The first thing you really ought to do is assess what types of activities are truly critical. I’m not talking about responding emails, answering phone calls, or making copies. I’m talking about business functions like vendor management, technology support, etc. Tasks that could bring your business to a screeching halt if something happened. These are the areas you want to look at for deficiencies. Sometimes the needs are not immediately recognizable so make sure you constantly reengineer your business.

When you hire employees you want to always make sure that you have at least two people who can perform critical tasks.  In addition, make sure that you document those tasks. This documentation will at least help you get started in the right direction should the need arise. Additionally, this documentation can double nicely as training material for cross-training or new hires.

Similarly you don’t want to take the implement of technology/systems lightly. Only implement new systems when you have a specific need to do so. When that need does exist make sure you take the process seriously. When the system goes into production make sure that you have a disaster recovery/business continuity strategy in place on day one. If that system goes down how will you continue to operate and serve your customers? Your data and related functionality need to have some sort of fail over capability. If the system is important enough to introduce to your business, it’s integrity and availability should be equally important.

In closing, it really comes down to common sense. It’s just like an insurance policy. Don’t wait until catastrophe hits to find out how dependent you really are. At that point it could be too late.

Don’t make this same mistake. Promote smart growth and look for customers who can become loyal partners to your business. It’s always easier and far less expensive to maintain existing relationships than to create new ones. If you find the right customers you’ll be able to make each other successful for years to come. You will see the difference you make and gain a much deeper appreciation for the impact of your work. When you know a client isn’t a good fit for you – fire them. Don’t make the mistake of catering to customers that may take your business in the wrong direction. If you’re not careful the service will suffer for those who are a good fit. Don’t jeopardize your offering and culture for bad customers.

If you do decide to part ways make recommendations to a competitor that might be a better fit. Do your best to end things on good terms and be professional. If there is a need to transfer knowledge or export data in some way; do your best to help make it happen. You don’t want the negative publicity associated with a bad breakup. Make it easy for both of you to go your own way.

Assuming that the above thought processes were followed a reduction in workforce is going to have a negative impact on your business. You’re company isn’t just trimming fat it’s losing some sort of critical capacity. In this scenario it’s easy to see that you don’t want to eliminate personnel.

So what’s the answer? Look at ways to optimize your business. Constantly review processes and look for ways to do more with less. Are you printing large company manuals and distributing them to multiple offices each time you have a change? Perhaps you could post an electronic version on an intranet and save on printing and distribution costs. Is your returns department overrun because of invalid addresses? Invest in address validation software or retrain staff to validate on the front end. Is your helpdesk bogged down with password resets? Implement self help utilities to eliminate the need for additional staffing.

These are just a few challenges that many businesses face. Before you go laying off people make sure you’re operations are running as efficiently as possible. Talk to the folks who spend the time on the front lines and don’t be afraid to ask questions. Do this not only in times of desperation but also when things are flourishing and you’ll be on your way to a business that is not only more profitable but will also create a culture of innovation.

Whether you’re starting your first business or already own a business ask yourself what you stand for. What makes you different than the competitor? If you can’t validate it with something real and tangible then you have some searching to do. Make your business mean something and stick to it. You’ll be surprised how customers respond.

Does your business pass the test? Prove it!

“We never have time to do it right, but we always have time to do it again.”

So so true.

The best advice I can give someone in the job hunt is to relax and stay focused. While you certainly want to present your best self, don’t forget the fact that you’re interviewing the interviewer as well. Interviews are a time for you to assess a company and those you will potentially be working with. If the environment is not one that aligns with your interests or personality don’t kid yourself, it’s not going to work.

You’re going to save yourself a lot of heartache if you adopt this attitude. You’ll be less nervous about impressing the interviewer(s)  and you’ll be setting the right expectation for what to expect if you are hired. If you’re not real it will eventually become obvious or if you accept a position that does not fit will with your interests you’re going to end up disappointed and back in the job hunt again.

I’ve found that having this attitude exhibits a level of confidence which is something that naturally attracts folks to you. It’s always been my approach to be up front with people. It’s going to show the real you and if that’s not something an employer can appreciate, it’s not an employer you want to work for.

Feelings certainly cannot rule you. If you immediately respond to a situation based on your feelings you run the risk of making some irrational decisions that get you in trouble. It is often times important to take a step back away from the situation and make sure you have thought rationally before responding. Nothing new here… I know, so here goes.

Feelings are a gauge. Think about the gauges on your car. When your fuel is low a light comes on that indicates you need to fill up, if your car is running hot you have a gauge that tells you that, or if your oil is low you have a gauge that tells you that. You get the point. After pondering the situation I think of feelings as a gauge. You can’t just ignore them or you run the risk of bad stuff happening. When the check engine light pops on in your car it’s a cause for concern. If the light goes off you probably want to keep an eye on things but may not need to take any other action. If it goes on and stays on then you know you need to react.

The same is true of feelings. If a particular place, person, or event seems to produce a recurring feeling you need to pay attention to it. It’s an indicator that you need to use logic to take some action, may it be positive or negative.

Despite what you may have heard, I’d be inclined to say listen to your feelings but use logic to take action. Your feelings will give you a sense of things much like when you see, hear, touch, smell, or taste things. Listen to them, gather the facts and make decisions that you can be more pleased with.

The stresses of everyday life have started to take their toll on me and my productivity has gone way down hill. I’ve got into this habit of wake up, go to work, come home (maybe get a round of golf in, maybe do a little bit of work on the house, etc) go to bed, then rinse and repeat. My personal projects, goals, aspirations have all started to suffer. It’s taken all I’ve got to even make note of my thoughts to revisit when I “get more time.”

Well guess what folks… it’s not going to get any easier. The days won’t get longer, the time is now. As I’ve started to assess my life I’m finding a bunch of big time wasters. I have a handful of websites that I like to cycle through several times a day, emails to check, phone calls to make, instant messaging, etc. These are all HUGE time wasters.

So, for the next several days I’m going to try and pull the reigns back on these items and I’m going to start pushing myself a bit harder again. That means staying up a little later and getting up a little earlier. It’s important to continue to push, strive for excellence rather than get content. When you get content you lose your edge and the competition cruises on by… or worse yet… life cruises by.

For the last 4-5 years I’ve only played golf a handful of times each year. This was quite the change when you go from playing almost daily to rarely touching a club. My game lost a lot of consistency mainly with the short game, but my temperament has improved so I feel like I’ll be able to reclaim it.

That being said I played in my first truly competitive golf outing in about 5 years. I mean sure I played in a handful of scrambles but those don’t really count. This was a two day event with prizes for the first 3 players in each flight. The rain kept me off the course all week. I snuck a few holes in late Friday night but otherwise had no opportunity to really prepare.

Saturday was an absolute hackfest. I played the best round of golf I could, but it was one of those days where anything that could go wrong did. I’d hit the driver well and then get to a par 5 where I should have a huge advantage and then I’d duck hook it, I’d burn the edges with my putts, my ball would be in a buried lie or under a tree. It just seemed like everything was against me. The result was horrendous, I shot a smooth 48-45 for a total of 93 for the day. It was unbelievable. I couldn’t even tell you the last time I played so horribly. It could possibly be when I was in junior high school.

It was lovely though. I decided to play 9 more after my round to get some swings in before Sunday. This time I shot a two under par, 34. How can you go from shooting 48 or 45 to a 34? It’s just baffling. By this time all of the other golfers were in and I saw that I was sitting in second to last place in my flight.

Sunday afternoon I played much better but still didn’t feel like I played as well as I could have. I shot a 38-40 for a 78. The course was playing much more difficult on Sunday than it had previously and I still improved my score by 15 strokes. Unbelievable. This score ended up being the lowest round of the day in my flight but I was just too far out of contention, from my first round, to get back in the prize positions. I ultimately finished 6th.

I’m trying to review this weekends events. I played as well as I could have on Saturday. The focus was there, but perhaps I played a bit too conservatively. Sunday I played much better and I was playing more aggressive. I was trying to throw shots close and hit the long ball.

Did I choke? Was the problem just that I have been out of competitive golf for so long? I’m not sure yet, but I know my game will only continue to improve. I’m already planning on playing in another tournament in a couple weeks. If nothing else, this weekend only added fuel to my desire to reclaim my game.

The tournament is a 2 day event with about 16 people in my flight. First prize is a set of irons, second a new driver and third a golf bag. I love the game and will really enjoy the competitive nature that comes with a tournament but I wish I was more prepared. The dang rain we have been getting all week hasn’t helped my chance of preparing for the big day.

I guess I’ll check the forecast again shortly and see if I can squeeze in a few holes between showers but it’s not looking promising. Perhaps tomorrow…