A lot of people think that growing your business means simply expanding the services or products you offer, but this is only part of it. You need to find new and better ways to market and distribute your products in order to compete with bigger companies.
The term “growing the business” seems to be the term of choice for business people who discuss expansion. Unfortunately, in too many cases, this growth never goes beyond the seedling stage. Business people also talk about “thinking outside the box” which again encompasses so much – what box? How far outside? – that it really can be an unfocused way of planning.
Bright people know it’s a myth that only highly intelligent people are creative. In fact, research shows that once you get beyond an I.Q. of about 120, intelligence and creativity are not at all related. That means that even if you’re no smarter than most people, you still have the potential to wield amazing creative powers.
So why are so few people highly creative? Because there are bad habits people learn as they grow up which crush the creative pathways in the brain. And like all bad habits, they can be broken if you are willing to work at it.
A caveat: don’t work on something that you know you won’t finish, no matter how great the idea. For example, calling all the prospects for your product or service may be a great idea and one that would most likely expand the business. However, you know that is not what you like to do – so, forget it.
After having spent years of time and money developing a business, we want it to grow. And while there are many ways to increase the profit margin on an existing project, there is one habit that seems to be missing: taking the time for true growth. That requires implementing just one plan at a time and staying focused on it. It may be easier to come up with 25 ideas outside the box. Work on what you consider to be the best idea. Spend the same time you did on the mailing and develop it. It’s the habit of spending an hour two-to-three times a week that is critical. This creates time for true growth of your business.