It seems like a good idea to look for opportunities to grow your business, elevate your business performance and/or dramatically increase the value of your business, right? Of course! Yet the question remains: How?
I’ve found that identifying opportunities can be quite simple yet is rarely done. It requires a few key traits: 1) The power of observation – do you notice what is going on around you? Do you notice changes? Are your employees moping around one minute and energetic again the next week? What changed? 2) The right priorities – you are most likely working hard, but are you wasting effort? I find that this is a common problem. Take a step back to make sure you are working on the correct items. Are they the ones that will help you achieve your strategy? Are they urgent and have a significant return on investment? Or are they related to who is shouting the loudest? 3) Spotting trends – are you tracking key performance indicators? Which metrics will tell you if you are making progress? Who knew it would be so hard just to make sure you are making progress on items that will “move the needle” in the right direction on your main objectives! I find that my clients often times are progressing but they might be expending a lot of effort to barely move the needle at all on the final metric. It isn’t tragic but you must identify the issue and adjust immediately!
What can you do to improve these three key traits? The more proficient you become, the more of an eagle eye you will develop.