Are You Running Your Business, or Just Surviving Another Week?

One thing I have learnt over the years is that being busy does not always mean you are moving forward.

I have been guilty of it myself.

You start Monday morning with the best intentions. Then the phone rings. An employee needs something. A customer has a problem. A vehicle needs attention and, before you know it, Friday afternoon arrives.

You have been busy all week.

But did you actually move the business forward?

There is a big difference.

Business success often comes down to making the right decision, at the right time and, importantly, in the right order.

However, as small business owners, we are constantly surrounded by things that feel urgent. The problem is that urgent and important are not always the same thing.

Therefore, I have started to think about my week differently.

The Nine Questions I Ask About the Business

At the start of the week, I believe every business owner should spend some quiet time looking at the business properly.

Not answering emails.

Not scrolling through social media.

Actually thinking.

These are nine questions worth asking yourself.

1. Are we on track? What are the numbers telling me?
2. What did we learn last week? What did our customers, team and results tell us?
3. What did we miss? Where did we fail or fall short, and what can we learn from it?
4. What is the one thing? What is the single biggest outcome we need this week?
5. What is stopping us? Is there a bottleneck, risk or problem slowing the business down?
6. Who needs support? Is someone in the team struggling, stuck or simply overloaded?
7. What needs to change? What should we stop doing, start doing or keep doing?
8. What decision needs to be made? What have I been putting off?
9. What does a successful Friday look like? What needs to happen for me to say, “That was a good week”?

None of these questions are complicated.

However, they force you to think.

And sometimes, thinking is the one thing we business owners don’t give ourselves enough time to do.

Find the One Decision That Moves the Business Forward

For me, the important part is identifying the one decision that could have the biggest impact on the business.

It might be recruiting someone.

It might be putting your prices up.

Perhaps you need to stop offering a service that is no longer profitable.

Alternatively, you may need to finally deal with a team issue that you have been avoiding.

I have learnt that avoiding a decision is still making a decision.

Usually, it is the wrong one.

Therefore, each week I try to look at five simple areas.

Direction. Are we still building the right business?

Demand. Does the market actually want what we are selling?

Delivery. Can we deliver our service properly and profitably?

Constraint. What is currently holding us back?

Decision. What decision could unlock the biggest result?

Again, this isn’t complicated business theory.

It is about taking time to look at your business before another week disappears.

Plan. Sell. Deliver.

I keep coming back to three simple words.

PLAN – Are we building the right business?

SELL – Can we consistently attract the right customers?

DELIVER – Can we deliver what we promised, profitably and repeatedly?

Get these three areas right and you have the foundations of a good business.

Of course, I haven’t always done this perfectly. After 30 years in business, I am still learning, still questioning and still changing things.

However, one thing I do know is this.

Your business will happily consume every hour you give it.

Therefore, sometimes you have to stop being busy, sit down and ask yourself a better question:

What is the one thing I need to do this week that will genuinely move my business forward?

Then go and do it.