Shoestrings Laced Up and Tied Together

Small business is a tough way to make a buck. As soon as you reach one pinnacle there is the cash out lay for the next goal; it's like starting all over again. As your business grows there is more to do and less time to do it. Many people talk about time management or duplication, some talk about employee retention, my solution is to be the best.

Stanley Marcus of Neiman Marcus wrote a book, Quest for the Best. It was given to me as a gift before I started my first business. It rattled around in my brain for years until a customer demanded to know why I thought my services where worth more than any one else who had estimated the job.

I could start a business with a cash expenditure, but I don't. I consult with people all the time who have beautiful offices, with beatiful furnishings, equipment, and branding. There they sit servicing customers with great care only never hitting the nut they pay each month. Before adding any element to a business I calculate the return on investment.

For each component of my business there is a standard. Each component stands alone and I ask if that component is the best it can be. The answer is no. There is always room for improvement. We can always do things better. Our goal is to be the best. Along the way there is some give and take, some monitoring.

My accountant is the best, absolutely without any question, he is the best. The company that services my vehicles is the best, my vehicles may be questionable, but the people who keep them on the road are the best. The equipment I have and use, is the best. The supplies we use are the best, by trial and error. One month I tried every brand of a certain product to determine what worked best. I did it myself, it was my decision based on my standards.

The people who work with me are the best. As I said in a previous article I am a bad boss. There are no excuses in my businesses only solutions. The goal, as I understand it, is to avoid having me look at you while you are working. My job is to look for solutions. My function is to make things better. If I'm looking at a person who works with us it's to find a solution; that person has become a problem.

In business you have to follow your dream. You have to follow what you know is right, ethical, and the best you can do. People talk to me about money all the time. It's a ridiculous mantra. Money is the easiest thing to get. Being the best is what's hard.

Standards are what makes the difference. I start each business with nothing. I build on the profit basis I outlined here. Each component pays for it self then I plow the profit back into the business. As the business grows I add, expand, then duplicate myself by sharing my standards with the people around me. Some people get it, some don't.

Along the way, each step, is a profit. By doing it this way each component is nurtured to my standards. By having high standards it gets to be easier. I have owned businesses where I had no gauge of the standard and had to rely on someone else to set those. After learning from them I ask myself what I would want from that business.

An example is cars. I like cars, I own several. I don't know anything about cars but I like them. A mechanic shop seemed like a good idea. It was an indoors business, everybody needs them and the profit margin is staggering. I need to trust the mechanic who is setting the standards to that business.

I took over the lease of a failing mechanic and brought in Steve. We cleaned the place, organized, and repainted key parts. It's funny how clean tools laid out in order each day can have such a profound effect on customers and employees. I like to face all products once a week so all the labels are out. Keeping it clean is probably the most cost effective thing anyone can do.

Many of you are professional people. You rely on cash outlay to make the impressions on your customers. How many of you have been horrified at the guy down the street in your industry who runs a rag tag shoestring operation? Many people accuse competition of competing by price; is that really what's going on? Rather, is some one else competing by profit.

Profit is driven by being the best, knowing you are the best, and charging accordingly. Each day is a struggle and once it gets to be easy it's time for a change. Before you promote for that next expansion you may want to look at your components and ask if they are the best they can be.