growth

Prerequisites for Growth

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Last week we began a discussion on Avenues to Growth, and in introducing the concept we described how employing tactics to achieve that growth is meaningless without first defining your business goals, “your WHY”. The reason: how do you quantify actions without a desired outcome with which to measure those actions against?

Just get in your truck and drive. Go. Which way do you turn out of your driveway, or at the corner? Where are you going? After driving for an hour, aimlessly, where will you be?

It may be anecdotal, but there is truth in saying “If you don’t know where you’re going, how will you know when you get there?” Every time you get into your vehicle to drive, you have a goal of getting somewhere. It may be to the rink, the bank, or the store, but the point is you have a goal of where you want to go. And somehow, quite amazingly sometimes, you reach your declared destination.

Your business is no different.

Pursuing growth in business without defining what it is you’re trying to achieve is as fruitful as getting into your truck and driving aimlessly for an hour. You will have used up valuable resources (time, capital, fuel/energy, etc.)  and found yourself somewhere you didn’t expect to be. Then you have the challenge of figuring out what to do when you’re there. Turning the truck around and heading home is much easier than doing the same in business. Metaphor ended.

Step 1. Define your business goals for growth.

 

 

To achieve your growth goals, you will need sufficient resources. This opens up a plethora of subtopics that is suited to a separate discussion. For today, we will look at only one: financial.

Part of the activity in defining growth goals is to include discussion on the business’ financial resources. Does your business have, or can it acquire, the resources required to successfully implement the tactics that will achieve your goals?

Ask any banker, any financial analyst, and you’ll probably get a response akin to the importance of cash to your business. Cash is critical, often suggested that “cash is king.”

“Cash is not King…it’s the Ace!”

-Phil Symchych

To suggest cash is king would indicate that something else is the ace, meaning something else is more important than cash, and I’m here to tell you that cash is the lifeblood of your business and draining the cash from your business is similar to draining the blood for your body.

It’s true, cash is not king…it’s the ace.

“Growth, however, is king!”

-Kim Gerencser

By letting growth be the ace and cash be king, you’re placing growth ahead of cash; this is incredibly dangerous. Many aggressive businesses have grown themselves to the brink of bankruptcy by making this mistake. I recall dealing with some young farmers who pursued growth so rapidly that their working capital couldn’t keep up. They began borrowing more and more operating credit to keep the business afloat and found themselves using their operating line of credit to make their term loan payments (HINT: bankers get real squirrelly real fast when this happens.) This business didn’t have sufficient cash when pursuing their growth actions. They had no defined goals, only (what now appears to be) reckless abandon. They might have one year left, and if that year isn’t stellar they could be forced into liquidation.

Step 2. Compile (or acquire) sufficient resources for growth.

 

 

Because of my work in agriculture, I often get asked by non-farming people “How big is too big” when it comes to the size and scale of modern farm operations. My reply: I can tell you exactly when a farm is too big (as the audience waits with baited breath)…it’s the moment that the farm has outgrown the management ability of the manager! For some it’s 40,000 acres, for others it’s 400 acres. It all comes down to management capacity and ability.

Too often, businesses feel they must expand to remain relevant. As such, they pursue growth before they are ready. This can lead to management burnout, employee dissatisfaction, and lost customers. Consider a elementary school aged child; if that child has not successfully exhibited sufficient competence in math, reading, and writing, the child should not (by rights) be advanced to the next grade. Doing so will cause the child to be unnecessarily stressed in the next grade from having to learn new concepts before the base knowledge has been established. Such a situation can lead to all kinds of issues better left to the educational professionals. There is great similarity in the abilities of the manager in your business to the example of the school age child. Asking management to manage a business that has grown beyond their ability is a recipe for failure.

Step 3. Perform an audit of management’s ability & capacity for growth.

 

 

Plan for Prosperity

Aspirations for growth are born out of the desire for prosperity. Both must be planned. Accidental prosperity from fortuitous growth is not sustainable.

Growth is exciting, invigorating, maybe even intoxicating…especially when growth happens systemically, systematically, and successfully.

Conduct the 3 Step Growth Audit laid out above to evaluate your likelihood of successful growth. If you need some guidance, give me a call or email.

 

Growth Avenue

Avenues to Growth – an Introduction

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There are many tactics that can be implemented to achieve growth in your business. Listing them right off the hop would be meaningless, because first we must understand your goals.

What is it you are trying to achieve in business? Why are you in business? As Michael Gerber wrote in The E-Myth Revisited, “the problem is not that the owners of small businesses don’t work; the problem is that they’re doing the wrong work.” Gerber has built a career and a successful enterprise on breaking down why most small businesses fail. In my opinion, it is summed up nicely in what Gerber calls the Fatal Assumption.

The Fatal Assumption is: if you understand the technical work of a business, you understand the business that does the technical work. And the reason it’s fatal is it just isn’t true.  The technical work of a business and a business that does that technical work are two totally different things!

Michael Gerber – The E-Myth Revisited, page 13

So, if the reason you’re in business is because you are an expert at the technical work being done in your business, you may be wondering why your dreams and aspirations of growth, wealth, and freedom haven’t transpired as imagined when you took the leap.

Business is complex. There are many facets to successful business, far more than simply “doing the work.”
Understanding that is the first step.
Asking for help is the second step.

Because if you are an expert at the technical work of your business, then is it likely you’ve struggled managing the business which does that technical work.

And growth has possibly eluded you…
Or, at least the potential for growth that your industry may present?

As a former bank lender, and having had several conversations with current bankers over the last half-dozen years since I left banking, the sentiments are the same. One banker was recently describing a client, who was a good client but could be so much better, by saying, “He builds a helluva road, but can’t manage his cash to save his life.”

Change the character to either he or she, and change the activity to almost any technical work. She/He:

  • Builds a helluva road,
  • Installs a helluva wiring system,
  • Designs a helluva house,
  • Welds a helluva bead,
  • Grows a helluva crop,

…the list can go on and on.

Just doing the work will grow your business to a point, but that point is reached when you, as the owner/manager, run out of capacity.

Dr. David Kohl spoke recently in southern Saskatchewan. He described how success requires alignment of your expertise, your capacity, and your market.
Clearly, you have expertise or you would likely not be in business.
If you operate in a market that is hungry for your product or service, then growth is ready for the taking.
Is your capacity is sufficient in ALL areas that need to be covered in order to sustain growth: management, finance, reporting, staffing, logistics, facilities & equipment, etc?
(**Did you notice that facilities & equipment was found at the END of that list?  That is symbolic.)

All too often, the “technician” owners put emphasis on the facilities & equipment because that’s where their expertise is found. It’s why the “technician” owners are more apt to fail. Getting additional equipment is the easy part; managing the cash flow, bankers, and staff is the hard part.

So in this Introduction to the “Avenues to Growth”, we have described that:

  1. You need alignment of your expertise, your capacity, and your marketplace;
  2. You need clarification of your reason for being in business; and
  3. You must define your business goals.

Plan for Prosperity

Over the coming weeks, we will be exploring the Avenues to Growth in greater detail. The explicit certainty in any growth plan is that growth must be intentional. Accidental growth or fortuitous growth is not sustainable unless the owners & management team conduct a postmortem on how and why the growth occured so that lessons can be learned, mistakes not repeated, and good decisions leveraged further in the future.

The other explicit certainty to growth: there are many avenues to get there, none are a straight line, and there is no “Easy Street.”

 

**The featured image is a screen shot from a Google street-view of Fort Wayne, Indiana. In a weird twist of irony, Growth Avenue in Fort Wayne is a dead end street.

Coach

Who Needs a Coach?

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Muhammad Ali.

Wayne Gretzky.

Tom Brady.

Professional athletes…emphasis on “professional,” the best at what they did (do). Evoking cries of “The G.O.A.T.” which stands for “Greatest Of All Time,” these legends all used a coach.

Football teams have more coaches than they are allowed players on the field at any one time. Baseball, hockey, soccer, olympic squads, the list goes on…all have coaches.

Individual success, such as Tiger Woods, Venus Williams, Michael Phelps, even many CEOs of Fortune 500 companies, all use a coach. One of the best, if not the best coach of corporate executives, Marshall Goldsmith, uses a coach himself.

Right now, I have three. Each has a specific purpose, yet they compliment each other in how I benefit from having them. This does not include the advisers I use for accounting, legal, investments, or insurance where the number then increases to more than ten.

Back to the professional athlete, who is so skilled at what he or she does that they make a living doing it (and a exceptionally good living at that.) If you’re already top of your game, what good is a coach? If that were true, then everyone at the top of their game (see a small sample list above) would have fired their coach. Just because we might be at the top of our game doesn’t mean there is no longer room for improvement. None of us is perfect.

Can you and your business benefit from a coach? What aspects of your business could use some coaching?

Efficiency: is your efficiency all it could be? The old adage that I lean on is “You don’t know what you don’t know”, so is the perspective from an expert a worthy pursuit?
Finance: this relates to banking, borrowing, and investing. Is your approach more reactive to these important facets of your business, or do you regularly analyze your situation to proactively position you and your business? I couldn’t tell you how often I’ve seen something as simple as monthly account fees going totally unmonitored and therefore costing 2-3x what would be charged if a regular review was done.
Growth: this can take so many forms; I could write a book! Growth is not just about size and scale, there are many ways to grow (both personally and business.) If growth is your desire, considering how varied and complex growth can be, having a growth coach can save hours of stress, create multiples of efficiency, and help avoid pitfalls along the way.

The list is almost endless: from technology and social media to HR and governance/policy development, there is an expert available who is willing to help you take your business to new heights.

Plan for Prosperity

It is not reasonable to expect that you, as an entrepreneur and business owner, can know everything related to the successful operation, sustainability, and life-cycle of your business. And yet, considering that your business is the driver of your family’s lifestyle and a big part of your legacy, it is tragic to leave to chance so much of what is critical to business success.

Do what you do best, and get help for the rest.™

-Kim Gerencser

The quote above is a major cornerstone of my advisory work with clients, that’s why I’ve trademarked it. It’s been said that we can spend our entire lives trying to improve on our weaknesses and all we’ll end up with are a bunch of strong weaknesses. Whereas if we leveraged our strengths, the potential they create can grossly overshadow the drawbacks of any weaknesses…especially if we leverage others whose strengths are in the areas of our weaknesses.

 

 

Heat and Light

Heat and Light

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Heat comes from energy. Emotion creates energy. Therefore, emotion provides the heat.

But, emotion can also cloud our judgement. It can lead us to act irrationally, and even in ways we would not normally behave.

Light, however, provides perspective. By illuminating more than what is right in front of our nose, we are able to recognize more options than emotion alone would have permitted us to see.

Light is awareness. Awareness allows us to think.

Heat with no light is raw, unbridled, emotionally charged nonsense.

Light with no heat is cold, calculating, and rigid to the point of inaction.

“Logic makes us think, emotion makes us act.”

– Alan Weiss

 

Plan for Prosperity

Like everything in life, too much of anything is not a good thing. Your business needs a balance of heat and light.
You, as the business owner, no doubt, have an abundance of heat. Where do you source your light?
I, as a management adviser, am hired to provide light. That light is awareness to options and strategies that can benefit your business.

But without your heat, no amount of light will make a difference.

roi

Sustainability – What is It?

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Are you sick of buzzwords? They’re everywhere…all the time. Some are actually impactful, but all are meaningless without context.

One buzzword that actually has some meat is “sustainability,” but in the next breath it’s meaningless because it can be over-used, misinterpreted, or put into the wrong context. Often times the word is attached to “environmental” sustainability and conjures up visions of environmental enthusiasts/activists/evangelists, but the term sustainability is simply defined as being able to last or continue for a long time.
Ref. https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/sustainable

Using that frame of reference, let’s focus on the financial aspect.

You have put many changes in place in your business over the years. Ranging from new/improved processes to increased size & scale, each change has had an impact on your business. No question, your intention has always been to implement a change for the betterment of your business. But prior to initiating any action, was an assessment of the sustainability of the proposed change ever done? How did you quantify the impact of the change?

There are many success stories floating around lately about producers who gave up some rented land and increased their overall business profits from doing so. While this is counterintuitive to the deeply embedded mindset that “bigger is better,” clearly the financial sustainability of the status quo was in question for these particular operations.

What is the financial sustainability of increasing the size of the factory (more land), adding capacity (more/bigger/newer equipment), or increasing labor (more people)? Each of these needs to be evaluated beyond the obvious cash costs. What are the incidental costs, meaning:

  • Increasing the size of the factory (More Land) carries
    • Higher ownership/operating costs for PP&E (property, plant, & equipment);
    • More cash to service debt on the asset;
    • Change in insurance costs (which way will premiums go, up or down?)
    • Change in utilities costs (which way will heat and power go, up or down?)
    • More working capital to be able to utilize the increased scale of the business;
    • Etc.
  • Adding Capacity (More/Bigger/Newer Equipment) carries
    • Higher costs for PP&E (property, plant, & equipment);
    • More cash to service debt on the asset;
    • Change in insurance costs (which way will premiums go, up or down?)
    • Change in operating costs (which way will fuel and repairs go, up or down?)
    • Will you need to add staff (another operator)?
    • Will you need to upgrade your systems and/or technology so the new equipment can operate relatively seamlessly in your existing set-up?
  • Increasing Labor (More People) carries
    • Additional cost for benefits (pension, vacation, etc.)
    • Higher management requirement (to approve holidays, implement performance evaluations, conduct scheduling);
    • Any additional tools for employees to use (hand tools, vehicles, computers, etc.)
    • Training costs.

Each of these points above has an impact on the decision to increase the size of the factory, the capacity of the equipment, or the volume of human capital in your business. Evaluating each decision above with a broader perspective, which would include an expected ROI (Return on Investment), is the best way to understand the sustainability of each option. If the desired change to your business provides insufficient ROI, it puts the sustainability of not only the project but your entire business in question. At minimum, ROI must exceed the cost of borrowed capital that was utilized for the project.

Plan for Prosperity

Buzzwords aside, sustainability is as much of a mindset as it is a business practice. Sustainability deserves a place in your business’ values and mission & vision statements. It should make up a component of every business decision that you consider. If your business is not sustainable, what are your plans for afterwards?

Reflection

Reflection

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We are now bombarded with headlines, columns, and blurbs about how this is the time to pause and look back over the last year. What went well? What didn’t? Blah, blah, blah…

If you’re not doing this throughout the year, not just now in late December, I have to ask, “Why the hell not?” Do you think a hockey team plays the entire game without checking the scoreboard and the clock regularly? They would be quite surprised to have the final buzzer go off only to find they were losing the game and didn’t make any adjustments that could have led to a win…

No, this column is not like the others that suggest you look back and give thanks. That is, however, good advice and a wonderful practice to follow.

This column suggests that you look for your reflection. It can be seen in places we don’t always look until much time has past, which often leads to difficulty making sufficient adjustments (Ref. the hockey team described above.) Here are a few places where you’ll see your reflection, if you look…

Your Children

As a young man, I was told regularly that I was very much like my dad, right down to the way I walked and talked. I took that as a compliment because I really looked up to my dad. As I matured as a man, I began to see some of his shortcomings and decided I didn’t want to be a mirror of him but a better version instead. I try to emulate his virtues and learn from his faults so that I can be the best dad I can for my two young daughters.

I see strong reflections of myself in my children, especially my oldest. She has perfectionist tendencies, wants to do right by everyone, and is incredibly well spoken for her age. All are qualities I’ve been told would aptly describe me as a toddler. Those might be her worst qualities because on the other end of the spectrum, she has the most beautiful soul: caring, generous, forgiving…I could go on and on. I’ve learned that perfection kills progress and am working on improving my perfectionist tendencies every day. Now I need to learn how to teach her what I’ve learned in this regard.

Your Business

As a solo-preneur, (that’s the phrase I’ve coined to describe me and everyone else who is a solo entrepreneur) I am my business; I am everything in it and for it, from creating and executing the marketing plan to opening the mail. If I’m not working my business, my business is idling in neutral.

In businesses with a team, be that team a family or arm’s-length employees, the team will be an indirect reflection of you as the leader. A motivated and conscientious team is a reflection of an appreciative and fair leader. An apathetic and truant team is a reflection of a harsh and impatient leader.

However, it matters not whether our business is a team or a solo, the drive towards success that is seen in our businesses is a direct reflection of us, the leaders. Our level of engagement in the moving towards our big picture, long term goals will correlate almost perfectly to the results we achieve. My engagement in my business has been challenged in the last half of 2017 as I dealt with a difficult personal issue, and the results show it.

Your Circle

People tend to gravitate to other people of their ilk. It’s natural. Is your circle of friends & contacts positive and optimistic, or negative and pessimistic? By surrounding ourselves with other just like us, we risk getting caught up in an echo chamber where our perspective is never challenged and will never change.

To Plan for Prosperity

Reflection is more apparent than we might think. Yet it is often difficult to recognize. And despite all this, typically the best tool to settle the challenges in business is a mirror.

 

**Credit Where Credit is Due
Last week we shared again that “Cash Isn’t King, It’s the ACE!” This was first heard from Phil Symchych of Symco & Co. management advisors symcoandco.com  and we didn’t provide proper citation or acknowledgement. For this, we apologize. Phil has been a great friend & advisor and we look forward to continued success.

 

Cash Growth and Misplaced Priorities

Cash, Growth, and Misplaced Priority

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It’s been said many times by many pundits that “cash is king.” If you are a regular reader of my weekly commentary, you’ll know that I am not one who abides by that line of thinking because Cash Isn’t King. It’s the ACE!

However, GROWTH is King!

Growth is King and Cash is the Ace. What a tandem! It’s no wonder that in Texas Hold ‘Em poker, an Ace-King is known as “Big Slick.”

Recall that growth is not just about size and scale. Growth takes many forms; successful businesses “always grow, and grow all ways.”

The misplaced priority is when business pursues growth (expansion) at all costs, when it puts growth (expansion) above cash. I’ve seen businesses “grow” themselves to the brink of bankruptcy…

In an effort to spread out overhead costs, many businesses are driven to scale up. If rapid expansion is undertaken while in a weak financial position, the business has just been weakened further.

Cash is required to support any expansion plans. Expanding will not fix an insufficient cash position.

To Plan for Prosperity

Expansion plans must be carefully drawn up to ensure sufficient resources are available to support the goal. Expanding with insufficient resources, especially cash, can accelerate the decline of your business.

 

Top Shelf

Top Shelf

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Top Shelf.

It’s a phrase best known for describing the highest quality wines, spirits, and liqueurs.  Those who produce such fine beverages are known to maintain unwavering quality in their attention to detail, ensuring that each bottle meets the highest standard for which they’ve become known. Connoisseurs know which brand is “top shelf” by its reputation.

Same can be said for restaurants. At a client reception, I witnessed great care from our service staff to ensure every order was correct, on time, and to their diner’s expectations (even better to be above those expectations.) The entertainment factor was brought into play during desserts when special coffees that donned towering flames were prepared right in front of us. Everyone had a wonderful time, and the tip showed our appreciation.

“Top Shelf” is synonymous with quality. This moniker can be applied to almost anything from cars to clothes to food or to service. We all aspire to enjoy something “top shelf” once in a while.

Of course, top shelf does not matter to all people all the time. Some things in life just need to be economical. Would you pay $5 for a can of “top shelf” soda pop from a boutique brand when you can drink Coke or Pepsi for under $2? It’s unlikely you’d get in line to pay premium rates on your electricity bill, and no one would choose to pay $15 per pound for bologna…”top shelf” or not.

The contrast is determining where we will settle for “economical” and where we desire “top shelf.” In the commodity business, and yes if you produce grains or livestock you are in the commodity business, it is easy to get into a pattern of “everything economical.” This is because you sell the commodities you produce at the lowest price the market is willing to pay that day…because it’s commodity! And so, that thinking permeates through your entire business driving you to search for the cheapest option: fuel, fertilizer, parts, insurance, repairs, professional services, etc. You’ll notice that equipment did not make that list; somehow equipment remains the anomaly that defies the theory of “everything economical.”

Would the management of your business be considered “Top Shelf”? If it was to be rated by experts and evaluated by professionals, how would you measure up? Are you okay with “everything economical”, or when it comes to your legacy, your family and your business, should “top shelf” be the minimum requirement?

To Plan for Prosperity

If you deserve “top shelf management” in your business then elevate your skills or seek it out externally. Relentlessly adhere to consistent “top shelf” quality in your management systems, information, and decisions. Recognize where in your business you should be “economical”…but (spoiler alert) it should not be in your management.

Like top shelf booze, you too can be known as a top shelf manager by reputation…if you develop the habit of “unwavering quality in attention to detail” just like those whose product is found on the top shelf.

Goal Congruence_LI

Goal Congruence

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Have you been beat up enough yet about “defining your goals”? Every article I read relating to business management and every presentation I attend relating to business management always brings up the need for you as the businessperson to “define your goals.” For the record, “business management” in the context of this piece also include business transition (succession) planning.

The beatings will continue. They’ll continue as until everyone doesn’t just listen to the advice, but acts on it.

More often than not, when I ask a client (or even a prospective client) what are their goals, I get a blank stare, as if the concept is a foreign language. Far too many business owners have given little consideration to what they are trying to achieve in the business.

If it’s just a place to work and/or a lifestyle to enjoy, then declare it as your goal.
If it’s a family legacy that has been left to you that you intend to leave to your children, then declare it as your goal.
If it’s to achieve the largest scale in your market area, then declare it as your goal.
If it’s to create financial wealth and prosperity for you and your family, then declare it as your goal.

Don’t just tell the advisor you’ve hired, and paid well, that your goal is “to make more money.” That’s everyone’s goal, whether employed for someone else or self-employed like you. Let’s get serious.

There are four sample goals described above. These four have been chosen because they are the most common goals I have identified in working with entrepreneurs for the last 15 years. What I mean by “identified” is that while some of these goals have been declared, it’s more common that the goal is insinuated by (or surmised from) the behavior of the owners. The problem is when business owners try to combine more than one of those four sample goals listed above; this happens almost all the time.

The first goal listed, lifestyle, is not congruent with any of the other three.
We’ve learned that largest scale does not automatically equate to increased financial wealth and prosperity; again, not necessarily congruent.
The only congruity among the four samples is between family legacy and financial prosperity.
– yet behaviors often do not follow those goals.

It is advisable to have multiple goals in business and in life. In business, none of the goals we may have can be achieved without prudence in financial management. Remember, profit feeds your business, it feeds your family, and it feeds your ability to spend time with your family & on other things you enjoy. If you feel uncomfortable declaring one of your business goals to be financial wealth because you don’t want to be thought of as a greedy person, then don’t declare it, but for the sake of your business’ and your family’s future, behave like it. If you’re not profitable, if you’re suffering under the pressure of non-existent working capital, or worse, then none of your goals are achievable. Period. Hard stop. I’m sorry to have to deliver that cold truth in such a harsh manner.

To Plan for Prosperity

The challenge I lay out for all entrepreneurs is this: be clear on why you do what you do, establish working parameters and behaviors that support it, and evaluate your progress & results regularly to ensure you’re still on track. How sad would it be to never check the map for the entire journey only to end up somewhere you never meant to be?

Not only must your goals be congruent, but your behaviors must be as well. You and your business face enough turmoil, challenges, and risks. Don’t create more challenges by making decisions that aren’t congruent with your goals.

FOUR HANDS MALE AND FEMALE TOAST WITH MUGS OF BEER

Milestones

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This is the 150th consecutive Tuesday that I have written and shared this weekly Op-Ed piece. Thank you for reading it each week. I am humbled by the number of subscriptions you have provided.

Truth be told, I almost blew right by this milestone. There is another piece I had written that was ready to be sent. It was only when preparing to load it into the emailing program I use that number 150 came to light. This gives a good opportunity to pause and reflect.

In January 2015, I was starting from square zero by going fully independent in my business advisory practice. I left behind all of the clients and prospects I had at the time to start with a clean slate and a clear conscience.

Here’s some of what I’ve learned over the last 150 weeks.

  1. Right when you think you know something, someone comes along and blows that “knowledge” right out of the water. Hence, one of the mantras I live by: Learn, Unlearn, Relearn.
  2. Success is not defined by how big your investment portfolio is, or how large your business is. As Alan Weiss says, “There Is Always A Bigger Boat™ – stop living by other people’s standards!”
  3. The greatest limiting factor in our businesses is usually ourselves. Our businesses are limited by our vision, our fears, our aversion to the right risk, or our propensity for the wrong risk. Coincidentally, this also applies to our lives.
  4. Far too many businesses continue to make decisions with inaccurate or insufficient information at best… or with emotion & a hunch at worst.
  5. Going by behavior and attitudes, the shift from farming as a “lifestyle” to farming as a “business” still has a long way to go.

What is your milestone in business? How has your business changed over that time? What is the next milestone you see?

To Plan for Prosperity

The path is never clear, there are always obstacles that will cause you to make adjustments. It is safe to say that someone else’s path may not be best for you since it’s their path, not yours, and you’re not them. Choose your path carefully, but give yourself the freedom to choose another when necessary.

  1. Clarify your definition of success.
  2. Establish specific goals that will lead you to success.
  3. Set out tactics to achieve your goals.
  4. Prepare contingencies.
  5. Execute.

I’ve revisited that simple 5-step plan more than once in the last 150 weeks. I expect I’ll revisit it several times more over the next 150. I utilize my business advisor to help me with that process; I am walking my talk…”Do what you do best, and get help for the rest™!”

Cheers to Success!