What are the Characteristics of Successful Business Owners?

Let’s face it, successful people think differently than others. Even if you don’t want to be a business owner yourself, do you want to have a better family life? Church? Club? Cause? It doesn’t matter what you want to do well, this set of 8 common characteristics of successful business owners by Dave Lavinsky on Small Business Trends is a great group of tips:

1. Have a Crystal Clear Vision. More than anything, if you want to achieve a goal, you must be absolutely clear about what you are trying to accomplish.
2. Have a Written Strategic Plan. If your goal is big, you need to think long-term. Want to fit this to your family? What do you want to be able to do with and for your kids as they grow up? I promise you, Harry Chapin’s “Cat’s in the Cradle” is in store for you if you don’t think about this.
3. Set Shorter-Term Goals. You have to bridge the gap between now and that strategic plan. Setting and achieving shorter term goals will give you the confidence to succeed.
4. Ongoing Education. You will need to learn and grow to become the person who can carry out your big goals. Formal education may or may not be what you need, but getting the knowledge (and connections) you need to succeed is critical.
5. Satisfy Your Customers. Whether a business, family, church, cause, you are serving someone in the end. What do they really want? Find out and your plans and goals will be strengthened.
6. Be a Great Marketer. I used to think I couldn’t sell. Then someone pointed out that to win the hot girl who became my wife, I must have had a great sales pitch! Marketing is about creating awareness and beginning the process of motivating others to take actions. If you help them win, you can win, too.
7. Be Laser-Focused in Your Work. There are lots of things you could do. But to succeed with your goal, you have to settle on the limited number of things that will help you get it done. When you finish, then think about something else to do.
8. . Edison famously found 10,000 ways you could not make a practical light bulb. Are you willing to go the distance for your goal? As sales great Tom Hopkins likes to say, “I never see failure as failure, but as the price I must pay to eventually win!”

 

8 Common Characteristics of Successful Business Owners at Small Business Trends.

Poison Phrases for Business

Over on the Inc. blogs, Peter Gasca recently wrote a great article, 5 Most Destructive Phrases in Business. I know from personal experience coming up in the business world that these are poison phases that lead to lost opportunity. Further, they are poison in just about any relationship, after all they are all about unbelief, fear, and doubt:

1. “I can’t (fill in the blank).”
2. “That’s not the way it’s done.”
3. “That’s impossible.”
4. “If we only had money.”
5. “The problem is (fill in the blank).”

Sure, you might not personally be able to do something, but that means that the job is bigger than you…you need a team. Why not go find it and take on the challenge? Why not choose to grow into the leader who can get it done?

Now let me be clear, I am not talking about violating your values. But when confronted with a problem/challenge, look carefully and see if there really is a values issue involved. Sometimes people cloak their personal fears in terms of their values to avoid confronting them. So live your values, but challenge your beliefs.

If you want to grow your business, eradicate these phrases from your lexicon. If you want to succeed in your family, eradicate these phrases from your lexicon. Create new ones like these:

• “Working together, we can (fill in the blank).”
• “How can we do this better?”
• “Who will help us get the money?”
• “Let’s figure out a solution to this challenge.”

5 Most Destructive Phrases in Business at Inc.

The Job Hunting Front and Getting Noticed

Resume Bar for Nick Begley. Source: ABC News

I have seen several interesting job hunting-related articles and posts around the internet recently. Let me share some of them with you.

If you are looking to hire, are you looking at prospects’ social media? Much of it is accessible to the public. Our friends over at Under 30 CEO wrote a post in favor of studying a candidate’s social media. You will learn several things, including:

• Consistency. Do they say the same things to others they did to you?
• Communication style. Did they write that awesome resume? Really?
• What do others think?  …and they weren’t even asked…
• Modernity. The world is changing. Are they?
• Reputation. Yours, that is. Customers might run searches on people they are dealing with. Will the candidate embarrass you?

So, this is what employers might be doing. What are you doing to get noticed? You might turn your resume into a candy bar, just as Nick Begley did. Nick’s creativity and hard work paid off, too. I wrote about this and the job hunting environment in a recently published blog post, too. In the end, job hunting is about connection. Are you taking responsibility for your connections?

As you think creatively, be sure you get your story straight. This post by Maggie Tomas at Women of HR reminds us of some of the things we need to do to be ready for an interview. Key points:

• Know why you want to make the change. Tell your story in a positive way that focuses on the position in question.
• Be ready to prove your past success in the new role’s core competencies. You want to show that you really do have the goods. Don’t leave this to chance.
• Demonstrate that you have researched the company. You pay a high compliment to others when you get to know them. You might also be able to link your story to their passions, creating a stronger connection, and perhaps even a new job…

There are lots to think about in the job hunting world. But if you remember that it is about connection in the end, you will do the hard work to reach your goal.

Are you looking for success?

My friend and mentor Ed DeCosta has a great blog about success. (If you don’t like to read, he publishes it as a v-blog, too, just scroll to the bottom of the page.) In his latest installment, Seeing What You’re Looking For, Ed explains the science of success and our “Reticular Activating System” (RAS), that part of our subconscious that sees things that are important to us. RAS is the reason you see your new car’s model everywhere you drive. Your subconscious has alerted your conscious to be on the lookout.

As Ed points out, success works the same way. When we write out our goals, we let our subconscious know they are important to us, and it alerts the conscious mind to be on the lookout and tell it when things related to our goal appear. When you do, you begin to see what you are looking for.

Are you looking for success? Then read what Ed has to say. It is truly “Ed-ifying!”

Seeing What You’re Looking For

 

Leaders with Superpowers

Michael Hyatt reminds us that leaders have the power to energize or deflate their teams. In his post 5 Ways to Energize Your Team, he tells the story of a great team deflated by the thoughtless actions of a leader. He also offers these 5 points:

1. Assume others are smart and working hard.
2. Listen intently and ask thoughtful questions.
3. Acknowledge the sacrifices others have made on your behalf.
4. Express gratitude for their effort and their results.
5. Remind them why their work is so important and the difference they are making.

You do have super powers. How are you going to use them?

5 Ways to Energize Your Team