Please don't make me plan!

I used to run business-planning seminars in London and was amazed at the number of business owners who virtually had a phobia about planning. They hated the idea of committing to a plan and even worse the though of following a plan.

As planning is a crucial element to achieving business success I am interested in why owners loathe planning!

Talking to dozen of business owners over the years, who share the planning phobia I have come to the conclusion that the phobia stems from a fear of failure.

Interestingly not having a plan will make failure much more likely but the owner is more afraid of the short-term failure of not sticking to a plan.

The logic of this, unconscious of course, seems to go like this... 'If I have a plan, that I write down and share with others in the business, and I do not stick to the plan, or the results are not what I planned, I will look bad. So, by not having a plan in the first place no one can hold owners accountable especially themselves. This kind of thinking is not constructive and lying to oneself is the most destructive kind of deception.

Another fear of failure is what if the plan turns out to be a bad one? Again the less confident owner is concerned about how they will look in the eyes of others. Successful business owners know that planning is essential to achieving their long-term vision. They also know that plans are always subject to change as things develop and time passes. The skill is not in producing the 'perfect business plan' but in producing a plan that is challenging, whilst also being realistic, achievable and adaptable to circumstances and results.

Fear And Loathing In The Sales Arena

A phobia that prevents so many business owners from being successful, even though they have top quality products and services, is fear and loathing of selling.

I think that it is even worse, when culturally it is deemed 'shameful' to sell one’s self or one’s products and services too overtly. Certainly we Brits seem to have a complete aversion to selling and being sold to.

Those who have sales phobias believe that if the product is right, they will somehow just know where to find it and will not need to ask anything more about it.

The phobic owner is convinced that their product or service should be self evidently what the prospective client is looking for and that any attempt to bring it to someone's attention is somehow in bad taste or will reflect badly on the products, or worse still the salesperson.

At all costs we must never appear pushy.

During my seminars, I ask attendees to think of words that come to mind when I say ‘Sales person’ or ‘Selling’.

Without a moments hesitation I am bombarded with a vast range of negative accusations: dishonest, lying, pushy, slippery, uncomfortable, etc. etc. By contrast successful owners realise the need to personally promote their business and are prepared to overcome any initial reluctance. They volunteer to speak at conferences, seminars and business groups. They also understand the concept of helping a client to buy and actually enjoy contact with buyers.

They understand that 'good selling' goes hand in hand with being open, honest and informative to prospective clients.

Your Business Reflects You !

Over the years working with dozens of different businesses, I am struck by how a business reflects the attitudes and behaviours of the owner. I am also struck by how few owners realise this simple fact.

I have heard it said by owners so many times, "you can’t get good people to work any more". I immediately look at the owner to see why they might have trouble getting good people to work for them.

What I find when I ask about their beliefs reveals that they do not trust anyone and do not expect people to want to do a good days work. The owner sees it as a battle of wits to stay one step ahead of their staff.

Is it any wonder that a business owned by someone with this attitude becomes a place of cynicism and mistrust.

Without invoking the old adage of paying peanuts and getting monkeys, I have met owners who place a completely disproportionate importance on the cost of salaries and yet they will happily pay too much for services such as, electricity, computer supplies etc. but begrudge their staff every penny of their salaries and delay paying bonuses until the last possible moment.

If the owner does not respect the contribution made by staff why should the staff bother to make an effort?

Successful owners pay to get the best people they can and then train them well. This means their staff can deliver top class service to customers and owners can happily delegate whenever possible.

Welcome to LSSB World

Welcome, we are delighted to launch The London School For Small Business on-line programmes and open our doors to our unique learning centre based in Southern France.

Over the coming weeks we will share with you our plans for the future and our vision for business owners worldwide, plus some history about who we are and how we got to this place.

We will also be providing valuable tips, hints and infomation to help you personally and professionally be the best at what you do and how you feel.

Please join us and share your experiences and feedback .

We want to hear from you, we have travelled the world talking to business owners worldwide and what you have to say directly impacts what we provide and how we structure all our education programmes. It is one of our core principles: put customer needs first and let those needs develop your business. Sounds obvious, maybe? We meet very few businesses where customer needs are really considered at all.

To get us started, please answer these 2 questions

• Share with us the words that come to mind when you think of your business and your life as a small business owner ?

• Which area of your business is most neglected ?
  

Enjoy your learning journey and stay in touch

Lisa Temperley