Don't Take The Credit

When we take a decision - or take some action - we rightly expect to be judged by what happens as a result.

However, in complex situations, something would have happened anyway.  Things rarely stay the same.  But we don't know which of the changes that have taken place resulted directly from our decision or action.

Does it matter?

Well, only if we take credit for all the good things that have happened and try to reproduce the effect later - or somewhere else. This time it might not work.

So, when judging your 'success' (or 'failure'), try to think about the direct things you caused - and those things that might have changed anyway.  It might change your opinion about you - and your decision-making.

Cooperate for Success

Most of the readers of this blog are small businesses or entrepreneurs.

However there is another class of businesses that I have been working with recently - cooperatives.  Often regarded as 'odd' sand 'non-mainstream', they do remind us that cooperation and collaboration are often useful approaches to business development, and can allow us to share expensive resources with our collaborators.

So, whilst not expecting you to change the structure of your business, I do urge you to think about how you might work more closely with peers ... and simply those with a shared interest, mission or customer base.  You might be able to gain some of the advantages of being a larger business whilst you grow to that size yourself.

Haver You Moved to the Cloud

Many entrepreneurs ands small businesses fail to back up their computer data.  They mean to of course ... but actually doing it takes expertise - normally a bigger stumbling block than the cost.

Cloud storage is now the obvious option .... but many are worried about security.

However, most cloud-based storage and backup services are quite secure - if used properly .... and they have been getting easier to use over recent years.

Take Dropbox - probably the most used cloud-based service.  Once set up, it just works.  reliably, securely, conveniently.

There are numerous alternatives out there - it partly depends on whether you want simple backup or synchronised storage - where your cloud-based storage seamlessly synchronises with your server or desktop.

Google Drive is another option - quite a bit cheaper than Dropbox for small businesses.

So don't take too long thinking about it - and lose your data to a 'glitch'' of some kind.  Sign up to a free trail NOW - and sleep at night.

Join the club

Clustering is a government policy whereby firms in a particular sector are located close to one another so they can intermingle, inter-trade  and learn from each other.

if you are not part of a cluster - because you are located where you are for historical reasons - you can often get many of the benefits by joining a 'virtual cluster'.

Often support agencies (government funded organisations or self-funding associations) have regular meetings and training sessions ... but increasingly there is support offered by online groups.

Many people view LinkedIn as a vehicle for recruitment - but the real strength of LinkedIn is in its groups.  These offer the chance to interact with like-minded individuals and companies .sharing information and asking questions.

obviously, these groups vary in their usefulness - and in their levels of activity... but since you can get email digests of comments posted and questions posed, there is little bto lose - its free and takes little time,

|Join a group - or several- now

Inject freshness

When your workforce knows its work well . ..and is moving along nicely,,, you might sit back, smile and count the profits.

But in such circumstances, a sports coach would be looking for the next level of performance.

So, you should be also.

You have to think about doing something new or doing something differently - setting the workforce a challenge.  They might not necessarily like you for it ... but as long as they respond you have done the right thing.

Comfortable mediocrity is not an option!

Mmm!

That title wasn't very helpful was it.   yet you must have been intrigued - or bored - because you are reading this.

The 'Mmm' cam from the fact that I have been 'musing' (first 'm') on 'motivation' (second 'm').  How do we motivate our employees.

Well, first we have to understand they are not motivated by what motivates us.  They have their own values, interests and concerns.  We have to understand 'where they are coming from' - what interests them, annoys them, drives them.

if you have the empathy to answer those questions, you should be able to derive a motivation strategy that will help you build momentum (another 'm') in support of your own motivation and goals.  Just don't expect them to share those goals just because you think they should.

Take the time to talk

I was looking at a PowerPoint presentation the other day (not one of mine) and I thought "What a great job this person has done of making a complex issue understandable."  

It reminded me that we often have two important, overlapping roles - acting as technical experts to make plans, take decisions, solve problems and make improvements ... and acting as teachers and mentors to persuade others that our assessment and plans are sound and offer real benefits.  Where we have different groups of stakeholders with different viewpoints and concerns, this can be the more challenging role.

So, in your business, remember to take a break from 'managing' it occasionally and take the time to explain what it is you are doing and why. It will pay dividends in the longer-term.