Balance, schmalance. When I started this blog, I was all about proselytizing the virtues of work-life balance.

At the risk of heresy, I will say the cruel truth: there is no such thing. It is just some concept we strive for. Or sometimes think we need to strive for. Or not. The choice is yours. Ours, actually. In my case, mine.

What I’m trying to say is that, particularly for the small business person, sometimes ya gotta do what ya gotta do, because it is all up to you: if you don’t work, you don’t survive. Period. There are no paid breaks. The reality is that sometimes other things in your life have to take a back burner, at least temporarily. Not that they aren’t still important.

Which is my lead-in excuse as to why I haven’t posted anything on this blog for awhile – other than every entry seems to have turned into some kind of term paper, which is hardly sustainable for a blog. I love writing – I love sharing what I know and getting ideas from others, and interacting with the online community is definitely an enriching experience – but sometimes real work – you know, the kind that actually supports me financially – takes precedence. (So far, this blog is just a lot of talk – but feel free to donate if you feel otherwise!)

I would say that work gets in the way of the fun stuff, but actually, I enjoy my work. True, pulling together grants and proposals tends to be intense and stressful, but I’m good at it. I enjoy helping small businesses be successful. I enjoy communicating ideas, capabilities, and value in a way that helps them win. It’s a win for me, too. So when I get involved in a proposal effort, for example, all else is put on hold, because agencies don’t extend deadlines so I can attend my grandson’s T-ball game, get my garden in, or work on my current craft project. I accept that sometimes I have to give up some things to get something else done.

My questions are – what’s wrong with that? What is wrong with going full-throttle into something to achieve a goal? And what is this concept of “work-life balance” about anyway?

The key word is “concept,” which is, after all, just a thought or notion.

After nearly 20 years in the corporate world of feeling stressed and overworked, I can admit that my cry for “work-life balance” was a knee-jerk reaction to everything in my life imploding at once. Although I admit my Type-A tendencies contributed to my demise (or liberation, depending on the point of view), I was hardly alone. Moms talked about balancing their careers with taking time to raise children; dads talked about missing out and wanted the same. The term “sandwich generation” was coined, of which I was a perfect example. Sure, achieving this “work-life balance” was kind of a trendy thing, but we weren’t exactly ready to give up our morning lattes.

Then the economy went south, people started losing their jobs, and those remaining had to pick up the slack. Exhausted but afraid of being the next on the hatchet block, the still-but-barely employed were privately complaining about needing a little work-life balance. Those in the other corner were also wanting a little work-life balance in just wishing they could work. Renegades and survivalists struck out on their own. Cowboy coffee came back in style.

So maybe it’s a matter of perspective.

We say we need balance when we recognize something is off-balance, particularly when we think we are missing out on something (feeling resentful, going crazy, etc. – you know the feeling).

The thing is, we live in a “more is good” culture, one that emphasizes play, extreme lifestyles, and having stuff. Cool stuff. Lots of cool stuff. It’s a marketing thing. And of course it requires a lot of money. It’s patriotic to spend. It’s a culture that caters to escapists.

I say, “Whoaa there, Nellie!” (too much of that cowboy coffee, obviously)

Stop. Ask yourself. When do you say More is just simply More? When did we stop putting value in our work and putting more value in our play? Have we so bought into the hype that we actually believe we are buying love, fun, value, self worth, family relationships? Because if you’re not getting it, if you have that lurching feeling that you are about to fall off your horse, about to lose your balance – then something is wrong.

Time to get back to basics.

It’s the cowboy principle (sticking with this western theme):  honest hard work is a good thing. Work can make you feel valuable, whether it’s because you are self sufficient, supporting loved ones, or contributing to the success of something bigger than yourself. After all, the whole point of going into business is because it allows us to feel all those things, to be able to do what we are good at and passionate about, and to have the flexibility and opportunities that we can’t find in the corporate world. Our work defines us, and that is what distinguishes our work from being a “job.”

But everything has a trade-off.

Achieving goals, being successful, being good at something, being able to deliver on commitments: these all require being willing to devote time and energy to whatever it is we are trying to do. The trade-off, of course, is that we might not have time for other things, time being that elusive thing that is at once both limited and endless, but in our cases, mostly limited.

I contend that maybe we don’t need “balance” per se, but flexibility to go full-board in one direction and take time-out breaks to renew and do other things that give our lives meaning. Maybe there has been way too much emphasis on this whole “balance” thing. Maybe when we do what we love and find value in what we do, we are happier than when we are worrying about balance and whether or not we are missing out on something. And maybe we just don’t buy into the hype.

Just a thought.

I read an article recently that successful businesses are those that solve problems.

I got to thinking. Is this true?

And if so, what sorts of problems do I solve?

Sometimes redefining things from that perspective gives us new insights into what it is we do and why.

For a lot of us, the whole point of being in business for ourselves is to have the opportunity to make a living doing something that is meaningful to us. Often that means helping others, reaching out, making the world a better place. Maybe it means expressing ourselves in some creative way, which, in turn, enriches the lives of others. Or maybe it just means taking pride in being self sufficient.

What is it that gives your work – and since you spend so much time doing it – your life meaning?

To be in business, you’re always selling something – whether it be knowledge, services, or products.

The question is, what kind of business are you in and how does that align with your values?

Sometimes it’s not so much the knowledge you have, but the way you creatively apply it.

Sometimes it’s not about the actual service you provide, but the handshake at the end.

Similarly, sometimes it’s not so much the products you sell, but the relationships with the people you sell to.

Here are three examples:

I was talking with a good friend of mine recently who is in the business of solving problems. He works with people with different points of view and who are under a variety of public and financial pressures to accomplish things. He tries to help people work together. Sometimes no one knows exactly how to solve a problem, but they get together and try to hash out an approach. There is frequent controversy. These are not simple issues with simple solutions. Basically, my friend spends his entire day dealing with problems and frustrations, which, day after day, can shape one’s attitude toward life. He is good at what he does, and when it works, it can be very rewarding.

Example 2 is my son and son-in-law, each very hands-on individuals who have their own landscaping / yard maintenance businesses. They are providing a service that makes people’s lives easier because it allows their clients to spend time doing other things and rest assured that their properties look great. These two young men work hard for a living, and at the end of the day, there is a certain satisfaction in that work. They have helped people, helped beautify the community, and provided for their families.

I, on the other hand, have a career that is geared toward helping people succeed, which I balance with an assortment of creative pursuits, including writing, crafts, and gardening. It gives me the flexibility to spend more time with family and do other activities that I enjoy. The products I sell don’t necessarily solve problems, but I would hope people enjoy them. I also do a certain amount of outreach to try to make the world a better place. I sell all three: knowledge, services, and products.

In my case, it’s not so much a matter of trying to figure out how to make my work meaningful. It’s all meaningful. It’s more of an issue of deciding what is the best thing to do with the time I have.

This lesson was profoundly taught to me by my mother. In her time, my mother was a nurse, caregiver, and hospice volunteer. She was always reaching out to those in need, always lending a helping hand. And then she was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s. As time went on, this brilliant person could no longer perform simple tasks. It was my turn to be the caregiver and inevitably to help her die. Through that entire ordeal, she never stopped giving. She always seemed to be able to find someone else worse off than she was, and she never stopped trying to alleviate their pain. She could not speak; she could only smile, touch, and nod in understanding. She still managed to make people laugh. She taught me so much during this time in her life. Without saying a word, she told me quite loudly, “Love is all that matters.” “Now is the time we have.” “If we do not help one another, what are our lives worth?”

Which begs the question: What do you really do for a living? Solve problems? Make someone’s life easier? Make someone smile? Make the world a better place?

We have this gift of unknown quantity called time; how will you use it? Your business is an opportunity to make what you do an extension of your values. That is the key to success.

When it comes to business strategy, we’re all looking for the guru with the roadmap. We want someone to say, “Here’s your To-Do List: steps 1, 2, 3 – and you will be there.”

Unfortunately, despite all those e-books out there that might claim otherwise, there is no one-size-fits-all formula. True, strategies might have similar components, but each requires a set of definitions that only you can define. (Deep down we all knew that.) And although it might seem like such a hassle to write all this stuff down, you might be surprised by how much the process reveals certain aspects of your business, the market, and what to do next.

A strategy begins with a series of definitions.

1. First of all, you have to define what success means to you, aka your vision statement. You gotta keep your eye on the vision or you could find yourself spending a lot of time and money headed down some side road. That might be OK – it’s all about the journey, right? – but course adjustments are usually expensive. FOCUS is usually the most direct route.
2. You also have to define who you are. That might take years of psychotherapy. I mean, many of us have been trying to figure out how we fit in since high school (not that I am one of those – and, BTW, I am totally over being called “mooselips” – I mean, totally). So, yes, figuring out who we are and where we fit in is a process – a normal process, I might add, albeit maybe a lengthy one – and since we can’t wait years for all that, just go with what you have now and trust that higher primates can evolve. Moving on.
3. You have to define who it is you’re selling to, which might be the most important definition in this schematic, because you can’t reach your goals without these people – whoever they are – wherever they are. Your mission is to find them. Reach out to them. Embrace them. Within reason.
4. You have to define what it is you’re selling (we’re all marketers here – everyone is selling something or you wouldn’t be in business, right?). This definition is tricky, because you aren’t necessarily selling what you think you’re selling. What you are actually selling is Value. Your customer defines that one for you.

To recap: the first steps in any strategy are identifying who you are and where you want to go. Identifying who you are might evolve over time, but every step in your strategy should lead you toward your ultimate vision. Keeping this focus is key to your success – but the absolute center of this focus must be your customer, because your customer is the one who will get you to your goals.

It’s a partnership effort, actually. You take a close look at who they are, what their lives are like, what motivates them, what gets them up in the morning, what drives them – what they do to make things work, to have fun, and to make their lives meaningful – also what things make their lives miserable. Then you take a look around at what other people are offering. Finally, you figure out what you can do that is a little different – what makes you unique – what makes you better able to provide whatever it is your customer is looking for – how you can help. You provide – they buy – you both benefit.

For example – take a look again at the drawing from our previous post, “For a Customer-Centered Strategy” and at the common characteristics of how someone might define value.

Think about these attributes (product, warranty, quality, reputation, knowledge, service, relationship, image, convenience, price – these are just examples) -

• Which of these is most important to your customer?
• How does your customer define them?
• Which of these are you best able to provide?
• Which ones separate you from the other guys out there?
• What would you need to do to improve what you offer relative to these value factors?

Brainstorm some ideas. Nothing is too crazy. You can do the reality check later.

Some of these are self-explanatory. I’ll give you some examples.

Quality: If quality is the primary virtue, figure out what your customer means by quality – particularly relative to what they’re willing to pay for. Quality is, after all, a perception. It’s about meeting – and exceeding – expectations. How can you ensure that what you offer realistically aligns with what they expect – and then how can you give them that something extra that gives you an “outstanding” review – enough for them to run and tell their friends?

Convenience: If convenience is important to those on hectic schedules, what would it take to make it even more convenient? More distribution outlets? Home delivery? In-store child care? Drive-throughs? Will you need a new truck? A new building?Are you crazy? A psychiatrist?

Service: By the same token, if service is your customer’s main concern, what do they mean by that exactly? Do you have the know-how to help them make a decision that is best for them? Do you provide free delivery, assembly, and installation? Do you have knowledgeable technicians? Do you go to bat for your customer on the warranty? Do you follow up with a thank you and a coupon for a discount on their next purchase, do you remember their name, and do you make sure they’re happy?(Again – within reason).

“Experience”: Maybe the experience of buying whatever it is you have to offer will set you apart from the competition. What would it take to make it more fun, more romantic, more exotic, more family-oriented, or more personalized in some way, shape, or form? Will you need to install a swimming pool and personal spa? A new sound system? And how much is all this going to cost?

Cost: If it’s about cost, do you make sure your customer’s expectations align with the reality of what they can buy for the money? Is there a way you can reduce costs through bulk purchasing or streamlining processes? Instead of a spa, do they just get a bucket to soak their feet in with a handful of Epsom salts thrown in for good measure? And is that what they came in for?

You get the idea.

Ok – Now make a table of your analysis. It can be simple, such as the example below.

So – let’s put all this into a strategy.

A strategy is useless if all it is is a bunch of lofty platitudes. You might include a few of those cloudscapes in your vision statement, but when it comes to a strategy, you need specifics – specifically, those things that you need to do – exactly – to increase the value of what you offer to your customer, so they will buy what you are selling and make your business successful.

Here’s what you know:

1. You’ve got your identity down and you know where you want to go.
2. You know who your customer is, what they want or need, and how they define value.
3. You know who the competition is and where you fit in.

Ok.

Here is how to develop your action plan (in 10 easy steps – what did I tell you?):

1. Make a list of specific things you can do to best supply and improve on that value.
2. Take a close look at that list. Which ones are more important – which are less. Which are feasible; which are not practical at this time. Think of the list as a series of steps. Which will need to be done first; which have to be done after first things are done first; which are urgent; which can be delayed; which are better done later. Put them in order.
3. Figure out how much money you have to work with. If you have to take out a loan, the more specific you get with describing the market potential and what it will take to tap into it, the better. Going through the exercise now will save you time later.
4. Take another look at that list and organize them according to what you can realistically accomplish now and which things are better saved to when your business is stronger.
5. Wherever possible, break things down into subtasks.
6. Make sure everything aligns with where you want to go (i.e., keep your vision in focus!).
7. Consider how you’re going to measure your success (as in measurable goals).
8. Schedule your steps – give a specific time to begin, when to check progress, and a time for completion.
9. Allocate your resources.
10. Hey – you’re there. Just do it!

Whether you are running a large corporation or working single-handedly, say, out of your closet (home offices take many shapes and forms), the same basic business principles apply. Solopreneurs still go through the same fundamental questions and analyses in developing a business strategy, marketing plan, and financial appraisal in deciding how to best make things work.

This post is a personal example connecting back to my last entry, “Take a Flying Leap?”.

I felt my last post made a lot of sense. I didn’t hear from anybody (yet) on it, but according to the stats, people are reading it, and if they take away something positive, that’s good enough.

See, I have this great background in business, and I like to use it to help people. I fully realize that it’s much easier to tell people how to market a business than to run one yourself – but believe me, I also live in these quandaries of deciding who I am, where I am going, how I can best reach the people I want to reach – in other words, how I can make my business successful enough to allow me to work from a blanket on a beach in Tahiti. Or wherever.

In addition to business consulting, I have a couple of other sideline endeavors that help me make a little spare cash while feeding other sides of my personality.

For example, I grow garlic. By most people’s standards, it’s a lot. Specifically, 27 kinds, 1300 bulbs in 2009. I’ve been growing garlic for almost 35 years (good grief!), and almost every year, I grow just a little bit more.

There was a turning point when I decided to make it into a business. I figured I was on to something and decided to really go for it. I doubled my crop. I doubled it again the next year. And guess what? I ended up throwing a lot of garlic away. It was sad.

There were several reasons.

1) Gourmet garlic was not a well-known item then.
2) I was paying a premium price for gourmet garlic seed. Grocers, on the other hand, were not.
3) Outlets for fresh produce were limited.
4) I was not set up to sell at farmer’s markets, and it wasn’t how I wanted to spend my weekends.

In other words,

a) I hadn’t adequately researched my market,
b) I didn’t have my distribution channels established, and
c) I hadn’t effectively marketed or spent time educating the public.

Ok. I can learn from that.

So the next year, I figured I would bypass the fickle fresh market and sell a “value-added” product, i.e., I would dehydrate, pulverize, and bottle it. That way, I could expand the number of outlets, better cater to a gourmet food market, and extend the shelf life of the product itself. A fancy bottle and label would convey more value and command a higher price. When people tasted it, I knew there would be no question of its superiority. I felt like a dealer, selling white powder that would have people clamoring back for more. I purchased a pretty nice ($$) dehydrator (which I wanted anyway to make homemade backpacking foods, potentially a future business idea).

But there was just one small glitch, and that was the Food and Drug Administration / Health Dept. regulations.

I downloaded their regulation book, went to the Health Dept. and asked questions, and started fixing up my shop to handle food processing requirements. This was no small undertaking. I installed drywall on the walls and ceiling; painted everything with washable paint; sealed the cement floor; sealed my worktable; bought shelving that could be sanitized; covered the fluorescent light bulbs; set up a handwashing station that was every bit as good as the ones I saw at temporary establishments at the Farmer’s Market. And more.

But it just got to be overwhelming. I knew I would never have a permanent water source to my shop; 3 plastic tubs would have to do for a 3-compartment sink; and I could not afford a proper ventilation system. To rent the Grange or other community kitchen over the time it would take to dehydrate and process everything would saturate the public facility with the heavenly odor of garlic, something I recognized is not appreciated by everyone.

I concluded that the improvements to the shop were a good thing, but home food processing wasn’t going to happen that particular year.

I decided to re-route.

I enhanced my marketing program. I scrapped the down-home friendly wholesome organic look. I drew a funky little vampire saying, “Got Garlic? One can never have too much…” I put him on magnetic signs that I stuck on my car and on signs by my driveway. I set up a website and a blog to promote the garlic, my other gardening escapades, and causes I feel passionate about, namely supporting family farms, buying local, and saving farmland.

The marketing paid off.

I sold in bulk to wholesale outlets; I sold premium-priced seed stock across the entire country; I sold to individuals who stopped by my house and also through various networking channels; I offered options at different price ranges (gift packs, specialty items, grab-bag and bulk discounts, etc.); I gave some away in community outreach events. People were actually referring to me as “the garlic lady.” In a few months, I was sold out.

There was just one little problem with what sounds like a great success story – and that is, in the spring, I broke my foot. I won’t go into the details of how I was swinging from the rainforest canopy while being chased by vampires (attention Twilight fans – yes, all this happened near Forks). I focused on saving the crop, letting most everything else go, and if not for my family rescuing me, I probably would have been long gone, too – but that, along with the vampire tale, is for a different post.

And so it was that during the drying and processing of 1300 bulbs of garlic, I hit a crossroads.

I realized that the garlic was a finite substance, meaning, once it’s gone, it’s gone. 1300 bulbs might sound like a lot, but actually, it’s quite limiting. It is, however, all I can handle by myself. Growing gourmet garlic is labor intensive. Yes, it keeps my blood flowing, but it’s not exactly steroids.

You know, you can fit a lot of garlic in a small plot of land. Plants only need to be 4-6” apart or so. Packed into beds, a 20’ x 20’ plot will grow over 1000 bulbs. I could feasibly till up an acre, in which case, I would have to hire help. So long solopreneur.

ARE YOU STILL FOLLOWING ME HERE? Because now we get to that critical question: SCALE UP OR NOT?

I needed to decide right then and there, because I needed to either sell it or save it and plant it.

I had done a few things right:

• I had explored options in the product (fresh or dried)
• I had tested various distribution channels (wholesale markets, farmer’s outlets, mail order, individuals)
• I had experimented with different packaging ideas – gift packs, wreaths, swags, individual bulbs
• I had marketed, educated, and sung praises, and in the process built a fan club.

But several questions needed to be answered.

• If I scaled up, how much space would I need?
• How many cloves would I plant in that space and how many bulbs of each variety would that require?
• Would I need additional equipment?
• If I broke the garlic operation into tasks – soil preparation, planting, mulching, watering, weeding, harvesting, curing, cleaning, marketing, packaging, delivering, accounting & record keeping – how many hours would be required for each task?
• How many people would I need to do this, and would there be dependable people available?
• What kind of space would I need for the curing, processing, packaging?
• How much could I pay the workers?
• Who would I sell to and how much would they pay?
• Where would I reach the break-even point?
• What if I had losses through mold or whatever?

Obviously, growing garlic is not as simple as sticking it in the ground and waiting until summer to yank it up again.

So let’s go over those ideas again from my previous post (condensed):

Review (again) where it is you want to go.

Understand your customer – who they are, what they want, what they need, what they’re willing to buy

Figure out the best way to reach that customer

Forecast the potential of the market

Assess your ability to play in that market

Make sure you have the employees or partners you need

Understand your competition and your niche

Know your strengths and weaknesses

Figure out how to strengthen your position

Identify different scenarios and your associated response

Develop your action plan.

And we should add one more bullet to that: REMEMBER THAT STUFF HAPPENS.

Ok, my foot is better now. But while I was hobbling around on a cast and crutches, I had some time to do some thinking. In fact, I rediscovered how much fun it is to lie back in the grass, listen to birds, and make pictures out of clouds. And tell the dog to quit licking my face.

I went back to bullet #1: Review (again) where it is you want to go.

Instead of quadrupling my crop, I decided to scale back. I planted only half as much garlic.

We had the best year ever last year; I could have sold much more had I had it. The market is there for quality, locally grown, gourmet food that you can’t find elsewhere. The timing would have been perfect to turn this into a “real” business. (I found myself questioning, does having employees somehow validate our authenticity as a business? We can talk about the difference between making a job or running a business, but choosing quality over quantity is a perfectly good business model in my book.)

I am still ok with this decision.

• At this time in my life, I want to grow more than just garlic. With 5 grown kids and their families, we plan on having another big family garden this year. These days, growing and preserving your own food makes nutritional and economic sense. Gardens are a lot of work. It’s a good kind of work.
• I want to continue writing about the importance of supporting local farms.
• I want to continue helping people with their small business ventures – that’s where my education and expertise lie.
• I want to continue with my arts and crafts – pyrography, fiber arts, jewelry making, playing with clay, photography, et al. Taking time for creativity is as essential to me as breathing.
• I want to play more music.
• I want to hike, bike, kayak, camp out, go on adventures. We live on the Olympic Peninsula, Washington State – one of the most beautiful places on the planet. I cannot NOT explore it!
• Oh – and did I mention we’re getting a new grandchild?

(Yep – it’s the STUFF HAPPENS principle )

In other words – scaling up might be a no-brainer for some, but for others, it’s a complicated decision.

You have to do what’s right for you.

Good luck with that!

In what will be known as classic Obama style, the President gave an inspirational State of the Union speech last night that commended middle-class Americans for their tenacity and resilience, while acknowledging that we still have tough times ahead in which people (read that, Congress), regardless of political affiliation, will need to come together to work our way out of the abyss.

Key points that, if followed, will affect small business:

1. Banks are given the go-ahead – even a directive – to grease the gears that keep America turning: small business.
2. Small businesses that create new jobs and hire Americans will be eligible for a tax credit
3. Capital gains tax will be eliminated in support of small business investment in equipment needed to grow their operations.
4. Eventually (and that’s a 10-letter word) there might be a health care system in place that makes it easier for small businesses to offer benefits.

Ok. So what does this mean? Is it time to scale up?

Before you take that leap, step back and take a hard look at who you are and where you want to go. In other words, reevaluate your strategy.

Limited funding is seen as the one of the main impediments, if not the key showstopper, to small business growth. However, if banks make it easy to borrow, recent past experience shows that we need to make sure we don’t blindly jump into the lending pool lest we drown in the debt. A “sink-or-swim” tactic is not a strategy, it’s a lemming-mentality suicide.

Hire more people? Only if it makes sense to do so. Obviously, politicians will emphasize jobs and job creation when unemployment in some parts of the country are topping 15%. Resist the temptation to succumb to the big-business mentality that size matters. You have to decide what’s right for you, not only in terms of the market and what the market will support, but also in terms of the competition, your niche within that market, and your personal strategy. Not everyone wants to be a magnate; for some, being a solopreneur provides the freedom, flexibility, and lifestyle that is higher on his or her priority list.

Adding infrastructure and employees does not automatically add up to higher profits. What will this kind of growth mean to you? Small companies often have a family atmosphere; success is a group effort. You get to know the families of your employees. They are your friends. If you end up having to lay them off, their lives – and your life – are personally affected. Then there’s the issue of benefits, and as any small business can tell you, the cost of benefits can deeply offset the gains; many small companies have found the burden of providing medical benefits to be detrimental to business health. Plus, when it’s more than just about you, life gets complicated with layers and layers of accounting, tax issues, payroll, IRAs, etc. etc. etc.

On the other hand, scaling up offers opportunities to support others, do good things in your community, and achieve financial freedom. It’s a way to get beyond a job where you are the one-all, do-it-all, only-way-this-is-ever-gonna-work mindset and actually run a business.

If scaling up is a part of your growth strategy, this may be the time to make it happen. For those in widget-producing businesses, there might be a whole new wave of opportunities in exporting.

The President advocates hiring workers, raising wages, investing in equipment, and exporting goods. These are inspiring words. But realistically, it’s one thing to be competitive in your neighborhood or even in your own country; it’s quite another to compete with those who are used to working for far less that what we would consider poverty.

However, the Internet world has already tossed us into international competition, and whether we’re connected or not, our clients most certainly are. It’s not always about price, after all – it’s about what you get for the price; i.e., how you define value.

So, yes, it’s exciting to hear recognition of the important role small business plays in the big economy of our nation. But now to the main point of this article: before we all go diving into the Obama pool, we need to remember the basics of common business sense. There is an element of risk in any venture. Minimize those risks through a thorough market analysis and a sound strategy of how to compete in that upscale business environment.

• Review (again) where it is you want to go.
• To scale up, you will need a market, meaning you will either need new customers or more repeat customers, and you will need to increase how much and how often they buy – so –
• Understand your customer – who they are, what they want, what they need, what they’re willing to pay for
• Figure out the best way to reach that customer (it’s called a marketing plan)
• Try to forecast the potential of the market – now, next year, 5 and 10 years from now, and beyond
• Assess your ability to play in that market – or better yet – be in a position to make it play by your rules
• Make sure you have the employees or partners to pull it off
• Understand your competition and what makes you uniquely able to compete
• Know your strengths; honestly admit your weaknesses
• Figure out what it would take to turn your weaknesses into strengths, either through investing, hiring, outsourcing, partnerships, or realigning your focus
• Identify different scenarios and your associated business response
• Develop your action plan.

In other words, get your strategy in order.

And remember, just because you scale up doesn’t mean you have to abandon those key elements that make so many small businesses successful: relationships, collaborations, and trust.

Do the math and then redo the math.

After all that, does it still make sense?

Life rewards action.

Take the plunge.

…skip the beginning and end for now and jump right into the middle.

The standard (boring) format for putting together a strategy is something like this:

1. identify your mission, your purpose in life (many of us spends our lives on this step alone),
2. visualize your vision (that place where you achieve world domination – or whatever – it’s your definition), and
3. delineate steps to get there (as in 1, 2, 3 … you’re home free).

Granted, if you are first beginning your business, you will make better use of your time, energy, and money if you at least have these basic concepts loosely defined. However, many people get so hung up in this part of the process, they never get out of the quagmire of the SWOT analysis. (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, Threats … this can get lengthy, obviously).

Don’t get me wrong. Determining where you want to go and then taking definite steps to get there is a good thing – unless, of course, along the way of this “if-we-build-it, they-will-come” mentality, you pass up something very important: your Customer.

An old Jewish proverb says, “Business is something that if you don’t have, you go out of.”

Cold, hard fact: It’s not about you.

So. In a classic case of denial, put the details of your identity crises off until later.

First – deal with what needs to BE first: your Customer.

It’s a selfless concept, but as we give, so shall we receive.

When you understand your customer – you will understand their needs – and you will be better able to meet those needs.

Seems simple enough. But don’t fall into that cliché trap of marketing how you are “meeting customer needs.” Everybody and their dog says that, and I would say my dog does a better job of it than most. It’s kind of like meeting your minimal daily requirements. Who wants minimal health? It does nothing to distinguish you from the pack.

But before you get on a sidetrack of what the other guy is doing, get back in focus – customer focus, that is.

Because if you just do your very best at keeping your customer in focus, your strategy will be spot-on.

Here is the deal. Your customers are real people. They possibly have kids in school, maybe trying to go to college, possible health issues, things going on with their home, activities they like to do in their spare time, religious beliefs, people they want to help, issues they care about in politics, the environment, society … you get the idea. They are three-dimensional people.

At the same time, they are affected by a lot of external factors – the economy, health reform, and war being a few obvious ones at the moment.

Put a face on these people. Give them a name. Get to know them. They are your neighbors (and yes, friends).

Feeling warm & fuzzy yet?

Hope so, because you have to be part economist, part sociologist, part entrepreneur, part shrink.

Whether it’s about the economy, social problems, politics, new regulations, ethical issues, personal stresses, advancing technologies, or any number of varied interests and ongoing trends: changes in any of these factors will influence their wants, needs, and behaviors.

That is, all of these factors – and the relationships that go along with them – affect how we function in the world, how we define value, and what we are willing to buy.

And this is key: Your customer defines value – not you.

Your mission is to talk to them and listen – not just today, but every day – because the definition of value can change at any given moment according to what is going on in the world, in their community, and in their life.

The customer is, after all, buying much more than a thing or action. They are buying reputation, warranty, access to your knowledge, service, convenience, quality, maybe an image, and oh yes, the product itself. You have to have something they want to buy, after all.

Course, if all they want is the lowest price, then perhaps you don’t want to compete with the Costcos and WalMarts of the world and might want to rethink what it is you are selling. However, if you define price in terms of what you get – meaning value for the money – that’s different. They’re still your customer.

So – what product, service, knowledge, or skills do you offer? How do they match up with how your customers define value?

Identify your customer. Understand your customer. Understand what they want, need, and are willing to pay for.

Meet that need. Exceed that need. Anticipate what they’re going to need.

Ok. Now we’re going somewhere.

About 30 Million is the number of estimated small businesses in the U.S. today. 30 MILLION!

Here’s a caveat, though: “small business” is defined by the Small Business Administration (SBA) as having fewer than 500 employees. From my desk in my attic space in our town of 5000 people, I still count 500 employees as rather large. In my case – try 1 – meaning 1 person: me. I am one in about 22 million, i.e., those without employees.

Even so, we add up. Get these trends:

• Small businesses represent 99.7% of all employer firms and employ over half of the private sector employees.
• We’ve generated 64% of the new jobs over the past 15 years, and we create more than half of the non-farm private gross domestic product in this country.
• 52% of us work out of our homes and garages, where we produce 13 times more patents per employee than do those in large patenting firms.

Still, only about half of us last 5 years or more.

With those kinds of stats, what kind of crazy person goes into business for himself/herself?

A laid-off person with ambition and passion, for one. Over 11 million unemployed Americans add up to the worst job losses since World War II. And while health insurance might be an unquantified factor that has kept many a would-be successful entrepreneur in a corporate job they don’t enjoy, a whole lot of desperados out there don’t have the choice.

Corporations can no longer offer the security and benefits they once did; employee loyalty is waning; people are striking it out on their own. The result is a brain drain of intellectual capital from the corporate world to the private sector, and there may come a time when big businesses have a difficult time finding adequate qualified staff.

These are opportune times for small business.

We are picking up subcontracts for the previous in-house tasks that corporations are now finding more economical to outsource.

Like our larger counterparts, we are learning to streamline operations, improve productivity, increase customer value, and all the other things required when cash is tight. In other words, we are leaner and more nimble than ever before, something large-business behemoths have never been very good at.

Plus, we’re figuring out how to do things better, whether it be new products, processes, business models, or all and more of the above, resulting in innovation of the kind that is making larger companies stand up and take notice.

We’re expanding our connections with technology; we’re making it work for us; we’re taking it to levels previously unimagined, and we’re just beginning. We are developing relationships, reaching larger audiences, and sharing knowledge and ideas.

Age barriers are blurred. A lot of the Baby Boomer generation has seen their retirement savings disappear and are facing having to work longer than they anticipated. Many of these folks are starting their own businesses – and they come with experience. And as for the younger generation, whichever letter of the alphabet they fall under, they are facing the reality of fewer jobs being available. They are starting up their own Internet businesses, providing services, and working with small business owners in an assortment of niche areas.

And, although the competition is stronger than ever – and on an unprecedented global scale – small businesses are making it work through quality relationships with friends, families, and neighbors, as people place more importance on supporting their communities. We are trading services. We are helping one another out. We emphasize service and trust.

We are changing the face of America.

Our work lives are spilling into our private lives and visa versa. Our “jobs” are an extension of ourselves, and we weave work-related responsibilities with picking up groceries and taking care of kids. At the same time, we are learning to be more self-sufficient, much like the ways of our grandparents. We’re doing our own household repairs (for those who still have homes), we are growing some of our own food, and we’re darning our own socks.

Ok. Not everyone darns socks. But shouldn’t we? And who can’t keep a pot of tomatoes on their back porch? And what about this trend in raising urban chickens?

Obviously, there is an undeniable appeal to going it on your own: the pride of being self sufficient, the flexibility in lifestyle, the opportunity to define what success means to you and pursue work that is meaningful.

There is also the stress of having to “do it all,” a mountain load of work, nagging insecurities, not to mention the pressure to do it right or be like the 80% out there who fail. Discipline and organization are essential, as are commitment and action. You have to be willing to take risks and be fueled by something between passion and fear. Stamina and perseverance have to carry you through times when all you have to go on is a vision. And then there are taxes, insurance, and regulations. There are no money-back guarantees. No 60-day warranties.

Seriously, you have to be on the edge of being just a little bit crazy.

Clearly, it’s not for everyone.

But – did you hear about the Sock Lady who takes the cotton scraps from making T-shirts and turns them into rainbow-colored mismatched socks? People all over the country are kicking up their heels in these socks.

Or how about this chicken-walking service I recently heard about for those with backyard coops. Much like dogs, chickens enjoy a good walk beyond just crossing the road, you know….

What about you? Are you one of 30 million?

Attention accounting phobics! Set up your accounting system NOW for your small business to minimize your pain at tax time! This post provides a simple system using Excel for tracking small business income, expenses, and mileage. Although it might not have all the bells and whistles of QuickBooks or Quicken, for me, it’s a simple system that works, leaving me more time for doing other (more enjoyable) things in my life…like running my business, playing with grandkids, kayaking, growing garlic…heck, even going to the dentist….

* * * * *

So – How did you do at tracking your business expenses last year? If you’re like some people I know, you did pretty well the first few months (call it “The Resolution Effect”), and then, as with many resolutions, fell off the wagon somewhere around March or April. If you consistently entered your finances into your accounting software, notebook, or other system all year, you have my utmost admiration.

Reality for a lot of people, however, is something less than ideal. If you’re one of those who is running a small business possibly out of your home and quite possibly without the benefit of extra help, you pretty much do everything yourself and also juggle an assortment of other things, like wiping runny noses, making late-night ice cream runs, retrieving the sock that got stuck half-way down the toilet, weeding the briar patch, oh, and possibly another part-time job. Somewhere in all this you also fit in something called a “life.” Or maybe that IS your life – and you want to write the next great American novel and be an accountant, too? Maybe you just want to GET a life.

If you can hire an accountant for your business, then that is great. This article is not for you. We can talk about how outsourcing gives you time for other money-making tasks in another post. But if you just need to do what you need to do to render unto Caesar what is Caesar’s and get what is legally coming to you – meaning a monetary return (think positive here!), not jail time – then listen up to see whether my method can work for you.

The trick is to set up a system NOW – before you dive into all your resolutions and mission and vision statements (huh?). The more accurate and professional you are with your system, the better. It is a business, after all. The more you align it with tax deductible categories, the easier it is to just fill in the blanks (we wish!).

I am going to commit blasphemy and say that it is perfectly ok to mix up your bank accounts PROVIDED you keep a proper paper trail. In my situation, I run two small businesses and a small farm operation, in addition to my partner’s income from a full-time job. Keeping a separate bank account for each entity is overkill. Besides, we’re talking real life here. Sometimes you need to borrow from one to get you through a slump and over a hump and back again.  What’smore (note that we’re turning this whole accounting phobia into a sweet melted confection over a small campfire), it is perfectly A-OK to toss all your receipts in a box and sit down and sort through them once a month when you find a quiet moment. Or even if you don’t find a quiet moment.  And although it would be ideal to have a little travel log book in your car that you conscientiously record odometer readings to and from each legitimate business travel destination – c’mon – we all know it’s on the way to the school or the dentist or that new little bakery two blocks over and one block south of the coffee shop. Just be honest about real miles required.

The main thing is, you have to be legal and at the same time do what works for YOU.  And when you’re trying to balance your business life with that of having a family, enjoying whatever it is you enjoy doing or wherever it is you enjoy being, helping others, or just leaving more time for concentrating on those aspects of your business that make you money (like being good to your customers, for instance) – then the less time you need to spend on the expense tracking thing, the better.

I am not in a position to debate the pros and cons between QuickBooks and Quicken. These programs might work for you. For me, one mix-up and I’d spend hours straightening it all out. I needed something simpler.

Personally, I am Old School. I’ve done a lot of work with Excel and it works for me. It’s basic. I can make fancy graphs and pie charts if I want to go there. I track my customer base in Outlook. I don’t require an extensive billing program. I admit, my system isn’t for everyone – but if it can make your life easier, please use it.

I keep a separate worksheet for expenses under each of my business enterprises, a single worksheet that tracks income, a worksheet to track mileage, and an optional (but nifty) worksheet that summarizes everything.

On the Expense pages, I have columns for the date, the kind of expense (cash, debit, etc.), who it’s for, and the amount. The next column is a formula column that adds up all the columns to the right, serving to double-check that everything is entered correctly.

The columns to the right correspond to the categories under which the expenses would be deducted in income taxes. For example, capital expenses, repairs, office supplies, marketing, communications, postage & handling, legal fees (let’s hope that column is blank).

You get the idea. A row tracks the totals of each category as the month progresses. Along the top, cells add up the monthly totals of everything. Keep your receipts as organized as the spreadsheet and you can’t go wrong; personally, I group mine by category.

I assign a code to each business entity and track the incomes on a single worksheet. Columns list the date, the invoice number, and client. Incomes are listed in separate columns identified for each enterprise. A column is provided to enter the sales tax (if applicable); another to check whether the amount is due or paid, and a final column for notes.

A separate Summary worksheet is set up to automatically copy these totals to give a running yearly picture of how much is coming in and going out on each business endeavor and where.  Obviously, you can make this as fancy as you like. You could make it automatically plot a graph that displays the progress of your income toward your goals; make color-coded pie charts that portray the percentage of each expense relative to all the other expenses; make bar graphs that show the monthly percentage of each expense relative to the budgeted amount, etc.  For most people, these might fall into the “anal” category. Such are the flashbacks from working in the corporate world.

A final worksheet tracks mileage and includes columns for the date, a column for each business under which to record the corresponding number of miles, and a column for the purpose of the trip.

Did you remember to take your odometer reading on January 1?

Your system might be different. You might need a separate sheet for inventory. Heck, your expenses might be so few, you don’t even have to go through all this trouble; however, if you set up a system now to track separate expenses, if you DO need it later, then there it is. Plus, it makes it easier to compare where the money went from one year to the next, and those comparisons can be useful.

The point is – life is complicated. Tracking your expenses need not be. Unless you just really like that sort of thing (some people like going to the dentist, too – heck, some people even BECOME dentists! Go figure!), you’ve probably got better things to do. If it’s easier for you to get it all recorded and filed away every day, by all means, do that. I wish I could be that way. For me, some days I’m taking care of the grandkids, and we are too busy painting pictures and making forts. Other days, maybe my partner and I take a break and go kayaking.  Let’s see, catch up on accounting or go kayaking…. Come July, it’s time to harvest the garlic, and everything else pretty much falls to the sidelines. You get the picture.

Keep your receipts (repeat: Keep Your Receipts). Develop a method that works for you. Do it NOW at the beginning of the year to save yourself time later. Be accurate. Pay what is due and get what you are entitled. Stay out of trouble. Focus on your business, your life, and whatever other goals make your life meaningful.

P.S. Caveat: I am in no way a certified accountant,  tax preparer, or attorney. Questions on what is or is not legitimate are outside the scope of this blog post. For more info, read relevant (boring) IRS publications or pay (it’s deductible!) a visit to your friendly tax preparer!

P.P.S. What? You say you like GARLIC? Visit my garlic site at Barbolian Fields.

‘Tis the season for a little R&R (reviews and resolutions). The thing about year-end appraisals is that they force you to look at where you screwed up. Similarly with “I-promise-to-do-better” resolutions.

If the review of your business status is one of those dreaded chores you set aside for every once in a blue moon, then recognize 3 things: 1) um, there is going to be a blue moon at the end of the month – and that’s just in a couple days, 2) reviews are just a tool for learning, not something upon which to base your self esteem, and 3) blue moons only happen every 2 1/2 years or so, so they’re relatively rare, which means, if that’s how often you’re looking at your business model, you could do better.

Here’s a personal story: In my corporate life, we had this thing called SDRs or Staff Development Reviews. This was where you sat down with your boss and addressed whether or not you met your goals established the previous year, and then you set yourself higher ones for the new one. Kind of like New Year’s Resolutions with a little carrot and a big stick attached.

It was always a demoralizing process under the guise of a means to help advance your career. The level of your raise depended on your response (and a lot of other factors that had nothing to do with you). Perfectionist and overachiever that I am, I would work my butt off all year long for that little pat on the head that affirmed my self-worth. I would go through excruciating detail on how I met the expectations of the level above mine to show that I might be worthy of recognition. If I received an “Exceeds Expectations,” I would get a couple tenths of a percent higher raise, which on my low salary, didn’t financially amount to much, but gave me a fleeting warm and fuzzy feeling inside. If all I got was a “Meets Expectations,” then dang, those 1:00 a.m. nights trying to get those proposals out just weren’t good enough, were they, and in fact, by now they were expected. “Needs Improvement?” We don’t even go there. But we are good or bad only by comparison. And in a place full of Type A personalities, the system ensured that every year, people already giving up their personal lives would try to do even more of the impossible. I put up with that self-defeating, depressing system for 14 years.

If you know what I’m talking about, then maybe you are thinking there has got to be a better way. And if you’ve left that scene, maybe you are now one of the millions in the U.S. today running their own small businesses.

Now, as an indie, i.e., independent small business person (make that a micro-business; I’m the only one running and working the show, here), I am still doing SDRs. In fact, I do them periodically all year long – and get this – I even look forward to them. Sure, I look at what needs improvement – and I also mark progress. I try to learn from mistakes, and I also determine what is best to do next. It’s called “adaptive management.”

Actually, it’s kind of exciting.

Because as a small business owner, I recognize that whether it’s work or life or both – they pretty much blend together at this point – I get out of it just what I put into it, so it better be meaningful, rewarding, and heck yeah, fun.

I have to learn to work smart so I have more time to play. Conversely, I have to play so I can work smarter (does this make sense yet? If not, it will.) I focus on my goals, which include achieving a balance among my work, my family, my health, my creative pursuits, and my adventures – and did I mention the distinctions sometimes blur? And yes, the rewards are immediate.

So – if you haven’t set your goals for the year ahead, others may have a jumpstart on you, but it’s never too late to get started.

Setting goals is being proactive. It’s about getting focused. It’s an opportunity to take charge of your career and your life. Right now.

And that’s what these pages are going to be about.

Here’s the deal:

We can’t wait for the recession to pick up so we can get going. We need to be already spring-loaded to jump on opportunities as they surface.

We can’t wait for the government handouts we keep hearing all the big corporations are getting, any more than we can wait for trickle-down economics to give us a drop.

And government stimuli aren’t going to kick this recession in the rear fast enough for us to be on the receiving end of anything.

Some stats:

In December 2007, unemployment was at 4.9%; in October 2009, it rose to 10.2%. In the West, that figure was 10.6%. We may finally be starting to see that number drop, but you and I know that the unemployment rate is just an estimate based on surveys, layoffs, and the number of those who apply for unemployment benefits. How many are there who are not eligible for benefits and are not counted in the stats?

So – if you are waiting for a change, you’re missing an opportunity.

Attention indies, micro-business owners, homepreneurs – whatever you want to call us:  we are 6.6 million strong; we account for half the businesses in the U.S.; in fact, a full 78% of small businesses in this country are owned and operated by the self-employed (unfortunately 1/3 of these don’t have health insurance – but that’s another blog post). What’s more, over 13 million people are employed through small businesses.

Now THAT’S impressive.

This country was built on hard work, self-reliance, innovation, and perseverance. And although some of us may have fallen into complacency with the false security of corporate employment with benefits (for which we have paid dearly with our independence, our savings, and our sense of self worth, I might add), we can thank this sick economy for jolting us back to the reality of what works.

We do. Now more than ever.

Call to Action.

But wait — we want more than a 9-to-5. Way more (and yes, health insurance would be a part of that).

That’s easy to say. How to do it?

Ya gotta have a plan.

And that’s what these blogging pages are about:  Figuring Out the Plan.

Because you can’t wait for the government to help you out.

You can’t wait for the economy to swing back upwards.

In fact, you can’t afford to stomach the roller-coaster ride our economy oscillates on.

You need to be grounded before you can take off.

Face it – being in business is about making money. Money gives us choices.

So yes, these pages are about making money and about being successful at it.

But it’s not a get-rich-quick scheme, so if that’s what you’re looking for, there are plenty out there.

These pages are about getting back to basics: hard work, creative thinking, integrity, relationships, giving back.

They are about Practical stuff – marketing tools you can use – business and marketing plans that work and that work for you – building a business on sound business principles – and all of this in words you don’t have to have an MBA to understand.

They are about being able to make a living doing something meaningful.

They are about being committed to doing what you are passionate about – and making the commitment to make it work.

They are also about finding that work/life balance.

Because ….

When you are in charge of your own future, you are personally invested. And that is the key.

You start thinking like an entrepreneur. You take responsibility for your own career.

You step up.

You do more than the year before – more, in fact, than you ever thought possible. And you don’t do it for a pat on the head. You do it because you love doing it.

And by focusing on what you love doing and on what you do well, you exceed your wildest expectations.

And you give your life meaning in the process.

But sometimes you have to look back at where you’ve been to be able to see where you want to go — and you have to do that more often than every once in a blue moon.

Be successful.

Make it happen.

That’s what this blog is about.

Welcome aboard.

Get ready to take flight.