Do you always feel like there’s just ‘one thing’ you need before you can take that next big leap in business?
Focusing on that ‘one thing’ can be dangerous. It usually doesn’t make for a data-driven decision. And might not always focus on the weakest link in our business.
It will likely result in lost time, lost money, frustration, and feeling overwhelmed.
To really grow your business and increase profitability, you need to filter out all the possible issues. Then invest resources in the right vital need.
Did you know that roughly two-thirds of companies go out of business in the first 5 years? So getting past that 5 year mark is a real achievement. It’s also important to understand that businesses naturally plateau and languish in mediocrity. The concern comes when there’s no end in sight to a plateau. This is when you need to look for opportunities to jolt the business back to life.
It’s important to stay relevant and avoid stagnation.
Throwing resources at the wrong things in a businesses can be the deciding factor between accelerating past the competition or simply fading away.
Success is less about the solutions you put in place. And more about identifying the correct critical need at the right time.
Just before COVID-19 hit, I flew back home from a trip to New York City. As I sat in the airplane, I looked out the window and watched several mechanics work on the airplane next to us.
I thought to myself, how do they know what needs to be maintained and repaired to keep a fleet of airplanes flying? I realized they have data and processes to help determine exactly what each airplane needs.
You can think about your business like an airplane.✈️
Your business needs regular attention, maintenance and, repairs to keep it performing at its peak. And when these requirements are met, your business receives the lift and acceleration it needs to be profitable and grow.
Have you heard of the Business Hierarchy of Needs (BHN), created by Mike Michalowicz? See the image above.
Just like the airplane mechanic has standards and processes for evaluating an airplane’s needs, the BHN details each piece we must address in our businesses in order for it to grow.
Like Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs, our businesses also have a hierarchy of needs. If we aren’t meeting those needs at the lowest level, we end up wasting time, money, and resources addressing the wrong areas in our businesses. This can lead to even bigger problems.
✈️ Let’s use the plane analogy to break down our vital business needs.
👉Left Engine = Sales
👉Right Engine = Marketing
This is the thrust your business needs to get off the ground. You need both to work together to grow.📊
👉 Wings = Products & Services
They need to be well designed and frictionless to lift your business up.🛫
👉 Fuel Tanks = Cash Flow
These are directly linked to:
👉 Body of Plane = Business Overheads
Together they are essential for profitability.📈
👉 Cockpit Dashboard = Data & Metrics
👉 Passengers = Processes
Together these are reactive to the overall needs of the business.
Checking these essential pieces of your business will allow you to see where maintenance and repairs are needed. Sometimes you need to work on higher level critical needs. Other times you need to address lower level needs in order for the business to work more efficiently.
Here’s the problem. Business owners are busy! It can be challenging to determine what needs to address to ensure the best solution is implemented to propel the business forward.
The best way to ensure your business is strong and growing is to step back regularly. Examine the performance and make the necessary changes to help increase growth and profitability.
Is this something you struggle with in your business? Schedule a call to tell us your business goals and get a strategy to grow to the next level.
