Business management frustrations in search of solutions, seems to be the most perplexing issue among business professionals. Truth is, most of the time, the SOLUTION to the frustration is staring the business owner right in the face - a solution that would cost little and be simple to implement.
In fact, you would think common sense would dictate the answer for eliminating the frustration. However, due to over-thinking the solution to a frustration, business owners buy in to the falsehood that building business systems is for pros only. Therefore, they turn to coaches, consultants, and so-called experts to solve their business frustrations.
Business Management Frustrations - Halted by Systems
Michael Gerber, author of the bestselling business book, "The E-myth," said, “Every frustration in business is due to a lack of a system.” Over the past 20 years, I can confirm his statement as absolutely true. In fact, Gerber’s book helped me visualize solutions for business frustrations that I could eliminate without need of professionals. Specifically, I could visualize solutions for business frustrations for what they are: simple-stupid, common sense. In fact, anyone with a brain can build and implement a business system to HALT any business frustration.
Business Management Frustrations - Simple to Build
Every business owner or manager has encountered frustrations in their company - they happen to them every day. ALL businesses need to INTAKE INFORMATION to deliver a product or service. With this in mind, let’s say, for example, the information needed to deliver a product or service is EXTENSIVE. Therefore, writing step-by-step prompts for IN-TAKING this amount of information would require about to two to three pages. You must agree - that’s a lot of information. EXTENSIVE!
Over the past 15 years, I’ve been coaching small business owners and managers. You would not believe how many of them tell us that they don’t need a list of prompts for in-taking information. Moreover, they believe that it takes “too much time” to do an intake checklist.
Fact is, the list of prompts mentioned above, is WHAT THEY ARE ACTUALLY DOING BY MEMORY every day. That is time-consuming, and also risky! Prompts allow one to accomplish those necessary steps quicker, and without forgetting anything.
Business Professionals Endure - Unnecessary Pain
Many owners and managers willfully endure mistakes, miscommunications, the customer’s wrath, lost revenue, and lost production time. Not to mention, they work extra-long hours, experience employee turnover due to stress, and see lackluster growth, etc.
Instead, they could just build a SIMPLE-STUPID CHECKLIST!
Sadly, these fore-mentioned business management frustrations have been happening to business owners and managers, in some cases, every day for years. As a result, it makes anyone with common sense shake his or her head in disbelief. It’s like stepping in horse-manure, spreading it around the office, and wondering why things smell so bad!
Most surprisingly, these I-CAN’T-HELP-BUT-STEP-IN-IT business professionals will turn around and ask a business consultant WHY things smell so bad! And, for no small fee, the consultant will tell the business owner, that they just need to build a SIMPLE-STUPID CHECKLIST! Hmm!
Of course, there are some business solutions that are complex; and a good coach can make a significant impact. However, my experience has been: solving most business management frustrations takes very little cost.
In conclusion, by building simple written checklists, procedures, policies and other control documents, you can make your business ‘smell’ clean again. More importantly, it will run like a well-oiled machine!
Did I mention? Great systems work!
Philip Beyer, founder/president of Ebiz Products LLC and founder of Beyer Printing Inc. in Nashville Tenn., is a chronic entrepreneur, business systems analyst and consultant. Author of "System Busters: How to Stop Them in Your Business" and recipient of an InterTech Technology Award for the design and development of System100 business process management software. Beyer speaks to business owners across the country on how to bring lean, sustainable order to their businesses. Contact him at (615) 425-2652.