Have you ever noticed some people are able to stay organized while getting a massive quantity of work accomplished, while others appear to be busy but never actually produce results? Time management is the key to becoming a successful entrepreneur.
Clay Clark
Dream up big, hairy, audacious goals that you are passionate about and pursue them relentlessly. You have to begin with the end goal in mind, knowing that a goal is a dream with a deadline.
Your to-do list should include items that need to be accomplished for the month, the week, and each day. You must then ask yourself how much time you need to block off to achieve each task. Time blocking allows you to minimize distractions and to maximize your efficiency as you work to complete this list.
In the startup work environment, you get to have a relationship with your boss, the investors, and the key members of the team. Startups are like families - you see the good, the bad and the ugly, but in the end, you've got each other's back.
Overdeliver on promises and deadlines. Show up early, deliver your product early, and deliver more than you promised. Overdeliver now, and in the future, you will be overpaid.
Keep a Day Timer so you know where you are supposed to be and when. Whether this system is in a tangible, printed version or on your mobile device, by having a Day Timer, you can stay organized throughout the day.
As a business consultant, I am a voracious reader of self-help books, case studies of thriving companies, and the biographies and autobiographies of the world's most successful people. I relentlessly implement the best ideas into my businesses.
The habit of doing more than you are paid for can benefit any business that sells a product or service. Learning and understanding the principle of the mastermind philosophy of networking can increase the value of your network and your net worth.
I started my first business out of my college dorm room - DJ Connection - and grew it to more than 4,000 events per year. Sounds easy, but while doing that, I made every mistake in the book.
It is important to let every employee know where he or she stands throughout his or her time in your business; I would suggest every quarter of the fiscal year. By being honest and open with each team member and their performance, you create value in their efforts.
Because most startups are lean and scrappy organizations consisting of a limited number of people and supported by an even smaller number of resources, startups cannot afford to have any slackers on board. When you fail, you cause an 'epic failure,' and when you win, everyone in the company knows about it.
Big successful corporations have established their own culture by the time you come along, so you have as high of a chance of changing their overall culture as you have of convincing the U.S. Marines to adopt the 'long-haired look' as their standard military haircut.
As leaders, it's our job to hold people accountable and to produce results for our partners, customers, and families.
To be a proactive person, you must learn to say no to most ideas and opportunities so you have the mental and physical bandwidth to execute the realistic business plans you have already mapped out.
To not run a venture into the ground, entrepreneurs need to learn what it takes to succeed.
You must bring a white-hot level of intensity and focus to your work.
With the help of personal introductions by Andrew Carnegie, diligence and an absolute burning desire to teach the world how to become successful, Napoleon Hill devoted nearly his entire adult lifetime creating practical content entrepreneurs need to become successful.
When Jack Welch was the CEO of General Electric, he was able to produce record growth year after year by using a few simple principles relentlessly. The system of management he used was called differentiation.
We can have all of the best ideas in the world, but if we do not have a system to get our tasks completed, we will fail.
Startup culture fosters laughter, debate, and a passionate, non-politically-correct focus on getting things done. And this startup of culture is something entrepreneurs struggle to maintain as the business grows. To ensure this environment continues, create a strong foundation and ensure everyone is on board.
If you can't sell your product, it goes from being an asset to a liability. Learn to sell, partner with someone who can sell, or learn to be poor.
The problem for most self-starting leaders who do not have a mentor begins when they measure the results and find themselves fully aware of the data and the analytics, but are completely unaware of what to do.
One of the hardest things to do for business people and leaders is to keep the team focused on achieving the goal.
Once you embrace the absolute truth that every leader needs a mentor, you can begin to achieve the massive growth and success that you seek.
Humor can prove to be the conversational lubricant you need to remove the tension from the most unpleasant management- and accountability-related conversations.
As leaders, we must remember that effectively executing business plans involves a consistent engagement in activities that would typically create animosity in every other non-business relationship.
If you find yourself feeling overwhelmed by the daily decisions you have to make, it's time to automate something.
You must not let your negative emotions distract you from achieving your goals.
