Focus and Relevance From Working On Your Business

Just like we need food and nourishment for our physical self, so does our business. However, while our body tells us we are hungry and it is time to eat, our business doesn’t necessarily do the same. Therefore, it is critical that we put plans in to place to make time to ‘feed’ our business.

Often times we read or hear someone asking, “Are you working ON your business or IN your business?” Working ON your business means you are able to periodically step back, look at the big picture, evaluate your business with an objective lens and make any necessary corrections. Working IN your business means you are down in the details working on the daily tasks, management and operations of your business. The answer to that question should be “both,” but unfortunately we often find ourselves mired in the daily operations of only working IN our business.

There are two common harmful side effects that come with only working IN your business.

FOCUS.

Often, when I ask someone to recite the most important aspect of their business, I hear the ‘what’: I need to make the widgets, I need to deliver my service, I need to manage my inventory etc. While these things are indeed important, we forget about the need to get in front of people, create connections and prospect. If we don’t constantly get in front of people about what we do, we can’t sell anything. If we can’t sell anything, we can’t make the widgets, deliver our service or manage our inventory. It is important to keep a keen focus on the priorities of running your business:

1. Prospect
2. Sell
3. Do

The success of your business is directly proportional to the size of your pipeline. Are you focused and keeping your pipeline full?

RELEVANCE.

It is necessary for every business to stay relevant. Too often, when aspects of your business are overlooked, it can create detrimental problems. When we get bogged down by only working IN our business, we miss the opportunities that enable competitors to pass us by.

Most industries are experiencing disruptive change as technology is being leveraged in new or innovative ways. In reading about Curbio winning a top remodeler award in only its second year of business, I couldn’t help but wonder how many well-established remodelers were overtaken in the market because they were blindsided by this inventive model.

It is necessary to understand the ‘why’ behind your business and what gets your customers to buy your product or service. Understanding your ‘why’ must be a continual process. In our ‘immediate satisfaction’ society, likes and interests change at the snap of a finger. Are you keeping a pulse on your relevance on a routine basis?

Being able to work ON as well as IN your business takes discipline and planning but is the necessary nourishment that it needs. As part of your yearly plan, allocate the necessary time and resources to work ON your business to maintain your focus and relevance.