Your Business Brickyard - Howard Mann - a Book review

Business  is  supposed  to  be  fun  

It  can  be  lonely,  scary,  all-­‐consuming,  frustra8ng  being  a  business  owner  

The  More  a  business  grows,  the  greater  the  risk  of  focusing  on  the  

wrong  things  

There  is  no  “secret  sauce”  –    no  silver  bullet.  

What  are  the  “basics”  of  running  a  buisness?  

BASICS  include:    Answering  phones  well,  calling  

people  back,  responding  to  emails  promptly,  listening  to  what  your  

customers  REALLY  want  

Execute  your  basics  perfectly  

ALWAYS  protect  profit  and  customers  

What  is  it  that  you  do  beOer  than  anyone  else?  

 (and  how  do  you  communicate  this?)  

What  is  it  that  your  clients  truly  care  about?  

 (and,  again  when  you  deliver  on  this,  how  do  you  

communicate  this?)  

Don’t  worry  about  what  you  do  –  worry  about  WHY  you  do  it  ?  

 Purpose  turns  into  profit  

Deal  with  the  truths  Don’t  make  excuses  and  believe  them.  

 Owning  up  to  your  false  stories  allows  you  to  find  your  true  story  (the  WHY)  

Invest  in  your  business  with  the  money  you  HAVE  and  not  the  

money  you  hope  may  be  coming  in.  

Money  is  the  bank  reflects  who  are  truly  your  clients  

Stop  obsessing  about  your  compe8tors  

List  your  best  clients  and  List  ways  you  can  show  them  apprecia8on  on  a  regular  basis.  

Home  runs  don’t  happen  every  day.    

There  is  no  million  dollar  idea.  

Be  disciplined,  crea8ve  and  innova8ve  with  your  improvements  to  the  fundamentals  of  your  business.  

 This  leads  to  constant  growth  

Let  your  clients  and  staff  become  infected  with  your  enthusiasm.  

The  best  business  rela8onships  are  personal.  

 “Rela8onships  not  sales”  

The  80  /  20  rule.    

List  and  focus  on  the  20.  

“We  are  not  a  bank”    

Pay  fast  and  get  paid  faster.    

You  want  to  be  valued  by  your  suppliers.  

Run  through  walls  for  your  clients  but  they  must  pay  in  8me.  

 Define  what  8mely  means.  

Ge_ng  things  “done”  is  the  bare  minimum.  

 Accelerate  through  the  finish  line    

The  dashboard  report.    

A  single  piece  of  paper  that  tells  you  how  your  business  is  doing.  

 DAILY  

The  dashboard  report.    

ü Sales  ü Collec8ons  ü Number  of  transac8ons  

DAILY  

Get  out  the  office.  “fight  desk  gravity”  

 At  least  50%  out  the  office,  is  a  

good  start.  

Place  people  in  posi8ons  that  they  love.    

Unlock  fresh  reserves  and  poten8al  

NOBODY  spots  opportuni8es  and  can  make  decisions  on  the  go  like  

you  –  the  business  owner.  

Figure  out  ways  to  stay  in  touch  with  your  customers.  

 This  allows  you  to  stay  in  touch  

with  your  business.  

Growth  for  “today”  is  ofen  defined  by  saying  YES  to  everything  

 Building  an  enduring  company  is  defined  by  what  you  say  NO  to.  

Base  your  decisions  on  clients  who  truly  appreciate  you.  

Set  aside  8me  every  90  days  to  work  on  goals.  

 Goals  without  plans  are  only  

wishes.  

GOALS:    

10  years  from  today  3  years  from  today  

12  months  from  today  90  days  from  today  

GOALS:    

Make  your  goals  measurable  and  break  them  down  into  parts  that  you  can  

achieve,  star8ng  TODAY    

GOALS:    

WHO  will  help  you  achieve  them?  WHEN  will  this  be  done  by?  

HOW  will  we  do  this?  (revise  every  90  days)  

85%  of  every  business  is  the  same    

Your  business  is  not  “different”    

The  Remaining  15%  is  what  makes  you  unique  

Great  businesses  focus  on  perfect  fundamentals.  

 Know  what  your  IDEAL  client  really  wants  and  deliver  that,  Perfectly  

BELIEVE    

INNOVATE    

BE  UNIQUE  

ENJOY  YOUR  BUSINESS  EXPERIENCE