It Takes a Little More Than an idea, Money, or Qualifications

When the small business person wakes up each day he/she has to come around to seeing the world from an angle of personal responsibility. Frequently, there is no one on whom to call but there is an idea that is being pursued that promises to be the road to financial freedom, prosperity and independence.

The small business person is the one in charge. He has no one to send for training and he either cannot find the time for training for himself or he does not see it as necessary. After all, he/she is the boss and all those things that the big companies do, like training, simply bite into his/her time and finances.

So off they go, juggling a number of tasks and working to get “sales” and to keep the business in some state of operation. Much of what is done are not things the entrepreneur would do for someone else. This is his/her business and the sacrifice is necessary. And who knows the business better than him/her?

The business might have started from some technical strength and / or some experiences and they are now ready to leverage the great connections made over the last 10 years. So they perceive it is just a matter of getting back to these old contacts, treat them well and making sure they can supply when there is a need.

They soon learn that the complex and dynamic world of business is not conducive to that simple approach. They might recognize that they have to find time to upgrade themselves and /or to make use of a business coach.
Because the problems that are going to evolve into “people’ problems contributing to his/her struggle or demise are problems with him/her. The smaller the small business, the more the people issues are really the problems to do with the owner / operator. And, in any event, the responsibility for finding the right “people” and the ultimate success rests with the owner / manager. People problems are present everywhere. Where there is no team to add and improve ideas, the small business suffers.

So, how comes a high school drop-out managed to found and develop a significant fast food chain? He obviously had a knack of working out the “people” problems. He worked with KFC before starting Wendy’s so one could understand how he might have learned from another entrepreneur, Colonel Sanders, who had the right attitudes for business success. So, the “people” issues were handled in a manner that supported business success. Was he coached?

Coaching is not necessarily by contract or by consent. Simply observing what is going on and being aware makes a difference. If you know where you are going and have clarity on that you can get inspiration and insights from observation.

So, are you are you, as an entrepreneur, ready to be coached?