I just read a good article in the September issue of Green Profit magazine, called The 1% Reality by Bill McCurry. In it, McCurry dispenses two common sense but often-overlooked pieces of advice on how to grow any business:
1) Many business owners get sidetracked looking for “the next big idea.” It’s rare that any single idea will boost sales by 20% or more. Instead, double-growth is more likely to come from a combination of small improvements, each one of which puts you 1% further ahead.
2) It’s rare that a single person can manage all the 1% improvements needed for significant growth. Empowering employees – which includes giving them “permission to fail” — is the only way that a sufficient number of small improvements can be implemented to add up to significant growth.
Common sense advice, yes. Advice we all need to be reminded of? You bet! McCurry’s article does a good job of it.
