Laura Maver Ward is President and Founder of Dovetail Business Advis= ors, Inc

Are YOU Killing Your Business?

Fighting failure within your organization begins with you.

By Laura Maver Ward

Businesses fail for many reasons. Some are the result of bad luck, while others are the result of poor leadership. This "Breakthrough Business Strategy" focuses on poor leadership.

As a business owner or business leader, your core responsibility is to get peopl= e to behave in a way that gets you the results you want. Then how do you overcome the challenge that so many business owners and business leaders face-changi= ng the behaviors of others? Like it or not, it begins with YOU!

I receive many calls from frustrated and struggling business owners who compl= ain that their people are not getting the results they want. Recently, I receiv= ed a call from a restaurant owner, John (not his real name), who is suffering fr= om high turnover in the management ranks. Although John's restaurant model is extremely successful, from a customer perspective, our discussion revealed a great number of issues. First, there isn't a strategic plan in place. That means that no one, including John, has any goals and no one is clearly accountable for results. Second, there are no systems or means to measure a= nd celebrate successes. Third, John is suffering from burnout and feels "= like a victim" in his own business.

Does any of this sound familiar?

What Should John Fix First?
John has a vision to grow and sell his restaurants so that he can retir= e in the style he wants and deserves. His plan is to open four to five additional restaurants prior to going to market five years from now. Clearly, John understands that he needs to "fix" what is broken, prior to growi= ng his company. All of this was music to my ears-a baby boomer who understands that preparing a business for a successful exit is important!

Initially, it appeared that John needed to begin his journey of transformation by first developing a strategic plan. Both of us felt that would be putting the cart= in front of the horse. Instead, John must "fix" himself first. As a = "victim" in his own business, John is living someone else's plan, because he has no = plan of his own. By his own admission, he is constantly in crisis mode.

John needs his own personal roadmap so that he understands who he is and where h= e's going. That roadmap must include his personal and professional goals. John needs to develop the habits, attitudes and skills that a business leader mu= st possess in order to move an organization forward. With these strategies in place, John will have a positive self-image, have a renewed passion for his business and be prepared to move to steps two through four of his journey-developing a strategic plan, developing his leadership team and put= ting the necessary systems and measurements in place.

Keys to Unlocking Your Untapped Potential
By nature, all of us are goal-seekers, and we are happiest when we accompli= sh our goals and create balance in six key areas of our personal lives-social, financial, spiritual, ethical, family, physical and mental. Before we can establish goals, it is so important to know and understand our sense of purpose. It is that sense of purpose that will align our goals to what's important in life and business.

It is also critical that we change our attitudes and behaviors. We all know that = is very difficult! It means we have to admit that we aren't perfect. Does it h= elp to know that 95 percent of our attitudes, or habits of thought, were develo= ped prior to the age of 5? Further, at that early age, our undeveloped conscious mind was unable to filter out good from bad. Thus our subconscious was fill= ed with whatever we heard, saw and/or experienced. As a result, many of us have developed attitudes and habits that do not contribute to achieving success later in life.

As adults, every decision and every action we make is the result of that deeply-rooted belief system that we developed in early childhood. Therefore= , as adults we must become aware of what we learned as children and be prepared = if necessary to develop new and healthy habits and thoughts.

Leadership Makeovers Take Time
As a busi= ness owner or business leader, it is critical that you take the lead and model t= he behavior that you want to see in others. Only then can you be successful in leading and motivating others to higher levels of achievement. To be a more effective leader there are a number of things you must do.

First, be committed to being the best leader you can. Start by engaging in an on-g= oing program of personal and professional growth. Be open to change. Those who a= re truly committed will reap the rewards both personally and professionally.

Second, become aware of your present behaviors and determine what's working and wha= t's not. Ask people for honest feedback. To do that, you have to check your ego= at the door and take yourself out of the "yes, but" mode. Listen attentively and be open to hearing things you may not initially agree with.= If you have a business full of "yes-people," then you might need to = go outside the organization to help you get that feedback. There are wonderful assessment tools available.

Many business owners have had great success in hiring an executive business coac= h. A coach is committed to your success and is trained to help you get to your "Right Action." Right Action exists when the right people, are do= ing the right things, in the right ways, at the right time, for the right reaso= ns, in order to achieve the right results.

Third, developing new behaviors requires practice, practice, and practice. It's ve= ry similar to learning a new language. If you have ever studied a foreign language, then you know that fluency only happens when you stop translating words in your head. It just rolls off your tongue. So, too, new behaviors a= nd attitudes must become second nature.

Be Committed to Your Own Success-No One Else Will!
To be committed to being the best leader you can, you must start with YOU! = Next time you have challenges in your business, stop the blame game and stop fee= ling like a victim. Look in the mirror and ask yourself what you could be doing differently. Clearly visualize the type of person you want to become, and t= he traits, characteristics, and qualities associated with that person. Establi= sh an action plan and be accountable for your own success first. The success of your people and your company will follow. Remember ... success begins with = YOU!

Laura Maver Ward is President and Founder of Dovetail Busin= ess Advisors, Inc. (www.dovetailad= visors.com), a mergers and acquisitions and business coaching and consulting firm. Dovet= ail helps business owners run their business, so they can live today…and retire tomorrow…in the style they want and deserve. She can be reache= d at 816-448-3777 or breakthroughstrategies@dovetailadvisors.com.<= /p>

Re-Print Permission

This article may be reprinted if the following conditions are = met:

· The article is reprinted in its entirety.

· The complete tag with the author's name and contact informatio= n is included immediately after the article.

· A copy of the printed article is mailed to the Laura Maver War= d at Dovetail Business Advisors, Inc., 2300 Main Street, Suite 900, Kansas City, MO 64108 within 30 days of publication.

· The article is presented in a positive light as part of an appropriate business related publication.

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