A Better Business for Butterflies and Beavers

Many entrepreneurs focus on the minutiae of execution when they should step back and look at the big picture. Others have grand world changing ideas but don't see them through to fruition before moving on to the next big idea.
Whether you are a beaver or a butterfly by nature, it will pay you to think like both if you want to better your business.


Efficiency for Butterflies

1. Evaluate your equipment and assets to ensure you use maximum capacity to improve your output and make your business more competitive.


2. Know your profit margins. Your gross profit margin will tell you how efficient your production processes are and your net profit margin how effectively you earn profits from sales.


3. Improve your cashflow, ensure prompt billing, advance payment and a prompt debt recovery process. Look at spreading the cost of investments, paying off loans and claiming tax relief.


4. Organise that workspace, whether paperwork or stock, to cut wasted time and boost productivity.


5. Review overhead and supplier costs. Get options and alternatives to see if you can get a better deal and/or seek proactive advice from someone you trust to keep you informed of whats now available to you.


6. Take a look at what you offer. It could be time to review prices, stop selling the unprofitable or introduce new products or services.


Effectiveness for Beavers

1. Get a BHAG... a big hairy audacious goal... that you may never achieve but will drive and guide long term thinking for you.


2. Keep testing new products and services quickly and cheapily.


3. Dare to be different and develop your own way by really understanding what your business actually does for its customers.


4. Know where you are in your industry's food chain. You may not be able to out muscle incumbents unless you develop a niche approach or a unique selling point.


5. Keep redesigning your business to use less cash, then do it again. Its lack of cash that will get you before lack of customers.


6. Create short term financial plans to keep you agile and in the moment. Detailed long term business plans are at best merely directional and at worst dangerous if you become wedded to them and ignore reality.

For help and advice, options and alternatives, butterfly thinking for beavers, and beaver thinking for butterflies, please contact me.