Harness and Explore Your Strengths - Shore Up Your Weaknesses
As a department manager in a company I solved problems, created new methods of doing things, and delegated out the details to be completed by the people I managed.
As a business consultant I found new methods of doing things and streamlined business processes eliminating non value added activities and implemented new practices and procedures.
Most of the time delegating out the detail work to the company employees with whom I consulted.
Innovation, seeing the big picture, risk taking and managing the projects and people through the changes are my strengths.
Handling the day to day details is my weakness and sometimes difficult for me to get through.
As an entrepreneur and small business owner, not only do I have to draw on my strengths but I also have to manage and shore up my weaknesses.
So do you! Statistics tell us that 85% of businesses are small businesses and that 50% of those businesses fail.
I'm sure there are hundreds of reasons why the failure rate is so high but of one thing I am certain, if as a small business owner you don't find a way to manage and shore up your weaknesses then your business is doomed to failure.
But before you can shore up your weaknesses you must know what they are.
With statistics like these it's important for you as a small business owner to spend some time finding out about your own strengths and weakness.
While you may think you know yourself and your strengths and weaknesses I know that isn't always true.
When your environment changes your strengths and weaknesses change as well.
I implemented new business processes and operations software for years and not small systems but large complex software.
So it came as some surprise when I realized that the actual implementation of systems and ideas can be a weakness for me as a small business owner.
In one environment this skill set is a weakness for me but in another situation this skill set is strength.
To be successful in my own business it became imperative for me to determine what was different.
When implementation of systems and procedures are strengths for me, I work in a team against a set of deadlines with a specific list of items to get accomplished.
When implementation of systems and procedures are weaknesses, I'm on my own without set deadlines and no team to collaborate with.
So for me to be successful I must find a way to shore up my weaknesses while drawing on my strengths.
You must determine your own strengths and weaknesses as an entrepreneur in order to be successful.
As a business consultant I found new methods of doing things and streamlined business processes eliminating non value added activities and implemented new practices and procedures.
Most of the time delegating out the detail work to the company employees with whom I consulted.
Innovation, seeing the big picture, risk taking and managing the projects and people through the changes are my strengths.
Handling the day to day details is my weakness and sometimes difficult for me to get through.
As an entrepreneur and small business owner, not only do I have to draw on my strengths but I also have to manage and shore up my weaknesses.
So do you! Statistics tell us that 85% of businesses are small businesses and that 50% of those businesses fail.
I'm sure there are hundreds of reasons why the failure rate is so high but of one thing I am certain, if as a small business owner you don't find a way to manage and shore up your weaknesses then your business is doomed to failure.
But before you can shore up your weaknesses you must know what they are.
With statistics like these it's important for you as a small business owner to spend some time finding out about your own strengths and weakness.
While you may think you know yourself and your strengths and weaknesses I know that isn't always true.
When your environment changes your strengths and weaknesses change as well.
I implemented new business processes and operations software for years and not small systems but large complex software.
So it came as some surprise when I realized that the actual implementation of systems and ideas can be a weakness for me as a small business owner.
In one environment this skill set is a weakness for me but in another situation this skill set is strength.
To be successful in my own business it became imperative for me to determine what was different.
When implementation of systems and procedures are strengths for me, I work in a team against a set of deadlines with a specific list of items to get accomplished.
When implementation of systems and procedures are weaknesses, I'm on my own without set deadlines and no team to collaborate with.
So for me to be successful I must find a way to shore up my weaknesses while drawing on my strengths.
You must determine your own strengths and weaknesses as an entrepreneur in order to be successful.