Andrew Griffiths Blog

Most small businesses have key personal. This is normally the owner or manger and they seem to be the person or the people that receive a hundred phone calls a day, a pile of faxes, emails , letters and other forms of communication. If you are one of those people you will know and completely understand that at times it is very hard to move forward in your business because you get so bogged down in the day to day activities.

This is an area that I have often struggled with over the years. It is often easier to do things yourself rather than take the time to explain to a staff member how to do a particular job and then follow up to make sure that it is done.

One of the most surprising observations that I have made of successful business people is that often they are not actually that busy. Their day is full but they tend to start work at reasonable hours and finish work at a reasonable hour and they have a strong support team around them. They don’t waste time doing small or repetitive jobs that waste their time. They expend their energy and personal resources on making decisions and moving the business forward.

A prime example of this is something as simple as using a courier. For years I would find myself driving all over town dropping off documents for clients. By the time I got myself organised, got in the car, found the premises, stopped and had a chat, did a few other chores and then headed back to the office I was wasting at least one hour for every drop off I did. Now during a week I would probably have to make ten to fifteen deliveries like this so I was losing upwards of ten to fifteen hours per week in what I thought, was an attempt to save a few dollars. Then when I sat down and realised that I was losing so much work time each week I quickly adopted the services of a courier who charges a few dollars for each delivery, saving me a lot of time where I can actually be making money.

Now I know that this must seem obvious however it really wasn’t. When I started my business I would only do one or two drop offs each week so it really wasn’t a big deal and to be honest it was nice to get out of the office. But over several years, business increased and before I knew it I was spending far more time doing a task that was basically sending me broke.

Delegation is a hard skill to learn and one that does not come naturally for many people. There are courses that can be done in virtually any city around the world and there are also some excellent books that cover the subject in detail. Some of my clients have found it particularly helpful to talk to friends and associates who are good at delegating to ask for tips and advice.

What is the difference between the person who opens and runs a successful pizza restaurant and the person who opens and runs a chain of pizza restaurants around the world? I believe that it is all in the thinking process. If you think big you can be big but most of us get too busy doing what we do to let thoughts about where we are going manifest and form. There is nothing wrong with being a small successful business but likewise there is nothing wrong with building that small successful business into a hugely successful big business.

Now I know that there will be some people reading this who will feel that there are a multitude of limitations that prevent them from world domination (in the nicest possible way) but from my own experiences and observations of entrepreneurs, there is little doubt that those that aim high and think big tend to achieve more.

I have a series of big plans – which I have broken into time frames. Short term I would be happy to pay off my credit cards (like most of us) – longer term I want to sell a million books. Both are significant to me and I believe that I will achieve both, even if I am not certain which is tougher. I have a list of about ten significant goals and reading the longer term ones today makes my analytical brain go into seizures, but I honestly and sincerely believe I will achieve them.

Think big and go for it.

WHAT CAN YOU DO TODAY? What are your long term plans and ambitions for your business? How much money do you want to earn? Make a list of these goals and don’t let your mind put limitations on the size of the goal – if you want to earn $1 million dollars per year – put it on the list. If you want to expand globally, put it on the list. Keep this list handy, perhaps stick it on the mirror in the bathroom or inside your diary or on the cover of your cheque book, but regardless of where you put it, read it regularly and you will start to move in the direction of achieving these goals.

In the course of my daily working life I get to meet a lot of business owners from virtually every industry imaginable. These people are from big corporations and small, one person businesses alike. What constantly amazes me is the feeling of isolation that many of these business owners can feel. They often beat themselves up over perceived weaknesses in their businesses simply because they have no way to gauge how their business is going when compared to other businesses.

We often get caught up in our own little world. We develop a perception that every other business is perfect and ours is the only one that is not. Well I am here to tell you that there is not a business on the planet that hasn’t got the odd rough edge or internal problem and ironically, most businesses have similar, if not the same problems.

So my first piece of advice is that if you beat yourself up over your business you are wasting time and a lot of energy. If you have had trouble paying bills, perhaps been a little late paying tax, had the odd upset customer or a conflict of some sort with a customer, member of staff or supplier, don’t crucify yourself. The most important thing is that you are doing something about it. Having a positive plan of attack to prevent the problem from happening again is far more important than punishing yourself or feeling like a failure every minute of every day.

My second piece of advice is to find yourself some good friends who are also in business for themselves. People who you can be 100% honest with and that you trust. Talk to them about your own business challenges and let them air their own problems. It is very therapeutic to get them off your chest and you will be amazed that their problems are very similar to your own. Don’t feel embarrassed or concerned that people will think less of you. Sit around, have a good old moan and talk about ways to prevent the problem from occurring again.

My third piece of advice is to remember every day, that all small businesses are in the same boat. We all face the same challenges on a daily basis. It is demanding, sometimes difficult and often less financially rewarding than working for someone else but at the end of the day you are in control of your future. If you are brave enough to be in your own business you deserve a pat on the back and most importantly of all, there are many other ways to measure success other than a bank account balance. If you make a good product, offer a good service, have lots of people who your business has helped or just a sense of pride in what you do, you are already a success story.

So in conclusion, don’t be too hard on yourself. Talk to other like-minded people, share your good stories and your frustrations and every once in a while stop and give yourself a pat on the back.