Striking the Business Balance

Our views can be intoxicating.

We all have the ability to publish our thoughts through electronic means or personal interaction.

As the adage goes, if you and I always agree then one of us may not be necessary in the conversation.

There is a difference between having an opinion and being opinionated.


Someone who is opinionated rarely wants to hear the other side of the story or listen to evidence that may challenge their opinion.

opin•ion
\ə-ˈpin-yən\ noun
• a view, judgment, or appraisal formed about a particular matter.
• belief stronger than impression.
• formal expression of judgment.
• advice by an expert.

opin•ion•at•ed
\-yə-ˌnā-təd\ adjective
• unduly adhering to one's own opinion or to preconceived notions.

Take that and apply it to your business.

You know what you’re doing, it’s your business! You have worked hard to accomplish a lot. You drink, eat and breathe it so you are entitled to have an opinion on its results. But how close can you be before you become opinionated about your offering?

Opinions are crucial to move thoughts from ideas to action. You digest information and move. It's dangerous when we have a preconceived notion and simply search for evidence to support it and miss the better solution.

The drug companies do it with case studies when they throw out the participants that may skew the results. You witness it in the boardroom when the boss is clearly asking a bunch of 'yes' people simply to hear his great ideas parroted back to him.

For small to medium sized business owners, it can be a challenge when you are the only one in the boardroom. That is perhaps why it is often wise to ask for a second opinion.

knealemann

image credit: byu
original post: march 2010

Strategy Is Boring

The eye glaze often happens soon after the question "what is your business plan?"

Instead of a strategic plan many want to hope last year's plan which was a variation of the previous year's plan will work out.

That is unsound thinking.

Building a strategy requires thought and work.

You need to map out objectives, write down realistic tactics, decipher roles and responsibilities, define target demographics, identify opportunities, exploit competitors' weaknesses, develop ideal customer profiles and execute a business plan.

Bored yet?

All too often you can hear the moans from miles around when the topic of strategic planning is brought up. There is fear that it will mean endless days locked in a boardroom hashing out the future of the company. After all, the world is changing so fast how can you keep up?

I actually had a business owner raise his hands to his ears and utter the "la la la I can't hear you" phrase which was my cue to escort myself out of the building. He was clearly not ready for a plan.

Strategy is Your Foundation.

Many find strategy unnecessary because it takes patience and time. What is more dangerous, some think they have a plan when it is clear they do not.

A common mistake is failing to grasp that it is an evolution, a process and something you refine constantly. But too many simply want to do the tactics without the strategy which might be the beginning of the end.

But who really needs a plan or a strategy?

@knealemann
strategy. marketing. social media.

photo credit: gawker