Think Your Way To Entrepreneurial Success (Part 3-Final)
In our final installment of this series I mention 3 more modes of thoughts for successful entrepreneurs. I am sure you know that this list is not exhaustive. There are more modes of thought that are important for the entrepreneur that I may address in future posts. Ok, now for the “final” three modes…
Think “Extra Mile or Ten” – It’s about service. Extraordinary service. Find out what your customers really desire (which you have learned from our previous post because you are thinking like your customer) and find ways to deliver this desire packed with unexpected value. Discard the thinking of the limited entrepreneur that delivers ordinary service. Train yourself to think about each interaction with your customer and how you can make their experience exceptional. Do this and you will create fans that will spread the word about your business and your service. Your business will prosper.
Think Leverage – You can’t do it all yourself. Thinking you can is a limited and foolish way to proceed. Many entrepreneur limit their success, ruin their health and destroy their families simply because they attempt to do it all. Banish this mode of thought. Adopt the leverage mindset. There are many types of leverage but 2 good ones to start with are technology leverage and people leverage.
Learn how to use technology to get things done more effectively and efficiently. Look at your business model and think about the processes that can be enabled by technology. Here are two good questions to get you started. How can you use the Internet to reach your clients better or deliver better service to your clients? How can you use you mobile device to be more productive?
How about people leverage? What tasks are you handling that would be better performed by an employee or a freelancer? As I mentioned in a previous post, you should be focusing on the 20% of the business that gives you 80% of your results. The rest should be outsourced to others. One caveat is that you should only outsource to talented people. Talent may be expensive but the quality they produce is worth it.
Think Creatively- This is a very important mode of thought for the entrepreneur. You must learn how to think creatively about opportunities and about problems. Think laterally. Think options. When you are dealing with a problem think about 3 ways you can solve the problem. Simply doing this will help get your creative juices flowing.
Here is another great way to get those creative juices flowing. Look at another industry and pick a process that is common in that industry. Now think about your business. How can you apply this concept to your business? This is a great way to generate new ideas for your business.
Please let me know how you use these modes of thought.
Extraordinary service is what puts you above the rest. I have been told that i am anal or to perfectionistic. However, I have come to appreciate these traits as having a spirit of excellence. So going that extra mile comes second nature. So i will apply this to my clients.
The two types of leverage you are writing about I handled very carefully. Learning how to use technology correctly and finding the right people to do the job can be scary. Trust is a big issue here and it takes a minute to adjust.
Lastly, creativity. I find that most of my creative thoughts come from my clients, as I work with them. In the middle of a session I will or my client will show me a great way to handle a problem. Creativity expands beyond you if you allow more people to be involved in the process.