I think it is safe to say that everyone I know both professionally and personally is ready for a do-over year. While I am certainly among these people, it is important to remember these times going forward.
When business is good, it can be difficult to push oneself to really dig into issues, personnel, product or service. When the tide goes out, however, many things are revealed that were either ignored or never seen during better days.
I have spoken to many owners and executives this year about their businesses. Most, if not all, have suffered to varying degrees. Yet, many operators tell me that they were really able to discern things about their business. For example, what accounts were truly profitable and those that were not.
It is hard, rather, it is impossible to predict things but being prepared and knowledgeable about the “hows” and, more importantly, the “whys” of your business keeps you better prepared for whatever is around the corner.
Understand what you are really good at—what makes your business a success
Understand where you make money and, more importantly, where you do not. If you need to jettison a line of business or a difficult customer, do it now.
Do not make emotional decisions in times of crisis.
Always, always, always look for good talent—they are all you’ve got and
Treat them how you want to be treated
Thank you to ALN for the chance to contribute and thanks to the readers. I hope my contributions this year were helpful. Feel free to reach out to me anytime bobfes@elliscorp.com or Linked In.
Stay safe, enjoy what you do and be successful! See the article on ALN