8 things small business owners need to do now

Shonda Miles
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Being a small business owner can be tough. As a small business owner, we often wear all the hats. We do the administrative tasks, bookkeeping, sales, marketing, and the list goes on and on. Statistics indicate yearly that the odds are stacked against us. Yet, we love the freedom entrepreneurship gives us and we are willing to take the risk year after year.

As a small business owner, there are some things you can do to stack the deck in your favor:

1. Focus on income producing activities. How many days just this week did you wonder where the day went? You look up and it was 5:00 and you hadn’t completed one real thing in your business. If so, it is time to regroup. If you want to stay in business, start making income producing activities a priority every single day. Most of the time it is the stuff we hate to do like networking and having sales conversations, yet it is the lifeblood of our business. Nothing happens until a sale is made. Start selling every day with intention. Have a daily profit goal. This will help keep you focused on what you should be doing daily.

2. Create systems in your business. If you feel overwhelmed in your business, it could be because you don’t have systems in place. Create a system for the things you do over and over in your business. Automate as much as possible. You may find it valuable to walk through the steps of your business from the time you answer the phone until you close the sale. What systems can you put in place to ensure your customers get the best experience every time?

3. Determine who your ideal client is. If you haven’t looked at who your ideal client is in a while, do this now. It changes often, and even subtle changes could be costing you in marketing to the wrong person. Who is it you really want to work with?

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4. Fire bottom 20% of your customers. We often hold on to deadbeat clients in hopes that we can train them to be better customers. They won’t. They will only continue to make your life miserable. Other times we think we need them to stay in business. When in reality, the bottom 20% of your customers could very well be keeping you from focusing on the top 20% of your customers. Based on the 80/20 rule, the top 20% of your customers are the reason you are still in business.

5. Join a mastermind group. The best thing you can do for your business is to become a part of a mastermind group. A mastermind group is a group of four to six high level thinkers focused on growth and accountability. This group of professionals will force you out of your comfort zone. The best part of the mastermind group is they understand what you are going through in business and they want you to succeed.

6. Work on your mindset and confidence every day. Many people talk themselves right out of their own success. If you don’t work on your mindset and confidence daily, then you are susceptible to other people’s thoughts and opinions of you. Believe in yourself. You are brilliant. You are profitable. You are the best at what you do. Believe it. Own it. Read books like “Think and Grow Rich” by Napoleon Hill and “The Science of Getting Rich” by Wallace Wattles until you believe it. Also start your day with prayer or affirmations. Never say anything negative about you, your business or your financial situation.

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7. Focus. Stop jumping from one shiny object to another never accomplishing anything. I know I am not the only one guilty of this. Finish one thing before jumping to something else.

8. Do what no one else is doing. Yes, sure you should model successful people in your industry, but you should be taking chances and stepping out of the box too. All of the greats in business did what no one else was doing.

Shonda Miles is the Owner of Shonda Miles International where she is a Business Consultant/Business Coach. For more information go to www.shondamiles.com or email her at info@shondamiles.com.

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