In part one of this business coaching article we looked at why confidence, courage, and certainty must go hand-in-hand if you are to succeed in your role as a business owner. You know that courage is the inner power and ability to face difficulties. And you now know that courage is rooted in confidence, and confidence is rooted in the mindset of certainty.

So today with that in mind, let’s look at some practical steps you can take to begin increasing your certainty and confidence?

Four proven ways to boost your certainty and confidence as a small business owner.

• Know your strengths — and continuously listen, monitor, and adapt

Each of us has a unique communication style and behavioral strengths when it comes to business ownership. No two business owners are the same. You must first assess your strengths (and by default, also your weaknesses) so that you can quickly identify areas you can and should be more certain in naturally. This is the foundation for accelerated success — no matter what your industry or profession.

Only then can you listen critically in all areas and be ready, willing, and able to adapt your approach. When you do that and then monitor results — this further increases certainty. It’s a self-fulfilling cycle. Each and every time it happens, certainty and confidence increase.

This may seem a little difficult at first glance, but I assure you that there is a proven scientific system for making this process a snap. In the Business Owners Coaching Club we coach business owners to identify and master their unique personal style in all four dimensions of performance. (Action, Motivation, Focus, and Psychology.)

Armed with this knowledge they are not only able to exponentially multiply the results they get in marketing, sales, and systemization – but these men and women are infinitely more certain and confident in every business move they make.

• Complete your due diligence, study and research

In order to be certain and to be right more than you’re wrong you’ll need to have a solid knowledge and understanding in your area of expertise. You can be as confident possible and you can run as fast as you can to the east - but if you are looking for a sunset you’ll never see it.

Even General Patton, who had been accused of making snap judgments said in his defense, “Honestly this is not the case because I am a profound military student and the thoughts I express, perhaps to flippantly, are the result of years of thought and study.”

• Eliminate hesitation at every turn

Whenever I become concerned with taking action on something no one else seems to see, instead of allowing myself to feel like I’m wrong, I’m always reminded of an interview I saw years ago with championship hockey player Wayne Gretzky.

The host asked him how he had become such a great player. Gretzky simply replied, “Most other players tend to skate to where the puck is. I skate to where the puck is going.” That certainty and confidence to make a decision in an instant allows him to act without hesitation. This puts him in position where he is often the only player where the puck is.

I see myself making the same moves in business and real estate. Sure, sometimes I may be wrong even though I’m certain. But ahhh… those times when I am the only one there and the opportunity is right in front of me. Those are the distinctions that allow me to leapfrog ahead in life and save years of hand wringing.

You can do the same for yourself… if you eliminate hesitation.

• Certainty is not “Cockiness”

Being certain and confident of the direction that you want to go does not mean that you have to be cocky or arrogant. As a matter of fact, if you don’t take time to listen to the viewpoints of others and analyze where your plans may be flawed, you will fail more often than you prefer. As King Solomon wrote, “With the abundance of counselors there is victory.” (Prov 11:14b)

As your business coach I need to remind you that certainty and confidence are not ignorance of your own weakness. Rather it is the recognition of those weaknesses along with the dedication to overcome them or turn them to your advantage that will help you succeed.

In closing, I feel compelled to issue one warning note for you as you begin to move forward toward your goals with certainty and confidence. Sometimes people are uncomfortable with themselves when they are exposed to a man or woman who is unabashedly confident or certain. In reaction they may try to make themselves feel better and take away that discomfort by placing you in a safe little “box” with negative words.

When some people (especially if they’re not business owners) try to label you with terms like arrogant or cocky, it doesn’t always mean that you are. It may just mean that you’re making them feel uncomfortable with their lack of action in fulfilling their dreams. If you hear those words, use it as an opportunity to double-check your attitude, see if there is any truth that you can use to improve, and then move on.

Above all, remember that confidence and certainty do not magically appear on their own. They are the result of hours, days, weeks and years of constant thought, practice and dedication built on a through understanding and mastery of your individual strengths.

Do as we coach business owners all around the world to do. Put this power team at the base of your entrepreneurial pursuits, and you too will be able to leapfrog barriers, obstacles and competitors with greater ease.

John-Paul Micek is known as the “Click-and-Mortar Business Coach” by business owners around the world thanks to members of the Business Owners Coaching Club™. He’s a published author and weekly columnist for the business section of the Honolulu Star Bulletin, and a managing partner with the international small business coaching company RPM Success Group Inc.®

The © Copyright to all audio, video, images, and text are held by RPM Success Group Inc.® and licensed under a Creative Commons License.

“There can be no great courage where there is no confidence or assurance, and half the battle is in the conviction that we can do what we undertake.” –Orison Swett Marden

Confidence, courage, and certainty… succeeding in business and in life requires that they go hand-in-hand. Courage is the inner power to face difficulties. Yet courage is rooted in confidence, and confidence is rooted in the mindset of certainty.

Real life examples of confidence and certainty in action

General George S. Patton was the poster child for confidence and certainty. He was a remarkable leader who trained and motivated his men to achieve astounding results. With an unwavering certainty and emphasis on mission, he transformed an utterly demoralized American force in North Africa into an army capable of defeating the Nazis’ much-feared General Rommel. Later storming across France into Germany at a breakneck pace, his unit conquered more enemy troops and liberated more civilians than any other in World War II.

Helen Keller (a model for certainty, confidence and encouragement) once said, “face your deficiencies and acknowledge them. But do not let them ever master you.” Both General Patton and Helen Keller both realized that in order for a person to succeed he or she must routinely overcome personal failings, or turn them to his or her advantage but never to doubt him/ her self.

Certainty, confidence, and successful business ownership

For myself, I have always made the connection between a relative level of confidence or courage and its direct proportional relationship to success in business. (Success having different definitions for each person.)

But until the other day, I never realized what a powerful role the attitude of certainty has had in helping me achieve all that I have so far in life. My wife said to me, (admittedly in frustration) “You’re always so darned certain, but you’re wrong sometimes you know.” Her comment at first got me a little concerned. But then as I took it to heart it made me realize a couple of things I knew were critical for me to share with you for creating a successful business and living the ideal business ownership lifestyle.

First it called my attention to the fact that I need to parse my words at times and listen more openly to feedback when conveying a vision I have or a possible plan of action.

Secondly is that “certainty” is the gasoline that fuels the engine of massive forward momentum. In every area of business, from entrepreneurship, to marketing, to leadership — certainty is the crucial ingredient required to overcome obstacles and achieve outstanding results.

An example of certainty in business ownership

Let’s look at small business marketing as an example. Once you are certain that you have a product/service that people really want, then you will want to exude confidence and unabashedly market yourself. Marketing is not the place for uncertainty or, do I dare say — humility.

As a matter of fact, most business owners equate humility with silence or lack of self-promotion. What they don’t realize is that this attitude actually drives prospects and clients away because what they are looking for is security in knowing that you will deliver what you say you will.

If you’re not certain or confident about yourself or your product/service, why should anyone else be confident to do business with you?

The same is true in entrepreneurship and leadership.

Certainty, built upon dedicated thought and study, allows you to make decisions quickly, confidently and efficiently. Does that mean you’ll always be right? Of course not. But it does mean that you are in a state of constant growth. Whether your decision takes you two steps forward, or one step back — the wise person is always learning and growing no matter which direction they’re moving at the time.

In part two of this article I’ll act as your virtual business coach and share with you four proven ways to boost your certainty and confidence as a small business owner.

John-Paul Micek is known as the “Click-and-Mortar Business Coach” by business owners around the world thanks to members of the Business Owners Coaching Club™. He’s a published author and weekly columnist for the business section of the Honolulu Star Bulletin, and a managing partner with the international small business coaching company RPM Success Group Inc.®

The © Copyright to all audio, video, images, and text are held by RPM Success Group Inc.® and licensed under a Creative Commons License.

In part one of this series you took a hard look at the performance of your business in seven different areas. And in part two you learned the top three reasons why most small business owners fail to achieve as many goals as they have potential to. Now in part three of this article series, you’ll learn about the secret weapon that successful business owners like Oprah, Sir John Templeton, and Tiger Woods use to grow at an exponential rate — and how you can do that same!

The power of the professional view from “outside your box”

If I had listened more to my mentors and business coaches along the way, I would have ended up moving from New Jersey to the paradise island of Hawaii years earlier than I did. (And with more money in the bank too!)

You see, in preparing for the sale of two of my previous businesses my CPA and I made a somewhat disparaging discovery. He pointed out that I could have put at least another $1.2 million more in my pocket if I just handled the “people-side” of the businesses differently during the last four years of my ownership. I was pretty ticked at myself to say the least.

I, like most owners and managers out there, was way too close to my business to clearly see the solutions to challenges and opportunities for growth right in front of my nose. I was so focused on the day-to-day operations of the business and addressing the urgencies of running my businesses that I didn’t always reserve the time required to work on my businesses.

Thank God my mentors were at least able to knock some sense into me when it came to severe issues. When they alerted me to the danger or potentially serious situation that lay ahead, I’d take a week or two off to concentrate my time to working ON my businesses, instead of IN them. Admitadly not the most efficient way to handle things, but it worked. And more imporatantly it gave me a tremendous advantage over competitors.

How to take that “outside” insight to a whole new level

As helpful as my own mentors have been, (and believe me, they saved me from hundreds if not thousands of costly mistakes) they didn’t follow any set program or have a systemized approach. Things would have to reach a critical point before I’d recognize the need to reach out for guidance or to dedicate some serious time to the long range goals of my businesses.

If I only had the advantage of a set schedule and a structured coaching program I would not have had to take two weeks in a row to focus ON my businesses. I could have achieved more, done it in less time, and had more fun too!

These are two of the big differences between having a mentor, and having your own business coach - accountability and structure. For example, when I partnered with my first business coach, he helped me with that structure in three specific areas that my mentors had not.

1. My business coach helped me set a schedule that worked for me. He consistently reinforced me to focus 20% of my time on my business. This allowed me to leapfrog past competitors with ease.

2. With my business coach I had a level accountability that I didn’t have with my mentors. Not only was it my hard-earned money invested with my coach that motivated me to get results, he would hold my feet to the fire and make sure I followed through on actions I committed to doing.

3. My business coach helped me save countless hours of trial and error trying to reinvent the wheel. With regularity he showed me how the answers to my greatest challenges were right in front of my face. I was just too close the see them.

If you’re not satisfied with your answers to the questions in part one of this article, now may be the time for you to put this secret weapon to work for you. Find a business coach for yourself. Your search does not have to be a matter of luck either.

No matter what action you take today, make sure you remember that you must ask better questions in order to get better answers. If you don’t like the answers you had to the questions at the beginning of this article, then you have to gain insight from a trusted person outside your business who can help you ask yourself better questions in the planning stages, before you take action. If you let life “just happen” you’ll never have control over the answers you get.

John-Paul Micek is known as the “Click-and-Mortar Business Coach” by business owners around the world thanks to members of the Business Owners Coaching Club. He’s a weekly columnist for the business section of the Honoulu Star Bulletin, and a managing partner with the international small business development company RPM Success Group Inc.

The © Copyright to all audio, video, images, and text are held by RPM Success Group Inc. and licensed under a Creative Commons License.

In part one of this series, we looked at some crucial questions that business owners have to give serious attention to if they want to create a company that’s a rock-solid cash flow machine. How did you do with your answers to those questions? (Click here to review the questions from part one.)

If you’re honest with yourself, I would hallucinate there were at least one or two areas that you could have done better in. That’s been my own experience, and it’s something I’ve seen proved out with our business coaching clients over and over again. Focusing on improving existing systems, or optimizing strategies you already have in place can yield surprisingly big returns.

You’d be amazed at how easy it is to add $25,000 or more in six months right to the bottom line of a company with just a $200,000 per year gross! And it’s not at all unusual for us to see a 400% increase in cash flow for start-ups in 90-days or less! It’s pretty darn exciting when you think about it! Those type of untapped increases exist in every business — and some companies hold much more potential than that. If you’ve had your head down, working hard in your business, I can assure you the same potential is lurking right there in your own business as well.

There are business systems, sales or marketing approaches, employee hiring/motivation techniques, and customer service procedures that you could have implemented or leveraged better. It’s quite likely you could have added thousands more to your bottom line, uncovered more hours each week, and had more fun running a fully systemized business. Yes — the right business running the right way is really fun to run!

So, back to the questions… why didn’t you do better in some areas?

I know it’s not for lack of trying. More than likely it’s simply because “life happens.” In today’s fast moving marketplace, it’s tough to stay focused.

And it’s probably not a lack of knowledge either. Many small business owners who’ve made costly mistakes state they “should’ve known better.” And in fact — most do. The reason for sub-par results is a little more insidious than just “working hard” or even “working smart.”

The top three causes of sub-par results in small businesses

During the the last five years coaching small business owners, we’ve found the #1 most common cause is NOT “too much going on.” (That’s the #2 cause of poor performance returns - being controlled by your business instead of you controlling it.)

It’s NOT “hiring the wrong people”, and “motivating the right people the wrong way” (that’s the #3 cause.)

The #1 cause for making costly mistakes and getting poor performance returns is — being too close to your situation and way too familiar with your work environment to see the best solutions.

In my next post in this series I’ll share the secret weapon successful business owners are using every day to reach more goals in a year than most owners do in a decade!

John-Paul Micek is known as the “Click-and-Mortar Business Coach” by business owners around the world thanks to members of the Business Owners Coaching Club. He’s a weekly columnist for the business section of the Honoulu Star Bulletin, and a managing partner with the international small business development company RPM Success Group Inc.

The © Copyright to all audio, video, images, and text are held by RPM Success Group Inc. and licensed under a Creative Commons License.

How can you do a better job of reaching your full potential as a business owner? How can you achieve more, do it faster, and make fewer mistakes? We’re all looking for that edge, that competitive advantage that will equip you to take a leadership position in your chosen niche. As a matter of fact, it’s your expertise in your chosen niche that can often be the biggest stumbling block.

As busy business owners, we’re often too close to the problem to clearly see the solution. It’s just an unavoidable natural result of being an expert in your niche. I experience it myself, and I see it with our business coaching clients from cultures all around the world.

And on top of that — when you’re passionate about what you do, it’s tough to maintain a clear perspective as your life seamlessly blends with your work.

What you’ll learn in this three-part article series

The good news is that there are solutions that successful business owners are already using to overcome this challenge. And there is one secret weapon you can use to quickly apply those same solutions to take yourself to higher levels of performance, profits and personal fulfillment. (Yes, you can have all three…. really!)

In this article series you’ll learn what the secret weapon is, and how you can use it to put yourself on the fast-track to lasting success.

But before we do that, it’s critical that you to take at least 10 to 5-minutes to take real hard look back at the last 12-months.

Print this post out and ask yourself …

- Could you have better systems in your company, systems that help run the business whether you’re there or not?

- Can you take off a month or more and still have your business hum along without you?

- Could you have spent more time growing your business, and less time letting your business run you and your life?

- Could you have done a better job identifying under utilized resources and optimizing the top profit centers already in your company?

- Could you have attracted more of your “ideal client” instead of just taking any client who walked through the door?

- Could you have done a better job turning your new clients into raving fans - for life?

- Could you have hired or motivated your team a little better? Hired employees that would be “round pegs” in “round holes”?

Give these questions some serious thought, then in part two we’ll take a look at what may be getting in the way, and how you can remove that barrier to exponential growth.

John-Paul Micek is known as the “Click-and-Mortar Business Coach” by business owners around the world thanks to members of the Business Owners Coaching Club. He’s a weekly columnist for the business section of the Honoulu Star Bulletin, and a managing partner with the international small business development company RPM Success Group Inc.

The © Copyright to all audio, video, images, and text are held by RPM Success Group Inc. and licensed under a Creative Commons License.

What an exciting morning here in Hawaii!

I got up early (yes, we’re six hours behind Eastern time during the Summer) to watch Danica Patrick , a true contender race car driver in the 89th annual Indy 500 held in Indianpolis this year.

Her qualifying speed of 227.004 mph was fourth fastest, earning her the top starting position by a woman in the race’s history.

“Danica Patrick, 23, the only woman in the 33-car lineup and only the fourth female to race in the big event at the Brickyard in its 89-year history, is squarely in the spotlight heading into the 500-mile race.” ~ reported by The NY Daily News via RSS feed, May 29th, 2005.

Danica lead in the last 12 laps in the Indy 500 race this morning - and almost won her first ever Indy race - while still a rookie! - She made history as the first woman racer to lead one lap in the Indy 500 - let alone leading a total of 14 laps!!!!

Danica Patrick became the first woman to lead the Indy 500 on the 56th lap! She kept herself in the top 5 positions during the majority of the first part of the race. Despite some setbacks, rookie mistakes, including a minor accident, she still pulled off a bold move and wound up being the race leader again, held that position in the last 8 laps of the race, and could have very well won the Indy 500 with as little as a half gallon more of fuel!

Although Danica Patrick wound up placing 4th place when the Indy 500 race was over, she showed the world what she was made of, and I predict her taking first place in the not too distant future. Danica Patrick is the fastest female in the Indy 500, and she’ll soon be the fastest racer.

With all the obstacles Danica overcame throughout the race - including an engine stall in the pits, a 360 degree spin out, a bump from another racer’s tires, then later in a minor accident — she continued to recover, gain her composure, stay focused and came back, again and again. Going from 16th place to 8th place during laps 79 - 151, she later took the lead in the final 10 laps, with a courageous move that came with the risk of running out of fuel in the last lap.

It was a risky and bold move approved by her championship coach, Bobby Rahall, and it proved the perfect move that got her in the final four on the last lap. A race I’ll remember forever - and fortunately, others will too, as she made history today, and will go down in immortality in the history books - not just the race car books where the winners go ever year.

The underdog makes bold moves

Danica Patrick certainly won in my book today, and in the hearts of millions who watched and cheered on. Whether fans of the sport were at the edge of their seats in their living rooms, like my husband and I, or out of their seats standing in the Indianpolis stadium, everyone was impressed with the feat she pulled off today.

She had an entire stadium filled with standing fans and admirers who respected what she did in the final 12 laps. No one - I repeat - NO ONE was seated, and the crowd was cheering her on, men and women alike, whether they were fans of hers or Andretti fans, they were waving their caps and cheering for what she accomplished today…

Ahhh… what an awesome and exciting race!!!

Danica Patrick has led an interesting life that has served to develop her skills in the racing industry.

What you can take away from Danica’s performance as a small business owner

Her focus, determination and ability to handle an Indy car as fast as the next guy is an example for all small business owners who experience a “stall” in their business, or get into an accident with a business move that doesn’t pan out as well as they’d hoped.

Keep this in mind:

A stall doesn’t mean defeat.

Failures and mistakes don’t mean defeat. Even the risk of running out of funds (or fuel) should not stop us from pursuing our goals with every ounce of energy we’ve got. It’s tough mentally, but you need to focus ONLY on one thing — winning.

You can’t make determinations of your future based on one time incidents because you just never know. And Danica Patrick, a 23 year old woman from Illinois certainly just proved that today as she raced her heart out.

Let her inspire you to keep going forward in your business - even when you think the chips are down. You just might make history.

PS: Post your comments if you tuned in to this race, and share your thoughts and predictions. Where do you see Danica Patrick in the next 3-5 years?

BTW: If you happen to know Danica, and you’re reading this, let her know that I’d love to interview her in an upcoming Effective Entrepreneur Radio Show. If she’d like to inspire other women to pursue their big goals, and share her strategies for success, send her our way. I’d love to meet this amazing woman!

Deborah Micek
The Business Communication Coach
Business Owners Coaching Club

The © Copyright to all audio, video, images, and text are held by RPM Success Group Inc. and licensed under a Creative Commons License.

Q. With the big companies out there with huge teams and unlimited capital and resources… how can the small business owner compete?

I’ve read about misunderestimated business owners, and how they came out of no where to clobber their big competitors.

But how do underestimated people win? Is there a system for small business success? A rule of thumb? Or is it just plain luck?

What makes “The Underdog” Win?

Sincerely,
The Underdog Business Owner

A. Aloha Underdog Business Owner,

Good news! If you believe you can win, and consistently give it your all (and about 35% more…) you may just be one of those underdog business owner success stories we’ll read about on Fast Company, INC, or in Fortune Magazine.

The Contender TV show on NBC just wrapped up it’s mega popular new Reality TV series that for me, was exciting to follow as a business coach, as it provided an insider’s look and insight into what qualities and actions lead up to winning a championship.

In the end, an underdog, Alfonso Gomez, who was boxing fighters who were two levels above him got into the final four, had his entire fight televised in front of a huge live audience at Ceaser’s Palace in Las Vegas, and in front of millions who tuned in to root for this underdog, who won his last fight.

Although I was rooting for Alfonso Gomez to win the entire championship, despite not being in the final two, he did get into the final four, and still wound up winning against his opponent in the final four who was much bigger and stronger than him. He also earned the privilege of sitting along side boxing champion Sugar Ray Leonard, and the producer of this popular television series, Sylvester Stallone. In my book - that’s winning - and that’s winning big time!

When we use our minds to think innovatively, we can think of how to apply this underdog mentality and strategy using a step-by-step system for success in our own small business.

These same qualities for boxers can be applied in the business world.

We saw in the first episode how the winner, Alfonso Gomez, ultimately prepared for his win and how the loser exhibited “over-confidence” and “fear of losing” which led the underdog to win this round.

During the second episode - once again, the underdog took it! At 20:1 odds, the underdog was the clear winner - despite injuries he fought through in order to pull off an incredible victory!

Time and time again throughout the entire series, the underdog would take everyone by surprise and win the match.

I believe success can be modeled - and who better to model than olympians, athletes and those who have gone before and hurdled extraordinary odds.

Here’s a re-cap of The Contender’s premiere show, and the success strategy that you can model when reaching Big Goals in your business and life.

Gaining the upper hand from a win earlier in the day, Alfonso Gomez had the choice to pick anyone he wanted to fight in this first show in the first match of the season.

The obvious strategy would be to pick someone weaker and easier to beat.

But instead, Alfonso Gomez chooses a greater, bolder, more daring strategy. He chooses to fight the best boxer on the opposing team, undefeated champion Peter Manfredo, from Rhode Island.

Why does Gomez choose someone in a higher division than him, and an undefeated champion (until he lost to Gomez)?

Because he’s confident that he’ll win. Knowing that if he wins, he becomes a hero, and a force to be reckoned with. However, if he loses, it goes on his professional fighting record and he goes home. So either way, it was still a huge risk, but one Gomez felt was worth taking.

The stakes are high, but he’s got the “eye of the tiger” and he does everything to prepare himself for the fight of his life.

The underdog takes it!

Here are a few things our underdog did that ultimately allows him to win against an undefeated boxing champion who was ranked #3 in the world!

1) Alfonso Gomez prepared himself up to this point to get him on this show.

2) Alfonso applies a bold strategy by picking the best fighter on the opposing team – who “on paper” according to news reporters at the press conference would be the “stronger fighter” of the two. This demonstrates his leadership abilities, because he set the tone for the entire series from that day forward.

3) Gomez is realistic – he knows it’s going to be a tough fight – but continually takes a positive viewpoint with his reoccurring statements proclaiming to everyone who will listen,

“I’m ready for this! I’m GOING to win! I‘m gonna beat him. I know it.”

4) Gomez prepares himself for the next day’s fight by going into the ring – the place where it’s all going to happen. He visualizes the entire fight. Jabbing, punching, blocking, ducking and ultimately – winning the fight – with hands lifted up and gratitude in his eyes.

5) Alfonso Gomez adopts Ali’s confidence of proclaiming his future, stating,

“This is my passion, my dream… I came here to fight… I came here ready. I WILL become The Contender.”

6) Next, on the day of the fight – you see he has the full support, love, confidence and prayers of his entire family. This is one of those intangible things that give us the energy to perform at an optimal level.

7) Throughout the fight, he additionally has the support of his entire team – a team who will ultimately fight him if he maintains to the end. But his leadership in choosing such a formidable opponent gains him the respect of his entire team.

And, as underdogs usually have – he possesses such charisma, confidence and leadership in choosing this daring strategy – while his team roots him on, jumping off their chairs, and coaching him to win.

Ultimately, he wanted it badly enough to give everything he had. After all… as the underdog, Alfonso Gomez had nothing to lose yet he had the world to gain. (Not to mention the potential one million dollar prize money in store if he does win the entire championship.

Your Coaching Corner:
Now, look carefully through the 7-steps to a winning strategy and apply each one to your small business.

How can you apply Alfonso’s boxing strategy to your business?

How can you come up from behind and blow your competitors away?

Just like NetFlix did with Blockbusters - forcing it to totally rethink their business practices, and then model after “the underdog’s strategies” in order to stay in the ring.

How can you do the same in your business and/or industry?

Share some of your thoughts and ideas in the comment section to this blog post - and let us know who you were rooting for if you caught the contender series.

If you didn’t - go rent the entire series from NetFlix as soon as it’s released.

In part one of this business coaching e-session, we looked at why planned incremental improvements are the sure path to BIG success. You also learned why making improvements in your business in small bite-sized pieces is the way to keep yourself from “should-ing” all over yourself. In part two, you’ll learn a practical four-step process that you can use to make it easy for you and your team to put small incremental improvements into action each and every week.

Let’s get right to it!

Here’s a simple, incremental process that’s we’ve proven time and time again with our business coaching clients to accumulate BIG gains in the real world of the busy business owner. It starts with four simple steps.

Step 1. Once per month, you (and your team) create a master list of five improvement targets (tasks or projects) that you’d like to make in the next 30 days – one for each category in the list below.

Step 2. Decide how you’ll know when each target has improved to an optimal level. (Coach’s hint: To make this easier, always make sure that your plans and actions are linked to measurable results. To help with that, just think about how your clients will be able to tell when you’ve achieved the improvement you wanted in this target area.)

Step 3. Every week, choose one small step you can take in each improvement target that will help you reach your ultimate goal. Focus your attention ONLY on taking that one small step in each improvement target area - no more! Do this for all five areas listed below.

Step 4. Before planning your small steps for the upcoming week, review the previous week’s actions and see how you’ve improved. Once the month is up, repeat the process again for the following month.

5 key for your to focus on for sustained business growth

When working with our business-coaching clients we help them to focus on 12 specific areas of business development. That can be a little overwhelming when starting out on your own, so here are five general areas with which you can start. These are core areas that every business owner should focus on improving, no matter what your industry or niche is.

1. Systems and organizational structure
2. Click-and-mortar marketing
3. Consultative selling
4. Client service
5. Delivery of your product or service

After just four weeks of consistently practicing this process, you’ll be amazed at what you’ll begin to see. You’ll have proved to yourself how easy it is to make significant and measurable improvements - one small step at a time. And, if you’re like most small-business owners who faithfully follow this process, you’ll have tons of new ideas for improvements in your business.

Most of our coaching clients have developed so many incremental improvements that we’ve developed special Organizational Structure and Task Management Maps to help them keep moving along at warp speed — even with hundreds of bite-sized improvements in the lineup! This is something you can do for yourself too.

If you’re feeling overwhelmed or want to really accelerate your achievement of BIG gains with simple small steps, then it’s time to move up to working with your own business coach. You can do that with one-on-one RPM Business Owner’s Coaching, customizing this process to address areas specifically related to you and your business. Or, gain peer support and masterminding along with practical guidance by joining the Business Owner’s Coaching Club.

This process of incremental progress is too valuable a tool for you not to have in your growth and success arsenal. Like many of our business-coaching clients, you’ll find that this proven incremental process works in any area of your business and life.

If you want exponential returns on your time, money and effort, STOP “should-ing” all over yourself. Create your own success – and do it one small step at a time.

John-Paul Micek
The Click-and-Mortar Business Coach
Business Owners Coaching Club

The © Copyright to all audio, video, images, and text are held by RPM Success Group Inc. and licensed under a Creative Commons License.

You don’t have to make BIG changes in your business to be a HUGE success!

Does that shock you? It really shouldn’t, but don’t feel bad. Unfortunately most small business owners and entrepreneurs get fooled into believing it takes BIG improvements to make it BIG.

Take a closer look at the lives of the most successful business owners in the world. You’ll see how their current level of achievement is the result of a massive number of small, almost unperceivable actions and decisions consistently over time, not one-time dramatic events.

The “BIG change” business growth trap

Have you ever found yourself looking for some groundbreaking event to make a dramatic improvement in your business? I know I’ve fallen prey to that thinking at times. It’s the best way to get stuck in the status quo and to feel sorry for yourself. And, it’s the surest way to fall behind your competition too!

Running your business (or living your life) with this type of thinking is the sure way to live a life of “shoulds.” You know what I’m talking about.

“I know I should do ‘x’, but ‘y’ hasn’t happened yet.”
“I should do ‘this’, but I can’t without ‘that’.”

You keep it up and pretty soon you end up with more excuses, delays and justifications for not reaching your goals than you can shake a stick at. Before you know it you’ve got so many piles of “should” lying around that you can’t walk through your office without getting it stuck to your shoes. Before you know it you’ve “should” all over yourself and you’re a stinking mess.

I don’t want you to let it get to that point, it just makes for a real dirty job cleaning it all up. I know because I’ve been hardheaded enough to revisit that type of situation a few times in my 25+ years of entrepreneurial pursuits and business ownership.

There is a better way to business growth

It doesn’t involve really BIG improvements, it’s practical for the even the busiest business owner, and it’ easier that you might think.

Here’s a powerful principle that will revolutionize your approach to business growth. If you put this principle into practice I guarantee it will transform your business development and allow you to make what will end up being radical, yet lasting improvements in your company.

Instead of always trying to make something dramatic happen, concentrate your efforts on planning for, scheduling, and taking action on one small improvement in each one of the 12 key roots responsible for your business growth every month.

If you strive for the business improvements you want in incremental “bite-size” pieces you’ll make remarkable gains in as little as 90-days. Best of all, once you’ve seen what you’ve achieved, it’ll seem effortless. You can do this on your own, or really supercharge your business growth by involving your employee team.

It’s only common sense — right?

After all, think about it. If you’re not happy about something in your business or life right now, that’s how it got that way to begin with, right? Small actions (or in-actions) stacked one on top of another, day after day for years – minute after minute — intentionally or not, you are creating your own future.

It’s the smaller incremental changes you make on a consistent basis that determine where you’ll be a month, a year or a decade from now. If you dedicate yourself to improving just one small component of your business (or life) every month, you’ll rocket ahead of 94% of the population. That being true imagine what you could accomplish if you focused on boosting your performance in one targeted area per week!

In part 2 of this article I’ll show you a practical four-step process you can use to make it easy for you and your team to put small incremental improvements into action each and every week.

(If you haven’t already grabbed the RSS feed for this site and added it to your RSS reader/or your “my.yahoo.com” home page — do that now so you won’t miss part 2. You can also bookmark the page, but when you subscribe via RSS the RSS feed will let you know automatically every time we post new info and strategies. If you’re not yet familiar with RSS feeds and how to subscribe using them, visit www.AdvancedBusinessBlogging.com for introductory videos and coaching on using RSS readers and aggregators. You can also learn more about blocking and RSS there too.)

John-Paul Micek
The Click-and-Mortar Business Coach
Business Owners Coaching Club

The © Copyright to all audio, video, images, and text are held by RPM Success Group Inc. and licensed under a Creative Commons License.

There are plenty of small business owners who have incredible intelligence, yet still struggle with achieving lasting success. You may even know people who are talented beyond imagination, yet haven’t yet found “real success.” Ultimately, small business success comes down to having the right attitude.

Although the “right” attitudes may vary depending on how your company is structured and what responsibilities rest on your shoulders, there are some attitudes that are a requirement across all industries and professions. Courage is one of these essential attitudes.

Some people might say that courage is not an attitude, rather it’s a feeling. Yet if you ask the heroes who put their lives on the line they may not tell you they “felt courageous” right before a heroic act.

For example, a fire fighter I spoke with after the 9/11 tragedy reflected how he moves forward “in spite” of any fear that may enter his mind. The very action he takes is what chases the crippling fear away.

If he simply focuses on the fear itself, it will immobilize him or cause him to think a few seconds slower. And that could ultimately cost him his own life or the life of a team member or person he is attempting to rescue.

Being an entrepreneur takes immense courage

Entrepreneurs who take on the unknown risks of starting a new business often report feeling nervous and unsure of their future.

Regardless of not “feeling ready” for everything that lies ahead, they take the first step in faith to pursue things yet to be seen. That very action is what develops momentum and propels them towards their business goals. Just before they take that action, the words “Just Do It” flash through their minds and suddenly, they’re off running toward the finish line!

Courage is an action

It’s taking the first step in starting your own business or pursuing a goal you’ve been talking about for years.

It’s going above and beyond the call of duty on the job.

It takes courage to say, “Enough is enough. This is the year I take control of my destiny, and start looking at the attitudes I must develop to succeed.”

Courage means doing things that you don’t “feel” like doing simply because you know these actions will move you closer to your goals.

Courage means no more excuses! No blaming your situation on the economy, the state you live in or the “luck” everyone else seems to have been born with.

WARNING: Too often people envy things they see others have achieved without pushing through and taking all the courageous actions it took for those people to get there. This is one of the greatest outright killers of success. Be aware of it so you can avoid getting hooked in this trap!

Some Well Known Examples of Courageous People From Popular Culture are…

Arnold Schwarzenegger
Bruce Willis
Clint Eastwood

For some people the huge success of famous actors like these people above cause envy. Some people attribute their success to “good luck” or “good looks”.

Yet people rarely stop to think of all the difficulties and struggles they endured with persistence in order to get where they are today.

Small business success takes courage

It takes courage and an unstoppable commitment to your dreams to reach your goals, even when it seems that all hope is lost.

Take Arnold for instance. He came to America barely speaking English using professional bodybuilding as a launching point for his career.

John Travolta had a dry spell of fifteen years before he became a major player on the mainstream movie scene. Yet he never gave up his dream.

We forget how many years Bruce Willis spent in off-Broadway plays and the weekly TV series, “Moonlighting” before he “got his break” into the movie business. Most people just see the end result and want that level of success right now.

Are these actors doing what they love? Are they masters of their own destiny? YES — for sure!

But did they love every role, or did they enjoy the rejection that often came in their earlier days, “practicing” their talent and honing their ability?

I doubt anyone would envy the sacrificial actions made by those who create their own success. No one thinks about the sleepless nights these and other great actors spend practicing a scene over and over again or the times they experience the horrible feeling when “all hope seemed lost”.

What entrepreneurs and start up small business owners can learn from big name celebrities

What we can model as small business owners is their ability to hold onto the vision of what they ultimately want, and their persistence to pursue their dreams even when “success” didn’t seem possible.

Ask yourself, was Bruce Willis a good actor when he first started twenty-plus years ago or did his skills develop over time with each new role he played? With your answer to that question, you can begin to understand that you also have the ability to fulfill your goals. You simply need the courage to pursue them through the fun times and persist with unrelenting tenacity the tough times.

If you would like to learn more about this success principle, post a comment and I’ll make sure you receive the link to the article I wrote, “Courage is not a feeling”. You’ll learn how courage is the key to your small business success.

Deborah Micek
The Communication Coach
Business Owners Coaching Club

The © Copyright to all audio, video, images, and text are held by RPM Success Group Inc. and licensed under a Creative Commons License.