by:
• Uncovering existing ‘marginal clients’ who have the potential to become profitable clients’ and open the door to selling them more products or services.
• Define what constitutes a profitable client based on your ten clients who give you the most business each year.
• At every opportunity ask the people in your network for someone to contact who match your criteria.
If you could develop and groom 10 more clients just like the ones in your top 20%, you would see a huge jump in your revenue.
So what's holding you back? Why aren't you already leveraging your profitable clients and reducing the time you spend with marginal clients?
The process makes perfectly good sense, but very few businesses - set themselves up to win by creating a strategy focused on the high payoff group of clients. As a bonus you can now pay more attention and provide WOW customer service to the people who earn you the most profit. I assure you, they’ll love the special treatment.
In reality, you probably can't convert all of your marginal clients because they might not all agree with your plan. Maybe my suggestion doesn't even make sense in your business.
• But I challenge you to take a good hard look at where you are spending your time.
If you are hesitating, determine your real reasons for not pursuing this strategy with enthusiasm.
Below are Five Steps to help put Parato`s Principle at the top of your agenda:
1. List all your clients - preferably in a spreadsheet program. Enter the clients’ name, the revenue that they generated this year and last year. Estimate the average revenue from them over the past five years and the potential revenue for next year. Is it going up or down? What percentage of your total revenue does this client represent for your SPA business?
2. Sort your columns by the margin of revenue and you should be able to identify a pattern. Who are your profitable clients and who are your marginal clients? If something is changing, what are the reasons? Predict which ones will be in your group of profitable clients next year. Do you have all of their business or are you sharing it with others spas? What percentage of their business do you have now?
3. To determine what are the common traits of your profitable clients consider:
a. What are the products or services they purchase?
b. Do they have untapped potential?
c. What is the strength of your relationship with them?
d. How did they become a client?
Also consider what benefits your profitable clients are receiving by dealing with you. I suggest that once you have identified this niche group, call and ask them to help you define your business more clearly. Every important client will value the opportunity to help you grow your business and appreciate that you value their suggestions and feedback.
• Look at your marginal client group to see if you've overlooked people who, with some effort, could be moved up into the profitable client category in order to increase the amount of business they do with you.
• Develop a specific plan to give away, or manage your marginal clients in a way that is relative to their business value.
If you react blindly to your customer base and treat all clients the same, then you are definitely working harder - not smarter. Therefore develop a client strategy that enables you to intelligently identify your top clients and spend more time with them and others like them. Are you 20/80 or 80/20?
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