23 Jun 2011

5
Unfortunately, after 2-5 years of launching and running a business, the reality is that we entrepreneurs tend to lose the emotional and motivational connection to our initial dreams and visions.  We hit a wall and get tired.  We get so busy working "in" the business and dealing with the "daily grind" that we lose sight of the big picture and our compelling vision.  In a real sense, we lo...

16 Jun 2011

5
Business Owner, as your virtual Growth Coach, let me ask you a direct question.  What's holding your company back from greater levels of success?  Come on, be brutally honest and courageous enough to focus on at least 3 circumstances, conditions, things or people preventing your company from achieving greater results.  Go ahead, think of your top 3 barriers, challenges and obstacles.  Go...

09 Jun 2011

5
Whether people are trying to lose weight and keep it off or improve their businesses and personal lives, it takes a system and time.  Knowing what to do is never enough.  You need to consistently do what you know you should do.  There are no quick fixes or short-cuts.  No matter the desired change, people perform best when they set their own goals and are provided with a proven process, ...

02 Jun 2011

5
Ever tell yourself lies about your business and personal life to feel better?  Ever ignore or deny reality?  Sure you have!  Every small business owner and entrepreneur on occasion tells themselves comforting lies and stories to avoid the pain of reality. But be warned, there are real consequences when you turn away from the truth. For you to achieve your desired personal lifestyle and ...

26 May 2011

5
As a small business owner, in both good times and bad, it pays to think and act like a Chief Executive Officer (CEO).  As a CEO, you should elevate your mindset to focus on the big picture, see the entire business, and obsess about getting more and more from your limited resources and efforts … maximizing output and minimizing input … also known as optimization. Specifically, optimizati...

19 May 2011

5
Business ownership done right should be about freedom, fun, fulfillment and significant money.  It should also be about serving and helping the lives of others, especially your customers and employees. Business ownership done wrong is about imprisonment, frustration and very little wealth.  And, you can’t serve and help others and your community if your business is broken. Most of us, i...

12 May 2011

5
This Growth Coach Blog is dedicated to helping business owners like you attract new customers with practical and low-cost marketing strategies.  The more fishing lines your company puts in the water, the better chance of catching new customers.  These are simple, easy-to-implement, off-line marketing strategies to help drive customers and revenues into your business.  While not all of th...

05 May 2011

5
Quick, how many hats are you currently wearing or juggling at your company?  You know what I mean … how many different roles/jobs are you responsible for in a given week?  Like most entrepreneurs, your answer is probably that you jump in and out of 5 or more roles in a given week … from owner/CEO, to bookkeeper, sales manager, sales person, collections specialist, shipping clerk, marketi...

28 Apr 2011

5
Dear small business owner, please stop trying to be a CEO … Chief EVERYTHING Officer … and instead, start being a Chief Executive Officer.  This single distinction of working ON your business more instead of IN your business can save you countless headaches and frustrations and make you thousands and even millions of more dollars. To be an effective business owner, you must adopt a legi...

21 Apr 2011

5
In Ohio, every year spring faithfully arrives. It brings with it rain and rising temperatures that cause the leaves and buds to sprout, the grass to grow, the flowers to bloom, the weeds to explode, my allergies to kick in high gear, and my boy’s baseball season to get underway. And best of all, we get to say goodbye to winter ... quite a harsh one in the Midwest this year. Also, the ne...