About Purpose is about your purpose.
Aim: Identify and articulate your purpose.
Arm: Shape yourself around your purpose.
Act: Achieve your purpose.
Programs:
About Purpose,
YOUR Purpose
Now announcing a radical new way for you to afford quality consulting services. Read this press release.
Don’t Wait Too Long 
Click for MP3 version
Bob Ryan, About Purpose, Inc. ©2010
A panel of experts on business financing were asked what one piece of advice they would give to the audience. All three panelists agreed they would say, “Don’t wait too long.” That advice applies to many other areas, too, and business owners would do well to heed it throughout their businesses.
The most common mistake businesses make is in waiting too long. Consider the following:
- Wait too long to seek financial assistance, and you will likely increase the cost of money and miss the prime window of opportunity to bring your services/goods to market.
- Wait too long to hire people, and the lag in training and assimilating may cause an opportunity to be lost, customers to be frustrated, or current workers to get burned out.
- Wait too long to fire people for cause, and suffer a blow to workplace morale, damage to customer service or finances, or risk lawsuits for a hostile work environment.
- Wait too long to layoff for lack of work, and you will likely fall too far behind to be able to weather a downturn and hurt your chances for quick recovery, jeopardizing more jobs.
- Wait too long to work on policies and procedures, and you will be hopelessly mired in make-up work, buried in information you don’t know how to use, and risk legal and tax consequences.
- Wait too long to seek professional counsel (attorney, CPA, business consultant, banker) and you will increase the costs of repairing damage and may well miss the opportunity to save your business.
All of the “wait too long” scenarios can be avoided, though with one simple, ongoing solution and that is effective strategic planning. An initial investment of a day or two and a monthly commitment to an hour or two and you will have a template in which you can test developing situations against your business and personal goals. You will be able to identify “trigger points” for decision making in all of the situations above and more.
Delay-Proof your business. Get to work today on an effective, practical strategic plan and, “Don’t Wait Too Long.”
For more help with strategic planning, or if you would like a facilitated board or management strategic planning retreat, e-mail or call me at 612-965-2253.