How to Stay Alive in the Cutthroat World of Small Businesses

 

It's a sad fact that many start-ups don't escape from or fall back to the Valley of Death. The world of small businesses is cutthroat, where your product can easily be overshadowed by some kid who knows how to code.  Here are seven ways to stay alive in the small business world.

Prioritise

Focus on activities that have the biggest impact on your business. Instead of trying to outdo the competition with quirky variations, focus on developing the product that will generate the highest profit.

Niche products and services take time to develop, but they generate more value in the long run. If you find yourself doing a myriad of tasks that push day-to-day operations but do not contribute to the bottom line, you can take advantage of outsourcing.

Repeat Endlessly

In the documentary “Jiro Dreams of Sushi”, Jiro's son reveals that their 3-star Michelin restaurant doesn't do anything special in making sushi.

They follow a simple process and repeat it everyday - get the best ingredients in the market, prepare meticulously, and then serve. Many will assume that repeating the same thing is easy, but at some point, any habit becomes boring. Repeat what works, then improve bit by bit.

Don't Count your Work Hours

You're always working anyway so stop making a mental check. Sustaining a small business eats a huge chunk of your time that even when taking a shower, you're still be strategising your next move.

Keep your Cool

Enthusiasm is contagious. When you’re pitching your product or service, whether to an angel investor or customer, you have to be confident about your product. People buy from people, so they will turn to you when assessing the business or checking the product. This is very important when you're trying to get new clients.

Take the Hike

Your efforts must be controlled and defined as a trajectory. There are so many things that you need to do when running a business. Often times, you'll find yourself being your own accountant or recruiter. Delegate, prioritise, and then ensure that your efforts are aligned with business growth.

Change not just Innovate

Make changes that improve operations in different areas of the company, even if it’s just small. Innovation doesn't need to mean fancy expensive technology. As a small business, you need to focus on what you have and what needs to be done to make it better.

Anticipate and Adapt  

Being an entrepreneur today means a whole lot of flexibility. You need to keep up with business and social trends, weather out an unstable economy, and analyse buyer behaviour. You need to respond quickly to changes, especially if you're in a competitive market.


Running a small business requires a lot of hard work that's often romanticized in success stories, but remembering these key points will keep your sanity intact and your business on the right track.

Hat tip to Fast Company