One of my favorite Latin quotes is Carpe Diem meaning to seize the moment or to take advantage of now. This is always crucial for business to be prepared to take advantage of opportunities in good timing.
Every small business operates searching for the opportunities to grow their business. The surprising fact is in how many business are not prepared to take advantage of opportunities that come their way. This is why planning and writing plans out are so important. Plans are the Bible for business and personal goals, when you are off track you have a guide to refer to. This guide is also important when it comes to opportunity and being able to take advantage of opportunities. Without a strong plan, a lot of times companies don't even see the opportunity in front of them. In Stephen Covey's The 7 Habits Of Highly Effective People, a book that I hold close to me like the Holy Grail, there is a chapter entitled Begin With The End In Mind. This chapter discusses the principle that all things are created twice, mentally and then physically. In the mental is where your goals for a project are thought out. This is also the time to take these thoughts and put them in writing. After you mentally have a plan then you begin to physically put the plan into action. In The 7 Habits Of Highly Effective People, Stephen Covey compares this process to building a house. Mentally you think of the house you want to build and use those thoughts to create a blueprint. Now as you prepare to physically start to build, you have a mental picture and a written blueprint. Armed with this you can be more aware of opportunities in front of you because you now know what you need to complete the project. It is obvious to build a house you would need land and building materials. The opportunities missed by a lack of planning are things such as your church member that just got a promotion at the city building permit office or your brother in law just getting a class a building qualification. With a strong plan for your business in place you will be able to see there are opportunities all around you that you never saw before.
No business especially a small business can afford to miss an opportunity. The only way to not miss them is to be well prepared. Have a strong mission statement and a plan that executes that mission. With the end in mind and knowing what it will take to get your business where you want it to go, when opportunity knocks CARPE DIEM.
Every small business operates searching for the opportunities to grow their business. The surprising fact is in how many business are not prepared to take advantage of opportunities that come their way. This is why planning and writing plans out are so important. Plans are the Bible for business and personal goals, when you are off track you have a guide to refer to. This guide is also important when it comes to opportunity and being able to take advantage of opportunities. Without a strong plan, a lot of times companies don't even see the opportunity in front of them. In Stephen Covey's The 7 Habits Of Highly Effective People, a book that I hold close to me like the Holy Grail, there is a chapter entitled Begin With The End In Mind. This chapter discusses the principle that all things are created twice, mentally and then physically. In the mental is where your goals for a project are thought out. This is also the time to take these thoughts and put them in writing. After you mentally have a plan then you begin to physically put the plan into action. In The 7 Habits Of Highly Effective People, Stephen Covey compares this process to building a house. Mentally you think of the house you want to build and use those thoughts to create a blueprint. Now as you prepare to physically start to build, you have a mental picture and a written blueprint. Armed with this you can be more aware of opportunities in front of you because you now know what you need to complete the project. It is obvious to build a house you would need land and building materials. The opportunities missed by a lack of planning are things such as your church member that just got a promotion at the city building permit office or your brother in law just getting a class a building qualification. With a strong plan for your business in place you will be able to see there are opportunities all around you that you never saw before.
No business especially a small business can afford to miss an opportunity. The only way to not miss them is to be well prepared. Have a strong mission statement and a plan that executes that mission. With the end in mind and knowing what it will take to get your business where you want it to go, when opportunity knocks CARPE DIEM.