Are you ready for the next financial year?

Working with a client of mine last week, we were getting into the nitty gritty of why something’s in her business were not adding up.

She had spent years working in the business, growing it, developing it, hiring staff, caring for them and the business, working untold hours and was still dipping into her personal savings to keep the business going…

We have had a couple of mentoring sessions where the frustration and despair have exploded and the emotions flowed, which is all good!

In business and in life, when we aren’t moving in the direction, at the speed we want, when we seem to be going backwards, there is a term given for the frustration we feel, it is called perturbation!

Simply defined as anxiety or frustration!

With perturbation we can;

Break open and explode!
Break up and go our separate ways
Break down when it gets too much
Break through and see what’s possible when we try something different and don’t give up!

In the context of business, being the business mentor, my aim is to assist business owners to;

firstly, understand where they are
secondly, plan where they want to go
thirdly, know what they have to do to get there
finally, do what is required to get to their destination

I can proudly say my clients are wonderful caring people. Business owners who car about their customers, their suppliers and their staff. Which are all wonderful character traits

Unfortunately, when we are too kind, we can often be taken advantage of. This being taken advantage of can also be without any malice or premeditated sinister plan but simply that it is just easier to take advantage of nice people, let me explain.

Business is about agreed value and exchange.

An employee exchanges their labour for money
A supplier exchanges good or services for money
A client purchases goods for services for money

Communicated, understood and agreed performance expectations, payment terms and product quality all factor into the value of exchange.

When one or more parties don’t deliver on their side of the agreement, the transaction is not equal. Often nice people allow themselves to get taken advantage of.

Staff can be slack, suppliers can send shoddy stock and clients can pay late or not at all if they think that they can get away with it.

That is why it is important for the business owner to have a system that;

– Manages staff

– Manages suppliers

– Managers customers

When we follow a system it takes the emotion out of the verbal exchange and just deals with the facts.

Agreed facts that form a contract, which is why we have contracts!

If you are a nice person and you are a business owner, it is all the more important for you to follow systems and to have contracts in place!

Focus on the facts and avoid the emotion, be nice to your family and friends, but when it comes to business be fair and strong and hold yourself and everyone else accountable!

My client had this break through at our last session and is in the process of doing everything that I have just mentioned and I am so pleased for her!

When you learn to do this, you will master your business, grow your sales, team, profit and time and wonder why you never did it in the first place!

Now with the end of the financial year approaching, you have a month to review the last 12 months and plan for the next 12 months and beyond.

Tell me honestly, if you ever experience one or more of the following frustrations over the last 12 months;

We are flat out and I’m working heaps of hours which are possibly taking a toll on me.
We get lots of enquiries but many don’t turn into a sale which is a waste of time and effort.
We have clients that buy once but we never see them again (except to complain).
We’re really busy, but there could be more money at the end of every month.
We’re at war with competitors and deal with many ‘price focussed’ customers.
I work the hardest in the business, but take the least amount of holidays.
I would really like to improve the cash flow of my business.
I need to constantly supervise my team and fix problems.
I have to keep replacing my staff because they leave or have to be sacked.
My customers like dealing with me personally rather than others in the team which can be bit of a tie.
Our quality is impacted by others in our supply and/or delivery chain.
I can’t seem to find focus and/or motivation; I lack a ‘Vision’ for myself and the business.
I’m just sick of the same routine; I get ‘Mondayitis’ every day.
Not getting enough business ‘in the door’, or its spasmodic, so there’s wasted productivity.
I am really stretched every week to get done what I need to do – there’s just not enough hours in the day.
I’d like to know more about the numbers in the business to understand my profitability better.
I want to drive the business forward but keep on getting pulled back into fixing the day to day stuff.
The business needs a few more systems so it is less reliant on me

If you would like help identifying why you’re experiencing these frustrations and more importantly develop a strategy to address each of them, we can help!

Once you master these frustrations, it will literally change your business and change your life!

At ABC Business Improvement we have or are assisting builders, tradesmen, retailers, restaurants, wholesalers, manufacturers, professional service providers like accountants, lawyers, pharmacists, dentists, importers/ exporters and we can assist you too!

At ABC Business Improvement we will organise a meeting where you will;

– Uncover the challenges you are facing

– Define a path to overcome them

– Create a first step plan to move forward

– Gain a sense of excitement and relief, knowing where you are going

With the new financial year approaching, let’s get you set up and ready for the next financial year to tackle all the challenges that have been holding you back!

If you would like a complementary business plan or marketing plan to help you, just let us know.

Be one of the first 5 to contact us this week and we will organise a ‘remove the frustrations in business’ strategy session today…