The key to effective decision making is being able to connect every decision you make to your personal or professional goals. With a clear focus on where you want to go, it becomes so much easier to assess the choices that come your way and justify the decisions that you make.

You can’t move forward until you define “forward”. With that destination clearly defined, you can begin to identify the steps that you need to get you there. Then, every decision can revolve around those steps and when you find yourself making decisions that don’t relate to your definition of “forward”, you know something isn’t right!

It is important to identify specific, measurable & relevant goals as a part of your overall Business Plan and it is these goals or “priorities” that position you to successfully manage and monitor your growth and progress moving forward.

For more information on achieving a higher degree of success, check out my articles: “The Four M’s of Successful Planning” and “Choose to Choose the High Road” both found here on my website… Larry

Decision making is a popular response to this important question. In simple terms, every decision that you make as a business owner will either move you closer to your goals or move you further away!

The first step in poor decision making comes when you decide to spend time doing things that don’t directly relate to moving you closer to achieving the goals that you have set.

If you haven’t actually invested time identifying your goals; that is, where you want your time and effort to take you, click on these links and read some of my posts on Goal Setting and Time Management.

With your goals clearly identified, let’s look at
Four Simple Steps to Improve your Decision Making

1. Positioning
Do your homework before you make decisions. The bigger the decision, the more research you should do. Decisions made with partial information will always lead to future disappointment.
Always take a minute to step away from the moment and reflect without distractions and pressure before you decide.

2. Evaluation
Identify how this decision relates to the specific goals that you have set for yourself or your business. If the purpose or outcome of your decision doesn’t impact your success, you need to reconsider.

3. Expectations
Prior to making decisions it is important to consider the impact and the consequences. Recognize that short term solutions can lead to regrettable long term implications.

4. Analysis
Once the decision is made, always be sure to closely examine how the outcome compared to your expectations. This will help you improve your evaluation techniques to ensure future success.

Too many people spend too much time and effort that gets them nowhere. Don’t save these techniques for major decisions, begin by practicing on smaller decisions that will bring less stress and have fewer consequences to develop the techniques and confidence to handle the bigger ones as they come along.

Keep in mind that when someone tries to rush your decision they are often more concerned about their own agenda than yours. Truly successful decisions need to result in a win/win outcome for all parties or the success will be short lived.

My next post on January 7 will focus more on decision making techniques and strategies. For more information on achieving a higher degree of success, check out my articles: “Creating an Action Plan to Help Ensure your Success” and “The Challenge of Doing the Right Thing” both found here on my website… Larry

Best intentions to implement change are often sidetracked or postponed because they just don’t seem to fit into our routine. We are creatures of habit which can work in our favour but can also work against us when we are trying to move forward and change things up.

It is important to recognize how a disruption in our routine can create the perfect opportunity to effectively implement change and the holiday season between Christmas and New Years provides just that opportunity.

Keep in mind that identifying the change is just half the game. Making it happen is the other half. Studies show that it takes time to form or change a habit – 21 days of repetition, to effectively engrain the change into our being, to ensure that it sticks and that it becomes second nature.

I will be taking time the next two weeks to examine my business practices and identify the changes that I will implement in the new year. I will return with my next blog post on Monday, January 5th.

Have a great holiday and be sure to take some time to consider what you might like to change in 2009!

For more information on implementing change and moving your business in the right direction, check out my articles: “Five Great Ways to Think Bigger than the Next Guy” and “The Benefits of Hanging in There” both found here on my website… Larry

Today’s entrepreneur shoulders a ton of responsibilities daily, each with its own particular importance and sense of urgency. With so much on your plate, the challenge goes beyond “what to do”, specifically your most important question is “what to do - first!”

It’s planning & order that create efficiency by linking one task to the next.

Don’t busy yourself doing things that don’t relate to your goals! Take control of your destiny. Identify what is truly important and make time for it before it becomes urgent! This approach to time management will greatly reduce your stress.

Any task that comes across your desk that you can accomplish in two minutes or less, always do right away and move on!

Stop by again next Friday for another weekly Business Builder. And for more on personal and professional growth, check out my article: “Don’t Let your Comfort Zone Become your Danger Zone” found here on my website… Larry

While the Bank of Canada recently announced that our economy is now officially in recession, we have certainly been hearing the moans and groans of it’s coming for the longest time.

What I have found interesting is the number of business owners who have recently told me that they simply haven’t felt the sting. In fact, many of them are actually booming!

But I guess that is what a recession does. It weeds out the weak who “survived the good times” but as soon as things stop running perfectly, they begin to fall apart.

The survivors of this recession will be the ones who, have continuously believed in the value in planning and they make it a priority. They are the forward thinkers. Everything about their business is unique… from their products and services, to the image that they project and their unwavering commitment to excellence. Quality & consistency are never compromised and their first choice will always be honesty.

They are the ones who are committed to best practices and work on improving their businesses on an on-going basis. They see the value in continuous learning and make sure that they do whatever it takes to retain their best people. Their prices are based on value not on what the competition is charging and profitability is the responsibility of everyone in their organization.

When the smoke clears from this recession those left standing will be the ones who built strong relationships and surrounded themselves with positive influence.

They will be the ones who treat every customer with exceptional attention. They promote advantages & benefits and do whatever it takes to make their customers happy because they understand what it takes to survive… not just during the good times but to survive and actually excel when everything around them is crashing down - by doing the little things right!

For more information on standing out from the crowd, check out my articles: “Develop a Winning Formula for your Competitive Advantage” and “The Value in Value-Led Performance” both found here on my website… Larry

Developing communication techniques that make it easy for others to see things the way that you see things is essential to effective business communication and to your success.

Let’s look at Five Steps that lead to Light Bulb Moments

1. Always Begin by Defining the Outcome.
First paint the picture of what you want to accomplish, then go back and fill in the details to get there. Like working on a jigsaw puzzle, with a clear picture of the end result, it becomes easier to put the pieces of the puzzle together.
2. Keep it as Simple as ABC.
Explain in steps. A series of steps are easier to remember because they take a large complex task and break it down making it easier to follow and less overwhelming.
3. Make sure that your Points have “Purpose”.
Don’t load your presentation down with needless information that only becomes distracting.
4. State… and then Re-state.
Stating important points a second time will help emphasize their importance and help make them stick.
5. Use Storytelling to Assist.
Facts, data and statistics are often difficult to retain but when you communicate them with a story they become much easier to “picture” and retain.

Communication is a responsibility that everyone in successful organizations master. Your ability to create light bulb moments will win you support, open doors and build stronger relationships.

For more information on improving communication within your organization, check out my articles: “Delivering on Promises will Deliver Success” and “Selling Yourself, Continuously ” both found here on my website… Larry

One of the biggest lessons that I have learned about life and about business is that preparation is everything. Early in my career I would simply focus on readying myself for the task at hand, a one dimensional approach that would often leave me off-balance when unexpected problems arose.

With that valuable experience under my belt and my preparation firmly in place I now expand my readiness by anticipating problems and making sure that the final stage of my preparation for every task, interaction or presentation is reviewing my Plan B should it be necessary.

So don’t let surprises rock your focus and affect the quality of your work. Always have a back-up plan in place to minimize set-backs. Use your experience in the past to positively impact the success of your future and you will marvel at the peace of mind that follows.

Stop by again next Friday for another weekly Business Builder. And for more on personal and professional growth, check out my article: “Creating an Action Plan to Help Ensure Success” found here on my website… Larry

One of your most important responsibilities as a mentor is to position your client to develop strong decision making skills. As a mentor, rather than simply giving them answers to the questions they ask, an important part of your job is to assist your client in recognizing options and consequences before they move forward.

Only when all of their options have been examined and the consequences considered can effective decision making take place. One of the biggest problems that new business owners face is making decisions with limited information, which leaves them vulnerable and increases risk.

Remember, when you tell a client what to do, you own the solution but when you position your client to think their choices through, examine their options and then pick the solution that best fits their situation, the ownership for the choices they make truly becomes theirs and you have positioned them to own their decisions for all of the right reasons.

One of the biggest motives for people choosing self employment is to be their own boss. While they typically bring marketable products, skills and ideas to the table, they often lack business acumen which is why they turn to you and your experience!

Giving them the answers is a quick fix and a short term solution but it provides little long term benefit. As a successful mentor you position your client to become independent & confident and to actually grow away from their dependence on you.

Skillful questioning, careful listening, summarizing and clarifying will all serve you well in your role as a mentor. By consistently asking the right questions your client will soon get the idea and begin to ask themselves before they ask you.

Here are how My Five Favourite Positioning Remarks begin:
1. Tell me more about…
2. How did it make you feel when…
3. What might the consequences be if…
4. Help me understand…
5. What are your options…

Mentoring is a wonderful gift and when you do it effectively it’s a gift that lasts a lifetime!

For more information on customer retention and acknowledging people, check out my articles: “The Value in Values-Led Performance” and “Team Building - Your Competitive Advantage” both found here on my website… Larry

Let’s talk today about how you express your appreciation and how you recognize the contribution of others! Yes, I am talking about your Recognition Strategy.

Relationships require time & effort to ensure that they works, and that they last. If you don’t really have a Recognition Strategy, what a perfect time to begin!

Five Points to consider for your Recognition Strategy

1. Make sure your Gestures Stand Out
Remember, uniqueness creates a buzz, it gets noticed and is remembered longer. If you are going to do it… do it right!

2. Recognize People Often
Make recognition an on-going exercise. ie: Employee of the Month, Customer of the Week, Years of Service… even informal visits to clients, colleagues & associates with a card, flowers, coffee, etc. to say thanks.

3. Do it with “Purpose”
Make sure that there is specific meaning behind each gesture. Let people know that your praise is genuine, that they are important and that their contribution makes a difference.

4. Don’t make it Rocket Science
Internally create simple categories to monitor ie: meeting goals, exceeding expectations, innovation, efficiency, outstanding performance, etc.
Externally acknowledge client anniversaries, birthdays, milestones, etc.

5. Create a Budget
A monthly “recognition budget” ensures that the dollars are there to implement this important relationship building tool that will definitely impact your success. Remember, its an investment!

A Recognition Strategy is all about acknowledging the people who make your success possible, creating stronger relations and investing in your future success. Build “Recognition” into your company’s culture and gain a unique competitive advantage.

For more information on customer retention and acknowledging people, check out my articles: “The Unique Roles of my Role Models” and “Develop a Winning Formula for your Competitive Advantage” both found here on my website… Larry

It is so easy to get caught up in the development of a special idea that you become passionate about and run the risk of losing your objectivity. The self-fulfilling prophecy theory tells us that we are inclined to hear the things that we want to hear and to subconsciously block out negative information. It’s human nature to want to be right!

But how dangerous is that when we are about to invest time, money and effort in a business idea?

Carefully orchestrated Market Research in the form of both Secondary Research (data, information & statistics gathered by an unbiased source) and Primary Research (collected personally one-on-one thru surveys, focus groups & observation) can provide you with valuable insight into your idea’s viability without relying on instinct, assumption or your gut feeling.

So before you move ahead with an idea, do your homework to help ensure your project’s success and minimize risk & potential loss. Once again the internet provides access to some wonderful resources like Survey Monkey to help you make it happen.

Stop by again next Friday for another weekly Business Builder. And for more on decision making and market research, check out my article: “What’s in a (Business) Name” found here on my website… Larry