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How to avoid the trap of distracting ideas
As a business owner, you likely have lots of ideas. Some are worth the time and intention it takes to bring them to fruition, and others simply aren’t.
This is an important piece of self-awareness to have because the flood of ideas can be distracting when you have higher priorities that require your attention. Here's the process I use to test the viability of my ideas. Consider adopting this methodology in your own business to determine whether or not to take action on your ideas.
Business growth beyond the bottom line
Growth is often referred to as an indicator of success; a way to gauge how your company is doing and to predict long-term sustainability.
For those of us who live in the solo, micro, or small business worlds though, the bottom line doesn't continually go up – nor should that be an expectation!
Instead, it's more important to find and embrace practices that align with and are suited to our values.
4 ways to streamline your discovery call process and optimize lead quality
Streamlining your processes as a business owner is an important part of building a sustainable business. One way to do so is by implementing an onboarding sequence that allows you to filter out potential clients who aren't a good fit before you start working with them; optimizing your customer journey and saving you time on discovery calls.
Here are a few ways to weed out clients who aren’t right for your business offerings.
Setting up processes and automations with the right tools, at the right time in your business
An important part of building and scaling your business is ensuring it’s sustainable. Business ownership and everything it entails – from marketing to lead generation to content creation to sales to customer service – is all about the long game.
That means automating processes when it makes sense, hiring support and asking for help when you need it, making data-based-decisions, and implementing new tools and systems to improve efficiency.
However, these tools, automations, and processes are only useful if you implement them strategically and at an appropriate speed.
The importance of documenting business processes (even for small businesses and entrepreneurs)
By laying all of the steps you take to accomplish various tasks or complete recurring projects out in a document or program, you've created a basic standard operating procedure (SOP) that will help your business thrive.
Documenting processes and procedures, even as an entrepreneur or small business saves time, and can support productivity, business growth and hiring, consistency among outputs, and regular review and analysis to improve efficiency.
The DOs and DON'Ts of automation
While you’re likely always going to have to do some things you don’t love in your business, if you’re spending all of your limited resources on tasks that are draining your energy, your motivation to work on your business is going to wane quickly.
Automation can support you in saving your time and energy, easily generating data, and improving customer or user experience. However, automation is also one of those things that can be a curse when done poorly.
Here are a few differentiating factors to help you determine what to automate, and what’s best left done manually.
Why you still need a blog on your website
If you’ve heard that blogs are outdated and there’s no point in starting one, or that you should abandon your blogging efforts in pursuit of a social media strategy, I’m sorry to say that unfortunately you’ve likely been given bad advice.
Now granted, blogging practices have changed. And, yes, social media can be a great way to grow your business. But blogging is far from dead. In fact, blogging can be an integral element of a larger content marketing plan if executed properly.
Here are some of the top reasons you still need a blog on your website if you’re looking to grow your business.
How to start creating systems and processes for your business
What do the workflows in your business look like? If you’re like many small business owners, the structures you have in place to manage your tasks are vague or nonexistent. I get it. When it’s just you running your business it can seem like a waste of time and money to invest in automation or document your processes when you can do everything on your own, with each step (somewhat) organized in your mind.
Here's why building systems and processes is worth the effort
Creating systems and processes in your business may seem daunting, but it’s well worth the time and effort. With the right systems and processes in place, you can drastically cut down on the amount of time and energy exerted over many of these tasks, meaning more efficiency, time freedom and profitability down the line.
Setting up these structures may take more time up-front but the investment will pay you back enormously in the long-run, as long as you’re intentional and diligent about documenting, adhering to, and regularly reevaluating the guidelines you create.
How to use project briefs to plan for success
Just like you need goals to direct your energy and efforts in your business and to ensure you’re moving in the right direction, you also need a plan for how to get there.
Because setting a goal without taking any action steps to make it happen is like saying you want to go on vacation somewhere but never actually booking your plane ticket. It’s ineffective, to say the least, and will leave you stuck in the same place year after year complaining about how you never got to go on your trip or achieve that thing you want to.
Projects don’t magically happen. They require a plan, schedule, and communication to be successful.
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