Success is no accident.
By Mike Hayden
Monday, March 21, 2005
Success is no accident.
See full color web version at:
http://www.SeniorManagementServices.com/pvt-104-success.html
Success is no accident. Success leaves clues. You can create
success on purpose.
Let's say you pick 100 people at random. How many of those
people do you think could bake a great chocolate cake?
A few? Many? Most?
Wouldn't you say success depends on whether they have a
good recipe? Without a recipe, most people would not be able
to bake a chocolate cake!
"94% of failure is due to lack of a proven system."
A good recipe is a proven system that "works" every single
time. Obviously, the cook does the actual work.
============================================================
Can you develop a recipe for success in business?
============================================================
Here's the problem (I mean, challenge): 95% of all
businesses fail within 10 years of start up. The primary
cause is management incompetence. The solution is for
management to build success into the business by developing
a "recipe" to make the business work.
In round numbers, let me show you the business failure
statistics.
40% fail in the first year
80% fail within 5 years
95% of all new businesses fail within 10 years
Still, small business is, and always has been, the backbone
of our US economy.
Today, about 33 million (1 in 4) Americans run solo
practices or micro-businesses with a max of 9 employees.
Further, mill'ions of other small businesses employ ten
or more people.
Surprisingly, small businesses employ MOST of the workforce,
create MOST of the new jobs, and produce MOST of the private
gross domestic product (GDP).
Hard to believe, right? Typically, we hear about BIG
business in the "news"!
Why do most business fail?
Compelling research shows repeatedly: "management
incompetence."
Many people who start businesses make this fatal assumption:
"I am an expert in doing the technical work of a
business. Therefore, I will be an expert in managing
a business that does the technical work."
However, knowing the technical work of the business becomes
the new entrepreneur's biggest liability! Why? Because most
entrepreneurs snap right back into doing the technical work
(tactics) and forget about strategy (as I discussed in last
week's PVT).
They get so busy baking chocolate cakes that they
forget to build the company, innovate, and watch the
market. They forget the BIG IDEA, and their
Entrepreneurial Dream turns into a technical nightmare!
Doing the technical work of a business is way different than
managing the business of doing the technical work! For
example, I have seen very few great salesmen make good
sal'es managers.
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14.3 million more business failures?
============================================================
Economic forecasts predict that self-employed people will
increase by up to 50% by 2010. Why? Corporate downsizing
and human desire for independence.
But, more people going into business means even more
business failures.
If 95% fail within the first 10 years, and if
15 million more people start businesses by 2010,
about 14.3 million more business will fail by 2020!
(Now there's an opportun'ity if I ever saw one!)
Most businesses fail because they fail to use a proven
system. Conversely, most businesses that use a proven system
succeed.
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Whether you're an employee or an owner, will your business
be the 1 in 20 that survives?
============================================================
The way for a company to survive is to create a system, a
"recipe," for making the business work.
But wait! A recipe is more than ingredients. A good recipe
includes the right process!
"If you can't describe what you are doing as a process,
you don't know what you're doing."
W. Edwards Deming (1900 - 1993)
Here is an overview of the basic 7-step process (actually a
loop) that I discussed in PVT 5. Let's review:
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
1. Assess current conditions (what does incoming
communications tell you n0w?)
2. Communicate your intentions (promote your purposes
and delegate downward)
3. Organize resources for producing your product
4. Produce your product
5. Qualify your product (does it pass muster?)
6. Distribute (deliver) your product
7. (Return to step 1.)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
People make a big mistake starting in Step 4. They think
that their product is the COMMODITY (chocolate cake).
Thus, they omit the most important products that make
long-term success possible. The most important
products are their proprietary recipes and processes
- and the company itself!
These products must be developed refined, proven, and
kept up-to-date. (Unfortunately, most people don't
realize the company is a product.)
To achieve this, you must include your proprietary recipes
and processes - and the company itself in all 7 steps! If
you don't, your focus will remain on the COMMODITY and the
technical work. And you can kiss your Entrepreneurial Dream
goodbye!
My critical message is this:
According to research, most businesses fail because
of "management incompetence" and the solution is for
management to build success into your business
processes.
If what I've said is true for a business, what is true for
individual employees? I will discuss that issue in next
week's PVT. Don't miss it!
Success is no accident. Success leaves clues. You can create
success on purpose.
You decide.
What did you learn today that you found most beneficial?
How will you apply what you have learned at work?
Comments are welcome. mailto:Mike@SeniorManagementServices.com
Until next week...
Best Regards,
Mike Hayden, Principal/Consultant
Your partner in streamlining business.
PS. If you're not on our P V T Roster, sign up (fr#e) at:
http://www.SeniorManagementServices.com
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
(c) 2005 Mike Hayden, All rights reserved. You may use
material from the Profitable Venture Tactics eZine in
whole or in part, as long as you include complete
attribution, including live website links and email link.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
About the AuthorMike Hayden is Founder/CEO of Senior Management Services and the Documentation Express in Silicon Valley, California. Mr Hayden is the author of "7 Easy Steps to your Raise and Promotion in 30-60 Days! The book that smart bosses want their employees to read."
ISBN 0-9723725-1-2. More articles at http://www.SeniorManagementServices.com/pvt-information.html
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