Tips to boost 3 key business skills: motivation, judgement and planning

Tips to boost 3 key business skills

Motivation, judgement and planning

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Table of Contents

Introduction ........................................................................................................... 3

Chapter 1: How to motivate yourself in business .................................................... 4 1) Understand your reason for being in business ................................................................................. 5 2) Identify your strengths and weaknesses ............................................................................................. 5 3) Work out what you're really passionate about – and good at – and do it ........................... 6 4) Accept your limits ......................................................................................................................................... 7 5) Build a support team that can help achieve your business objectives ................................... 8 6) Reward yourself for achievements big and small ........................................................................... 9

Chapter 2: How to sniff a deal – developing commercial gut judgement ............... 11 1) Time and experience the cure for poor decisions .......................................................................... 12 2) Be open to constant learning ................................................................................................................. 12 3) Don’t make the same mistake twice .................................................................................................... 12 4) Decisive decision making based on patience, analysis, context, sharing and pressure testing .................................................................................................................................................................... 13 5) Think strategically but act locally ....................................................................................................... 16 6) Know and trust your capability ............................................................................................................ 16

Chapter 3: How to be planned when you’re not really oriented that way .............. 17 1) Identify your business objectives and take time for self-‐discussion ...................................... 19 2) Prioritise your shopping list ................................................................................................................... 19 3) Communicate your plans ......................................................................................................................... 20

Successful business people: born or made? ......................................................................................... 22

Disclaimer: The information contained in this eBook is general in nature and should not be taken as personal, professional advice. Readers should make their own inquiries and

obtain independent advice before making any decisions or taking any action.




Introduction

Comments by James Price JPAbusiness Pty Ltd

At JPAbusiness we have the pleasure of dealing with long-held family businesses that have survived and thrived in challenging

environments to deliver real value to the owners of the businesses, their employees and the communities they serve.

In our last blog we profiled one such business and its former owner, Ross Higgins, as part of our Client Success Stories series. We have another one coming up soon.

While reflecting on these blogs, and the clients that have inspired them, I found myself musing about these business owners’ personal attributes:

• What makes them different to the ordinary run of business owners? • Just how do they do what they do? • What can we learn from them?

This eBook is going to examine three fundamental attributes of successful business owners: motivation, gut judgement and planning ability.

My goal is not just to tell you that you must have these attributes if you want to be successful in business, but instead to help you develop and hone them.



http://www.jpabusiness.com.au/blog/posts/james-price/2015/08/02/jpabusiness-client-success-stories---sporting-goods-business-built-on-relationships


Chapter 1: How to motivate yourself in business Comments by James Price JPAbusiness Pty Ltd

Motivation in business is about having a certain drive, determination, focus and consistency in the way you go about your business.

We are all wired differently so we’re all going to have strengths and weaknesses in different areas.

In my opinion, there are a number of things you can do to ensure you maximise your motivation. In this chapter I’ll present my Top 6:

1. Understand your reason for being in business

2. Identify your strengths and weakness

3. Work out what you're really passionate about – and good at – and do it

4. Accept your limits

5. Build a support team that can help achieve your business objectives

6. Reward yourself for achievements big and small




1) Understand your reason for being in business

I tell people who want to motivate themselves in business to figure out what is the single most important thing they want to achieve.

Focus on that and allow it to motivate your involvement in the business.

2) Identify your strengths and weaknesses

Key to motivation, in my view, is to know what you are really good at and what you are not really good at.

We’ve spent a lot of time in the past talking about these things in the context of a business’ strengths and weaknesses, but I’m talking here from a personal perspective as a business owner or leader.

Critical to understanding yourself as a person, and therefore what motivates you in business, is to understand your areas of strong capability versus your areas of weakness and challenge.

For example:

I’m really good at selling, at developing business, at developing relationships with people. I’m a really good verbal communicator.

I’m not very good at process, paperwork and managing people’s performance.

You need to have a mental discussion with yourself to figure out those things and then acknowledge them – jot them down.

Be honest with yourself. If you have been in business a few years and you’ve been pressure tested by life experience, you will know what you’re good at and what you’re not so good at.

You could also pressure test whether your assessment is correct – ask someone who knows you well for their opinion.




3) Work out what you're really passionate about – and good at – and do it

We all know as individuals we are much better at doing things we’re passionate about and good at than things we simply can do.

So, if you want to turn up the motivation dial to 100 per cent as a business owner, do the following:

• figure out what you’re passionate about; • figure out what you’re really good at; • focus on those tasks; • ensure you have a team and processes around you to cover off on

other key responsibilities.

Micro-managing dilutes motivation

Now some business owners with healthy egos may think: “I’m good at everything in this business – I need to do everything or it won’t survive.” I know business owners of very large, multi-million dollar businesses who hold that opinion, and good luck to them.

In my opinion, however, this sort of attitude results in business owners spreading themselves too thinly and, ultimately, doing their business a disservice.

By spreading themselves too thinly, they are also spreading too thinly the motivation, drive and passion that they bring to the business and which should be having the maximum impact on clients, employees and suppliers.

Trying to do everything and be everything dilutes your motivation and your impact.

Understand where you add the most value and focus on that.




This leads us to the next point…

4) Accept your limits

Understanding your strengths and weaknesses gives you a feel for what your limits are.

You will know what stresses you out big time, versus what is a breeze for you. As a result you will need to think about the support team you have around you that covers off on those weaknesses and complements your strengths.

Again, I’m talking about your personal attributes here, but in the context of running the business.

For example, if you’re not a good salesperson, you’re not good at business development and or developing relationships, you need someone in your team who is. If you don’t have that person, your business will not be successful and you’re not going to be motivated to get up every day and go to work.

I don’t know anyone who finds repeated failure motivating.




5) Build a support team that can help achieve your business objectives

Building a supportive team is key to maintaining your motivation. This team doesn’t have to consist solely of individuals who work in your business. It may include:

• external team members, such as your accountant, business advisor or solicitor, and other business people;

• mentors, both formal and informal.

These are all people in your network who are good at things you’re not so good at.

Relying on a support team adds to your motivation because, ultimately, motivation is about feeling complete and content with your challenges, as a person or in business.

If you feel you have the building blocks to cover off on all the different aspirations, risks and issues you will face in your business, you will feel more confident and confidence leads to motivation.

If you feel overwhelmed, you will take a dive in the motivation sense.

If you don’t have a good network of support mechanisms, as we’ve discussed in the context of a team, then the risk is your motivation is a bit like a tidal wave and that can have very negative impacts on the business and the people around you.

Here’s an example:

You and your team are very good at business development, sales and relationships.

However you have significant gaps and weaknesses in attention to detail and processes.

You have been driving sales and orders are coming in, but the team has not been following up debtors and creditors, or closely following how the cash flow is tracking.




Suddenly you realise the business is cash poor and cannot fund its ongoing operations.

So, you have a tidal wave of sales (and motivation) but once it crests and starts dragging back out, the sea – your cash reserve (and motivation) – is virtually empty.

Being cash strapped is bad for your business, which is also very bad for motivation!

6) Reward yourself for achievements big and small

Whether you’re in a big business or small, being a business owner can be lonely.

Part of operating as an individual in a consistent, content and motivated way, is to recognise yourself and your achievements.

You need to be able to pat yourself on the back, because that will motivate you.




Self-thought and self-discussion the key

This concept may not be familiar to all business owners, but I am sure many of the good ones do it without even knowing it.

Practising self-thought and self-discussion simply means taking a few minutes at the end of each day to reflect on three things:

• What you’ve done well today • How you’ve added value to the business • What you want to achieve in the business

This process of self-discussion should not be laborious; it can happen within the space of five minutes in a car or on the train.

It is not about dwelling on matters, but putting them in their place in terms of giving yourself personal self-praise, or recognising areas for improvement or change.

You may reflect on the fact that you approached something the wrong way to achieve an aim and next time you will do it differently. It is not about castigating yourself, but about really taking time to focus on your actions and your business.

It is also not the same as lying in bed at night worrying about your business. Self-discussion comes from a positive place and will in fact help stop that worrying.

It is a bit like tidying your desk before you head off for the day. It is tidying and ordering your thoughts about your business and – if you get comfortable doing it day by day – it will help maintain consistency of motivation.




Chapter 2: How to sniff a deal – developing commercial gut judgement Comments by James Price JPAbusiness Pty Ltd

I often find our most successful clients are the ones who seem to have ‘gut judgement’ around commercial opportunities.

In many cases this commercial gut judgement makes the difference between an also-ran business and a supremely successful business.

In this chapter I will outline the factors I believe go to developing commercial gut judgement as a business owner or leader in a business. These are:

1. Time and experience

2. Being open to learning

3. Never making the same mistake twice

4. Decisive decision making based on patience, analysis, sharing and pressure testing

5. Thinking strategically, acting locally

6. Knowing and trusting your capability




1) Time and experience the cure for poor decisions

There is probably no better cure for poor decisions than time and experience in business and in life.

In our teens, 20s and 30s we’re focused on getting experience, both positive and negative. We are all about reacting, being ambitious and spontaneous.

In our late 30s, 40s, 50s and 60s all these collected experiences start to impact the way we approach things, our attitude to risk and return, and to business dynamics. They create prejudices regarding what we think is easy, or hard, or what we think of the market.

Those prejudices are positive, because they’re based on genuine experience, but they can also be negative, because they’re often limiting in nature.

In my view, the key to gut judgement is a mix between impulsiveness, decisiveness and willingness to learn from experience before making a decision.

2) Be open to constant learning

Another concept critical to developing your own gut judgement is constant learning, and I mean constant!

Too often I meet business owners who come seeking advice, but they have closed ‘receptors’ even before they arrive.

Your receptors need to be open at all times to constant learning.

3) Don’t make the same mistake twice

We all make mistakes but there is really no excuse for making the same one twice.

As I say to people, resist the irresistible or otherwise you will feel the same pain, unless of course the circumstances have changed.




Of course, don’t let fear of mistakes stop you from trying things, but take a risk manager’s approach.

Employ some analytical thought and say to yourself: ‘This looks similar to an experience I had previously. I know that if I bang my head against the wall this time, I will get the same bruise as last time.’

Wisdom does come with age, but only if you allow your experiences to shape your decision-making process.

4) Decisive decision making based on patience, analysis, context, sharing and pressure testing

Once you’ve chosen a path you need to be decisive. However that decisiveness should be based on the following actions:

• be patient; • be analytical; • focus on your ultimate

business aims so your decision is made in context;

• share and pressure test your ideas and opinions about business opportunities with your support team, both internal and external.

Here’s an example of a decision-making process based on the above actions:

You run a food processing equipment and ingredients business.

You are evaluating the opportunity to negotiate a distribution agreement on products you will supply through your distribution network.




Product Manufacturer A is a large, multi-national corporation. They have numerous well-known brands which are very good products, but essentially you would be dealing with them remotely. The margin associated with their product is fixed at 35%.

Product Manufacturer B is a regionally based manufacturer. It is a relatively small, family owned business, but it has grown rapidly over recent years. The margin associated with their product is flexible but upwards of 40%. They only have three product lines but the quality is highly renowned.

You now have to make a judgement: ‘Which supplier is the right fit for my business?’

Patience

Remember not to be impulsive; have some patience.

Just because you liked meeting the business owner from the regional business (Product Manufacturer B) because you thought he or she was aligned to your culture, don’t sign up on day one – do your homework!

Analysis

We’ve talked about due diligence processes when buying or selling a business. This is similar.

The hard numbers – the analytical work – will enable you to easily do an objective comparison of the two on paper.

Do yourself and your team justice in terms of objectively assessing both.




Context

Make sure you consider the big picture.

What is the ultimate aim for your business and which supplier would best help you achieve that aim?

Share and pressure test

Your analysis will give you some ideas about who you think is the preferred supplier. Share those ideas with the key people in your business, as well as your support network outside the business.

You may know someone in the sector with experience in signing up distribution rights. Share the nub of the two agreements with that person to get some advice about whether they stack up commercially – do the figures look right to them, should you agree to lock in for X period of time, and under what commercial terms, and so on.

Be decisive

Once you have exercised patience, engaged in analysis, considered your wider business goals, shared and pressure tested your decision, you need to make a decision.

In making the call, be honest with yourself and your team about why you have made the decision you have. This makes you accountable to the business and the team. It also makes the team accountable because you shared the decision and pressure tested your reasoning with them.

Clearly communicating your reasons – based on expected outcomes – also means you can later evaluate the success of the decision. If it turns out to be unsuccessful, having all team members with a clear understanding of the situation should also mean there is little chance of making a similar decision next time i.e. making the same mistake twice.




5) Think strategically but act locally

Commercial gut judgement is also about thinking strategically, but acting locally.

It’s being able to take your mind out of the day-to-day operations of the business and look at the broader environment in which your business is operating.

You need to consider the trends, issues and challenges in your market, and the threats shaping business generally.

Once you’ve taken that strategic view, it’s then about acting ‘locally’.

Focus on your own business and consider: ‘What can I do in my business to mitigate the impacts of those broader issues?’

6) Know and trust your capability

We talked earlier about knowing your limits when it comes to your personal strengths and weaknesses as a business manager.

The same applies when making commercial decisions.

If you are good at numbers and the problem you’re looking at involves the financial assessment of a potential deal, then trust your judgement.

But if it’s the same scenario and you’re not good at numbers, make sure you pressure test your decision with someone who is.

Knowing when to ask for help also shows good judgement.




Chapter 3: How to be planned when you’re not really oriented that way Comments by James Price JPAbusiness Pty Ltd

Maybe our clients are a little different to others, but I would suggest the majority of successful business owners are not strong in the area of business and operational planning.

Having said that, the good ones know what they want to achieve and how to go about it. Their objectives are quite specific and they know how to measure the outcome against those objectives.

Whether those objectives are written down in a formal plan or not is another matter.




Whenever possible, write it down

If you have read any of my previous eBooks or blogs you will know I am an advocate for written business plans.

I encourage people to write things down, even in a summary sense, because it’s a good way of pressure testing your objectives and communicating them to your team.

And, once they are in front of you in black and white, you can’t hide from them.

Management techniques for non-writers

Despite my penchant for written plans, I know successful business owners who don’t write things down and still manage to be supreme at operational and business planning.

They do, however, employ a number of other important techniques, which include:

1. Identify your business objectives – ensure the desired outcomes are clear, measurable and quite specific;

2. Prioritise a shopping list – cover what needs to happen, when and by whom;

3. Clearly communicate the list to your team – develop your communication skills or seek help if necessary. Let your team (internal and external) do the rest!

Using these techniques should help you create a planned and organised business, even if you’re not naturally a planner and organiser.




1) Identify your business objectives and take time for self-discussion

Clearly identify your business objectives and ensure the outcomes you seek have clarity, are measurable and quite specific.

In Chapter 1 we talked about taking some time each day to reflect on the business and engage in a little self-thought and self-discussion about the day’s highs and lows. The purpose, in that context, was to reward us for a job well done and so maintain motivation.

In the context of business planning, self-discussion is used by non-writers to fix their business objectives and plans in their minds. Self-discussion is very powerful and if you do it enough your plans become ‘hard-wired’ in your head.

2) Prioritise your shopping list

Once you know your business objectives, you will likely have a list of 10, 20 or even 30 actions and outcomes you need to achieve those goals.

What I say to clients is: ‘Do you really need that full shopping basket of actions, or can you prioritise a shopping list?’

No matter whether you are a big or small business, the reality is you and your team will be strapped for resources, because that is the nature of a competitive environment.

So how do you prioritise your shopping list?




Start by focusing on the single most important thing you want to achieve as a business owner, and work down from there.

Chances are, if you really dissect what is a priority objective versus what is a ‘nice to have’, you may find you only need to do three or four of those actions to achieve 80% of your objectives.

3) Communicate your plans

For items that make it to the shopping list, clearly communicate to your team what needs to happen, when and by whom.

If you are not oriented as a formal planner, it’s important to develop good communication skills. This will ensure your team has a clear understanding of both your ultimate business objectives and the priority shopping list.

If you have done your job and put in place a team that complements your skills and covers your gaps, they should be able to do the rest of the planning.

In terms of communication, you need to develop:

• A clear, concise, transparent and consistent communication style;

• An inspiring and trusting, yet questioning and inquisitive management style;

• A sense of monitoring and mentoring in terms of how you communicate with your team, both internally and externally.




Seek help if you need it

If you don’t feel you are a good communicator, you either need to seek help through mentoring or advisory assistance, or you need to engage with someone in your team to provide that capability on your behalf.

This team member or advisor needs to be able to decipher your wants and needs and then translate them to the team in an effective way.

(This is where it would be very helpful if you could write down your business objectives. You don’t need to provide reams of information – just a page or two to ensure clarity between you and the team.)

The following is a practical example of the informal planning techniques discussed in this chapter:

I own a building services, property maintenance and security business.

My business objective is to achieve sales of $1.2 million per month for the next six months and achieve our gross profit benchmark of 35%.

I see that goal as core to the success of the business for that period of time.

I write down that goal and show it to my support team. As soon as someone sees it they ask: ‘Gee, how are we going to do that?’

This starts the prioritisation discussion: ‘What do we need to do in order to achieve this objective?’




There may be 10 possible actions we could take, but we decide the priority is to get our sales reps in a room and make sure they understand and share the vision and the objectives.

Once together, the sales manager will workshop ideas with the reps. For instance, he or she may say: ‘Okay guys, this is the challenge. Strategically, what’s the best way of going about it? Do we leverage our existing networks and pipeline? Do we have an advertising campaign? Are there some tenders on the close horizon we should be focusing on?’

Successful business people: born or made?

It’s often argued that successful business owners have traits – motivation, commercial judgement, good communication and leadership, business prioritisation and planning skills – which are inherent, rather than learned and developed.

The reality is that many of these business skills can in fact be learned, developed and honed with time, the right advice, support and experience; and success in developing these traits is often a precursor to success in business and in one’s personal life.

If you would like to learn more about the business advisory and broking services offered by JPAbusiness, you can contact the team by visiting www.jpabusiness.com.au/contact-jpabusiness


http://www.jpabusiness.com.au/contact-jpabusiness

Tips to boost 3 key business skills: motivation, judgement and planning

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Transcript of Tips to boost 3 key business skills: motivation, judgement and planning