By Cree Price
There is a common misconception in business (and life) that more is better, when in fact the inverse is usually true. As an avid gardener I’ve learnt that the secret to encouraging plant growth is to prune rigorously. As a result, valuable resources are naturally reallocated to the areas of the plant you want to develop and thrive.
In business it is exactly the same - the more you can ruthlessly cut the clutter from your business, the faster your business will grow. Yet it is a lesson that both first time entrepreneurs and seasoned executives often fail to heed. Early on in our company’s journey we wanted to appear bigger than we were to compete with our multi-national competitors. So off we set and expanded to another two city locations in quick succession. Whilst it looked great on our business cards and letterhead, there was no sound business logic for making this naïve choice. We kept making these types of mistakes until we realized that in business less is often more.
Here are seven areas in your business or organisation where you should consider some ruthless pruning, allowing you to thrive and flourish where it really counts:
1. Information: In this digital age we are bombarded with information overload or what I’ve heard called ‘infobesity’. This white noise of information comes via media, mail, email, social media and every conversation you have. Like termites it can white ant your brain – until you become stark raving mad. The solution is to stay in control and discard as you go only allowing in what is truly useful. Don’t attend that next incredibly informative conference until you have implemented the ideas from the last one.
2. Meetings: As John Lennon (nearly) said ‘Meetings are what happens to you when you should be busy making other plans’. Meetings’ are an easy target for trimming, though it’s amazing how like some invasive vine they fill our diaries as soon as we turn our backs. My advice is: don’t agree to coffee meetings without a purpose. Don’t invite a cast of thousands to a meeting, rather go for lean and mean. And opt for an aggressive 15 or 30-minute time slot with a clear agenda - preferably phrased as a simple, affirmative question. For instance, “In this meeting we need to decide, should we . . . ?“ My pet habit has been to hold walking meetings to ensure I not only use both sides of my brain, but if the meeting turns out to be a waste of time, at least I got some exercise.
3. Marketing Material: In our eagerness to promote our products and services we tend to overwhelm customers with too much about us. We bombard them with thirty-slide presentations with detailed graphs and statistics; we send them fifteen-page proposals or we cram our advertising with small text and images to fit everything in. Yet like us, our customers are busy. Use just a few slides in your presentations, go for more white space in your advertising and remember that a one page proposal is more likely to be read that a fifteen page dissertation.
4. Products: To win at the game of business the idea is not to have the widest range of products or services. Compare the exclusive menu of a five-star restaurant with the fifty-meal option local diner. They often have just four choices each for entrée, main and desert. Your business is the same. Focus on just a few awesome products or services that can be clearly articulated to a niche target market - don't be afraid to alienate a customer segment.
5. Relationships: In this age of social media where at the click of a button we seem to accumulate friends and connections at an alarming rate, it’s time to downsize. To be successful at business you need to develop deep relationships with the clients, suppliers and partners who will help your business grow. Start getting real with your prospect and client databases. ‘Likes’ aren’t clients. And be brave by removing excess suppliers and clients who are weighing you down. One of my proudest moments in business was having the courage to sack our second biggest client, an international credit card company, because they weren’t aligned with our values and took up too much of our time and attention. The company-wide sigh of relief enabled us replace the business within a matter of months.
6. Processes: In the name of efficiency, quality control and systemization it is all too easy to introduce unwieldy red tape into our processes. Yet it is these laborious hoops we insist our staff, clients and suppliers jump through which make them want to run for the hills. Look for areas in your business where you can trim back unnecessary processes.
7. Choices: Decision-making often consumes a large percentage of our waking hours. If you are prone to make decisions as a ‘Maximiser’ (someone who searches for every possible option) then not only does it take up more of your time than it needs to, but Herbert Simon in the 1950’s proved that it leads to unhappiness and dissatisfaction. Instead be a ‘Sacrificer’, someone who sets clear criteria for what constitutes a good option and as soon as they find an alternative satisfying this, they decide.
If you become ruthless at pruning back your business in these seven areas you will quickly accelerate its growth until you stand head and shoulders above your competitors.
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