Momentum - Business to Business Online Magazine MOMENTUM December 2018 | Page 10

Biz Tips The Keys To Business Success By Mike Hilderbrand, MBA, CBC, CSSC ActionCOACH of Galveston [email protected] www.actioncoach/mikehilderbrand W hat is the determinant of a most The great motivator and speaker E. James Rohn advises: "Work harder on yourself than you do on your job."  important business success? • A Unique Selling Proposition (USP)? • Having the lowest prices? • Great sales people? • The best location? • The best products? • Good customer service? • A strong local economy? If you are serious about your business and what you want to get out of life, you must dedicate 5-10% of your time to self-development.  To answer a question that we get many times when making the previous statement to our clients --- Yes, you must set aside some money to pay for it. Rest assured, though, this money will likely give you the highest ROI (return on investment) possible of the many investments you make over the course of a year. After all, you are the person that can increase your profits by 50% or more. There is no better time than now to make a commitment to yourself. Get out your calendar right now and block off 30-60 minutes every day for self-development, for the next 12 months. Next, write down specifically what you are going to do with this time for the next two weeks. At the end of two weeks, you should be able to detail your development plan for the next month, then the next quarter.  While these are all factors, based on my experience working with all kinds of different business owners in all kinds of different businesses, the most important determinant is you - the business owner. History is riddled with examples of successful businesses that have failed with a new owner and previously lackluster businesses that have flourished under new ownership. As a result, you are your most important business project. As such, you should be making significant investments in yourself. This includes reading books, examining your strengths and weaknesses, setting development goals for yourself, seeking outside advice, tracking your own personal development and getting a mentor to keep you on track.  You probably spend plenty of your company’s money developing and maintaining the physical assets of your business, but how much time and money do you spend on developing yourself? And, I mean the "whole" you. 9 MOMENTUM / December 2018 A corollary quote from Jim Rohn: "Never wish your job were easier, wish you were better," explains this. Think about it: If you are better, you will get better results. If you wish for it then you are more likely to find a way to make it happen. If, on the other hand, your job was to be easier, then everyone would want to do it and you would be back to square one.