Procrastinate your way to success...

So many people want to experience success. They take classes, attend seminars and workshops, have meetings, and in many cases, they obtain valuable information that would be useful in helping them attain their goal. There is a chink in their armour though and it's common to all these groups. Though it may sound more like an opinion than fact, it is something that has been observed repeatedly.

Most people procrastinate to their detriment.

No! That's not true. I'm not one of those people. Really, take a serious look at how you use your time. Honestly, are you really using your time well?

For most, the answer would be No.

Procrastination can make you famous, once you are quoted: [See the following examples]

• “Never put off till tomorrow what may be done day after tomorrow just as well.”
  ― Mark Twain
• “You can't just turn on creativity like a faucet. You have to be in the right mood.
  What mood is that?
  Last-minute panic.”
  ― Bill Watterson
• “Your Life Is Happening Right Now: Don't let procrastination take over your life. Be brave and take risks. Your life is happening right now.”
  ― Roy T. Bennett, The Light in the Heart 

Procrastination seems to go hand in glove with excuses.

There are situations that took place over the years that may prove amusing to the reader.

1. Those who accidentally bump into you. They would never book an appointment with you, however when they see you their conversation invariably turns to their business. They ask if they can pick your brain and launch into the scenarios impacting them. They generally don't want to put the work in that is required but seek a quick fix to whatever challenge they perceive they are facing. That behaviour got curbed when I began walking with an invoice book to set a fee prior to entertaining their problem. They would then decide they will book an appointment for which they never show up. 
2. Those who want you to mentor them. Generally, I didn't charge for mentorship since I have always felt it to be something that is offered pro-bono. Now pro-bono work is only reserved for some charities....and all profit-making entities must clearly understand that fees are involved. In other words, I have qualifications as to who is considered a bonafide client.  
3. Recently, I had a meeting with a group of individuals.  One member of the party decided he wanted me to do the work and be paid afterwards since he had been burned too many times. When it was reiterated that we don't work that way and we too had our share of bad experiences, our meeting came to an end without an agreement on the way forward. His colleagues wanted to work with me. I no longer had the appetite to work with them since I saw the future problems when it came to getting paid from them. The opportunity was declined. 
4.  They are those who attend training workshops. Getting them to participate can be challenging depending on their personality. Nonetheless, they do. They get a lot of practical work which can be immediately applied to their businesses, and they do; at least while within the workshop. Few continue to maintain contact after the workshop to really take their businesses forward. Those who do, see good results in terms of business sustainability and growth. Observation reveals that many would rather complain about lack of opportunities rather than capitalise on available opportunities that present themselves. Opportunities don't necessarily come tailormade. 

Some people would rather wait until the time is right. It's similar until waiting until all the lights are green before leaving home. They wait in vain and then wonder why their success eludes them. 

They are factors that change all the time that people wait for them to evolve in the hopes that then they will achieve ultimate success. These factors are reflected in the following:

• The environment
• The thinking of the people
• The conditions 
• The money
• The right organisations that may influence the rules governing the type of entity

There may be other factors, however, one thing is certain based on repeated observation; you cannot procrastinate your way to success. 

Businesses making it work in this decade

Taking this opportunity to wish all readers all the very best for 2020, makes me stop to think about what would it take for those who are in business to really experience the best of 2020. For many in business, there appear to be more questions than answers. which is coupled with an air of uncertainty.

Often, it can feel as if our environment is spinning out of control with events and experiences taking place at a rapid pace. Influential factors appear at a rate that is faster than the solutions required and often before the knowledge we need as business owners even seems to be available.

Many have embarked upon the path of business ownership, being disenchanted for a variety of reasons of what traditional employment was offering. There are lots of claims of violated rights and privileges. However, when you look at those within a business, they treat themselves far worse than the environment out of which they emerged.

Quickly they realized that there is no increased pay when they want it. there is a reluctance to take the vacations they previously believed they were entitled to, and in many instances, they don't even pay themselves at the most basic levels of remuneration. They place this misguided approach on a word they call commitment, which they wrongly define as taking the worst treatment possible to satisfy their current situation for a better future.

Feel good terms like delayed gratification emerge without a real plan of when the delays can be finally realized. Misery also loves company, since these business owners feel that others must also be sacrificial like them and committed to a cause that is not readily defined.

Rather than go on as to why businesses don't work and the challenges they face; let's turn our attention to what is required to really make them work.

• Money follows management. Your management is not required if you are going to be a boss. Rather if you will humble yourselves to become servant leaders you will stand a better chance of success. How are you adding value to the lives of others that your business interacts with both internally and externally?  Are you selecting your team members well? Are you helping them to develop the competence to cope with the rigours of the job at hand? Are you getting their feedback from the trenches and are you well equipped mentally and physically to provide the resources to capitalize on available opportunities?
• Finance raises questions of having enough money to execute your plans, to develop opportunities so that they more from potential to reality. Can you manage your cash flow well? Do you have enough working capital, and do you know what working capital even is? Have you identified where you can get the funding you require and what the requirements would be that need to be in place? 
• Marketing when examined often reveals that many entities are functioning on being top secret. No one knows about them and what is required to interact with these entities. There is no real marketing plan nor approach with many entities just hoping to throw enough mud against the wall and hopes that something sticks. Markets are not well defined, making it all the more difficult to target effectively. 
• Operations are generally undercapitalized making execution all the more difficult. Often business owners run around trying to do everything themselves, even though this does not really help them capitalize on economies of scale. As you enter into or seek to expand your business, there are many things that you will not know. So who do you have on your team? At the very least you will need the following:
• A good attorney - remember the law is vast and all attorneys cannot adequately cover all aspects of the law. You will have needs for attorney's based on a number of criteria - contracts, intellectual property for example
• A good accountant - it is necessary that your financial and managerial accounting information and systems be kept current. If you do not understand the different approaches in accounting then you need to get that advice. Contact us for a more in-depth discussion and possible recommendations based on your area. 
• Human capital - with the changes and demands of dealing with people internally and externally; you will need someone to assist you in navigating this landscape often governed by the Employees Rights Act. It is just as it sounds and you can find the employees have all the rights if you are not compliant. 
• Sound business advisory services are going to help you pull all the moving parts of the business together in a manner that is cohesive and that works together so that there are traction and progress.  
• Statutory compliance is key and knowing your obligations helps with your planning. It also makes it easier for other entities to interact with you. If your business is incorporated then you must practice good governance. 

This short article only provides an overview, and serves as a quick guide to help you keep on target with the growth and development of your business. 

Feel free to ask questions and start a discussion with other readers. It is important to get the best benefits and experiences of others.  Happy New Year to you. Here's wishing you a successful decade in your businesses. 

Online meetings are...something else

Nowadays, with the presence of computers and phones with cameras, one can have meetings almost anywhere. The need to commute to have meetings have been significantly reduced, and if used properly, online meetings can be a real productivity booster.

That being said, there needs to be some other things that can be said about online meetings. Some of these comments may appear to be funny to some, but taken for what they are worth, they are quite serious. In many cases, they can make or break your career as an online service provider.

Here are some situations worthy of consideration when participating in online meetings:

• Get into your role - attending a meeting laying in your bed is just bad news, especially when you're tired from a really cramped schedule. You are unable to competently function and more often than not, the meeting would either be filled with unexplained silences or the buzz of something sounding like a lumberyard in full swing will come over the mic if you are not muted and fell asleep. It is better to get up and go to a chair where you can be upright and alert. 
• This caught a computer techie who was unaware that their camera was on. Their top half was dressed for the meeting, not the bottom part as we found when they got up to retrieve a document. Their camera was still on, and the rest of the participants could not unsee what they witnessed. 
• Choose your neighbourhood carefully - one would expect that you've paid so much for your home that you should be able to at least have a meeting there in the privacy of your dwelling. Consider the time of day and the factors over which you have no control. Children that are not yours can be boisterous, and dogs you don't own can bark incessantly. Both of which are uncomfortable for the other participants to have to endure. Sometimes you may have to consider finding a meeting area outside of your home. 
• Know your technology - it is evolving so quickly that many of us are still learning how to use it. However, the meeting room is not the place to have the tutorial going for yourself to learn. Gain your competence ahead of time, so that you're in control of the environment if you're the host. 
• Be presentable - it comes back to not knowing if your camera is on or not. Be well-groomed and not unkempt. Though others in attendance may be kind not to say anything, beware of the customer that doesn't complain, they don't come back. 
• Govern your language/behaviour - swearing under your breath in unacceptable, especially if your mic is on and you're wearing a headset. This extends to eating/drinking during the call. It will be picked up with these sensitive bits of equipment. 
• Know how to share your screen to demonstrate a point is key. Ensure that all of your open tabs only show content appropriate for the meeting you are in. Sometimes online service providers may work for competing entities especially in this day with so many SMEs. 

So the next time you're planning an online meeting, take note of what was considered above. Ensure you are in a location with great bandwidth. Ensure that your background is suitable to be viewed, and have a great meeting. 

SMEs, in particular, are vulnerable

If we are going to be a country that looks at SMEs as a way of growing our economy, there is a serious need to not only put protection in place for SMEs but help them to understand that there are predators.

These predators will think nothing, when they are pouncing on your business, of the sacrifices and commitments that you made to grow your business from an idea to operation. They will look at your vulnerabilities and seek to exploit them. Even in instances when those opportunities are not clear for them to take advantage of you, they will still try to see how far they will get.

If you are seeking to get into business or grow an existing one. There are some elements that you mut appreciate when functioning within any given market place. Understanding why our business environment is the way it is:

Rules and Regulations

They are instituted for a reason. Many times, though we may not appreciate it at the time, they protect the SME from acts of ignorance. When you are in business, even with the presence of a team, there are many elements pertaining to business that you will not now. If you are a startup then this is even worse e.g. being a good plumber doesn't mean you'll run a good plumbing business.

• There are many elements that you'll be shielded from when you were an employee within a larger organisation. Other departments comprising of various team member performed certain roles enabling you to do what you do best. You were able to focus on your specialised tasks with little concern for how other elements of the business ran to create an atmosphere of stability. You worked without having to collect the money done for the work, performing the accounting functions, which then ultimately resulted in you being paid. You never had to consider marketing the entity, handling staffing situations, coping with financial issues, manoeuvring the legalities; all of these functions were covered by others in various departments. As an SME, its just you that has to deal with all these and more issues.

Communication

There are many people working in organisations that are poor at sharing information with the team internally. Too many people working within organisations are hearing about internally planned events, promotions, and other bits of information via the public media first. How can those in positions of responsibility then expect adequate representation? Your team members should be ambassadors for your organisation, not refugees from the public scrutiny that they will experience. 

Operations 

There is a need to marry responsibility with authority, currently, they are unequally yoked. In too many organisations, many are required to undertake responsibility without the authority to implement and stand by the decisions made without fear of penalty from others within the organisation. This is not a reality for any one sector but is quite widespread throughout many sectors and organisations. The lack of connection between responsibility and authority may have hindered the growth of many entities. Some of the areas impacted within the organisation include marketing, sales, decision making by line staff, supervisors and even some managers. There is a tendency to pass the buck, or as is said in some circles; the can is kicked down the road for someone else to handle.

Conclusion

Beyond the hosting of programs for SMEs there is a need to provide tangible guidance by way of mentorship programs and consultation programs that enable these entities to have teams of experts to guida them properly through all the challenges that the leadership of SMEs would face. By definition, there are no real large businesses within Barbados nor the wider Caribbean. Hence, we need to pull the business education out of the classroom and exam centres and into the mainstream of business.

SMEs need to understand how to adequately use shares - ordinary and preferred to promote growth. They neey to understand that insurance can be used to support their investments. Borrowing mechanisms need to move beyond commercial loans to include bonds, and empower our societies to truly understand the functions and benefits of crowdfunding. We need to do better since SMEs are still particularly vulnerable to so many threats within the global arena. 

Appreciative Inquiry and Organisational Change

This video is chocked full of information. Put the time aside to delve into its contents. It just may prove helpful.

A functional team is developed, it's not automatic

What are we teaching in our various organizations? Are we empowering the capacity for growth among those with whom we interact? Our personal biases, hangups and other negative fabrications of our minds should have no room in a progressive environment.

This old saying often regurgitated without thought is:
"If you want to do something well, then do it yourself"

This is one of the biggest hindrances to success. If you require help, then take the time to outline exactly what help you need and by when. Acknowledge that hidden agendas have no place in the progression of an organization who is already challenged with the situations that they face in the mainstream reason they came together in the first place.

If you have the necessary structure in place with the correct checks and balances, then the reduction of people pushing adverse agendas is significantly reduced, and you should get on with the business at hand.

What go you started, won't keep you going. You need to be able to scale up, and trust others to fulfill their roles and responsibilities.

If you really want to test your leadership ability; volunteer. It's an environment where you ability to rally everyone to support a common cause it key. It is having systems of accountability where people know what they're supposed to do and how their contribution helps in moving the organization towards its goals.

Look at the above video again and engage in some introspection. The serious questions that you ask yourselves may bear some revelation that you may not like the answers, however now you know the answers they can be addressed.

Remember, a functional team is developed, it's not automatic.

Are we serious about our marketing? Here are 6 lessons.

You may wonder why I have such a topic for this post, but just Friday, March 15, 2019, in the evening an observation prompted me to put this post up. It is not intended to get the representative in trouble, but more importantly, reinforce the need for companies to be diligent about what they do with regards to representation within the market.

I happened to visit Pricesmart, Barbados when I encountered this product. Left to my own interpretation about what the product's benefits are I am yet to hear the voice of the lass who tossed it into not only my shopping cart but also those of others who happened to be going through the aisle.

Clearly, she came to the end of her shift as she just walked off after throwing her 3 pointers from quite the distance. This was done without a greeting or even an inquiry as to if I/we wanted the product.

Thanks for the free sample, but there are ways that things are done and this is not what I know product sampling to be. Surely the company paying for this product to be marketed had no intention of having their product represented this way. Then again, maybe they did since clearly no due diligence was done to find out if the marketing company had a track record of presenting products properly to the general public. It seems like they hired the cheapest company to get the product out.

Approaching the cashier, I had to indicate that this product does not have any pricing and described how it reached my cart. The cashier assured me it was a sample and nothing would happen when clearing security to go to my vehicle.

Here are some 6 lessons:

1. When marketing your businesses, the cheapest option is not always the best. 
2. You need to train your representatives on the presentation of the products they will be showing. 
3. The representatives need to be courteous even when their shift comes to an end. 
4. She did not know if I was a mystery shopper for the same/other brands or even for Pricesmart itself. (easily she could lose her job in an already tough job market) 
5. Your representatives need to know how to competently handle objections raised by potential customers. 
6. You never know who is a blogger. 

Marketing dollars are expensive, and often businesses have to be creative in order to find funds for marketing in an already competitive environment. Many need to remember that they are not working for the company for whom they wear the uniform, but primarily they represent themselves and cannot afford to take a shoddy approach to their work. 

If your team needs to be trained, there are a multitude of trainers who can help you realize your objectives. Marketing organizations need to invest in their teams so they get the best representation. As I always say, think beyond the first sale. 

Check back often as we post things that we observe. That's what we can do in the islands. I hope that this article helps businesses become more aware of how little deviations in behaviour can help/hinder the development of your business.