Success happens when you do the right things and do them in the right order. In business, that means following the business chain.
Companies that follow the business chain succeed. Those that don’t, fail.
And it’s not just a formula for building success. It’s also a formula for trouble-shooting problems in your business and getting to the real problem. The root problem.
Sometimes that means the people don’t fit the idea. You can have a brilliant idea and amazing people. But if they’re not the right people for that particular idea, it doesn’t gel.
The Complete Business Chain
Here’s the business chain, step-by-step, from start to finish:
- The Idea. Everything starts with a great idea. It’s not a plan yet. Just an idea.
- The People. This is the most critical part of the chain. It’s the pivot point between taking a great idea and turning it into a solid plan. You have to take this idea and not just turn it into a plan. You have to execute that plan. You need the skills and the experience and the drive to make it happen. You need the right people. You need to be the right person.
- The Plan. Only the right people can take a great idea and put together a plan that can succeed. The best plan covers the next three points. And it’s executed in the order they’re listed.
- Sales. Start small and start selling. Pre-sell. Get commitments. Get out and bang on doors.
- Capital. Once you’re selling, you’re building capital. And if you can show that you can sell whatever you’re selling, you can raise capital from investors if you need it.
- Purchasing. The less you purchase, the better. Every sale you can lock in and leverage to raise capital before you have to deliver the goods is a great sale. Especially in the beginning.
If selling before you buy doesn’t make sense, find out more about how sales, capital and purchasing works. It’s important, because the people that follow these steps, in this order, are the ones that succeed.
Using The Business Chain To Diagnose Trouble
At the end of the business chain is profitability. Or if there’s a problem, lack of it. The way to figure out what’s wrong is to follow the chain backwards. So start with purchasing and work back towards the people.
Most companies cut purchasing costs when they’re having trouble. And they stop there. But that’s not usually the root problem. You have to go back further in the chain. You have to go back to sales at the very least. Sometimes you have to go back even further and craft a whole new plan.
Many times, you need new people. You might have great people, but for this idea, for this business, they’re not the right people.
If you’re a lone entrepreneur and you’re not the right person to pull off your idea, there are two solutions. You can either get a partner on board who can help you execute the idea. Or, drop the idea and find a new one. One that fits you. One that you can execute. One where you are the right person.
Then the rest is easy.
I’d have to say that my brother and I are at the planning stage right now for our business 😀 And you’re definitely right about having the right people with you…I wanted to start something with a roommate of mine, but he just didn’t have the drive so I just said forget about it. It’ll be one of my future endeavors
A lot of great ideas that require partnerships to bring in all the skills needed have a hard time launching. Especially if one of the partners doesn’t have the drive.
But every once in awhile a duo like Larry Page and Sergey Brin comes along and shows it can be done. 🙂