What's the biggest lesson you've learned in business?

[Steve Roberts]

I've got one or two "biggies" I've learned, and I'll post them in a day or two. In the meantime, I'm interested in what lessons people have learned in the "real" world.

Steve

[Cornish Steve]

1) Take the initiative, be persistent, and chase your own destiny.

2) Relationships, relationships, relationships.

3) Be realistic. Chase the best but plan for the worst.

[Asteeleleith]

I will say without doubt, having a robust business plan.
beleving in ur product

i am sure i will think of others to post later.
I think this thread is going to be a biggie :-)

Al

[Rob Holmes]

Hmm heres a few that I go by..

1. Operate with TOTAL integrity
2. Have challenging goals
3. Say no to bad ideas quickly
4. Keep investing in marketing even when things are tight
5. Invest in a good website
6. Build a good team around you
7. Automate as much as possible
8. Have a good mentor
9. Have the best products in your marketplace
10. Go on some sales courses
11. Go on a customer service course

There are many more :)

Rob

[Argentice]

Don't spend any money unless you know how it will bring even more money into the business within a sensible timescale.

Cheapest isn't always the best USP.

[Steve Roberts]

With me it's a few things:

Never take your foot off the sales & marketing pedal, even in the very good times - and definitely in the tough times.

Measure absolutely everything - what is measured can be controlled.

Put systems in place which control costs.

Always employ people who are better than yorself at the given job.

Learn to delegate, without interfering, but always measuring.

Only work with nice people, be they employees, customers, suppliers, etc..

Never persist with ideas don't work. (The difinition of insanity is: "to carry on doing the same thing, but expecting the result to be different")

Be bullish on pricing structure.

[The_JinJ]

Keep all your receipts!!
Keep the books up to date :)

[Ozzy]

Matrixx shares some same lessons that I go by also.

I have 2 good mentors who help me with my business, and I listen to their advice even if I don't like what I hear or agree with what they say, I still isten and am willing to accept that I am not necessarily always right ;)

I also agree with the marketing point, to many small businesses are scared to spend money they feel they dont have on marketing - but without marketing you have no sales, and no sales means no money.

Most importantly for me, go outside your comfort zone. Push yourself to do things you may not necessarily want to do, but is necessary to succeed.
Mine in this case is sales, and talking in public. I have never been confident in doing these, but I pushed myself to do it and now I am much more confident sitting in a group and selling my business, be it networking or presentations.

[Jayne]

Hi,

Never employ friends or family if possible. :D

Jayne

[Ozzy]

I would agree with you to an extent, it depends on the individual.

I employed a friend once and it didn't work out as he never took the job seriously, was lazy, and always late arriving and first to leave at the end of the day.
However, I have employed my sister-in-law in the past and she was a fantastic assett to the business. I also employ my mother-in-law and she is dedicated and also extremely hard working. Yes we have differences of opinion, but I don't agree with surrounding yourself with "yes" people anyway. I like to have people around me who do not always agree with what I am doing so that I get to see more than just my point of view.

[SillyJokes]

Automate as much as possible

Treat every customer as you would wish to be treated but try to reduce the customer service burden by giving customers fewer reasons to need to contact you.

When using a new supplier start slowly. Just buy a little to test their service. They get your references but sadly you don't get their references and often they are utter pants at delivering on time etc. I can name half a dozen suppliers I would work with more if they were actually any good.

Man, I nearly forgot, whatever you want your customers to do make it so easy for them to do it they can't go wrong. So, if it is a website, make that website so easy to use that even people who have never shopped online before can understand how to do it. If even the dimmest individual on the planet can buy from you then your market has just grown by one.

[creospace]

Someone just emailed me this thought it may be of interest to this thread.

The following is an extract from the table of contents of the book "How to maximize fees in professional service firms" (Weiss, Alan, 1999). I think this can set some general topics for discussion on consulting best practices, although I recognize that not all knowledge comes from books.

Value must be based upon worth
Don't worry about gaining a sale
never negotiate fees. Negotiate value
Provide the client with a choice of yeses
Always ask the QGTRIHF (question guaranteed to result in higher fees)
Don't sit by the phone. Use it
Tie fees to areas of greatest value
Target a 60% acceptance of proposals
Never offer to unilaterally reduce your fee
Share fees using value-added calculations
Move laterally to new areas of assistance
Fee changes are solely your decision
Set fees within prevailing market ranges
Assess your contribution to the outcome
Differentiate fees based upon client status
Fearlessly raise fees for difficult business
All business is not good business
Control the velocity of the fee
Focus on innovation, not "fixing"

Cheers

Gary

[fastfences]

At the end of each deal or job, reflect, then ask yourself: How could I have done that better? This 'self analysis' will often reveal further opportunities or means to fine tune the business.
Cheers, Nigel

[ink4-u]

Take your time and think everything through. Don't just jump straight in because you often get stung.

[multilingual]

I think most of the big issues have been covered by others so I won't go over old ground.

However, one of the best pieces of advice I could give is to NEVER look at your competition and set your ambitions by what they do.

What I mean is, just because your main rival is driving a Merc and you are driving a Fiesta doesn't mean that he is doing better than you. You can never tell from the outside how another business is doing. He could be up to his eyes in debt, he could have other business interests, he could have rich parents, he could have won the lottery, etc.

Never get despondent if someone else seems to be doing better, just stick to your own plans and keep moving forward.

I have seen many people who look at their competition and think 'he has got an expensive office in the city, so I must have the same if I want to compete'.

Stay focused on your own business and don't be distracted or knocked off course by what you assume to be a better way.

Sounds simple but you would be surprised at the amount of people who get into debt trying to keep up with their competition.

That's my two pence worth.

:)

JB

[Top Hat]

Control the velocity of the fee

?????

[www.sitepal.co.uk]

Never Trust Anyone!!

[Agri-Hire]

Don't trust anyone who says don't trust anyone.

:wink:

[Hayles]

Prepare properly for everything...

"Fail to prepare, prepare to fail"


I learnt this the hard way many years ago but have never been caught out again!

Hayles