Let’s take a different tack today and talk about small business owners.

Why? Because it is my blog and I am writing it and I feel like it!

Do happiness and small business owners go together? Not usually! I have coached quite a few owners and managers of business and they do not ask for happiness, they ask for less stress, more help from staff, more profit, and less work.

The key question I always ask is why? Why do you want that? Then I ask again when the answer comes. And again. Five times is the rule.

When you get the answer to the fifth why question you should be close to the truth and real reasoning. Sometimes people are very good at hiding the truth – even from themselves.

Many times I find the truth is owners and managers want happiness! Less stress = more happiness. Less work=more happiness.

I have many tools in my bag for helping small business owners find answers to the most common challenges that might just  then lead to more happiness.

Here is one that might help you.

There is only four parts to any business – large or small. Of course these four can be broken in many more, but it is relatively easy for me to get a quick overview of any business by looking at these four.

1. Vision – any enterprise without a vision is wandering out in the dark. Maybe the best way to communicate how important vision is would be to say “a great vision inspires teams to achieve”. No vision – no inspiration.

2. People. As Stephen Covey says so well: right people in the right seats on the right bus. Any one of those three is wrong – it is all wrong. And people are THE MOST IMPORTANT part of any business whether it is a one employee or ten thousand.

3. Process. There must be  process for people to follow. Process is the path to the vision – the strategy. How do we get to the vision. Which way, what tools, what goals?  With process people know what they are supposed to do and will do it.

4. Review. This is the management whose responsibility is to check to be sure the right people are following the process and it is moving everyone forward to the vision. It is measurement, milestones, rewards and feedback.

With these four in place the basic fundamentals of any enterprise are in place and simply need tweaking to work.

Look at your own enterprise. What is your vision? Who are the people and what are their responsibilities? What is their process and will it lead to the vision?  Who or what is the review or feedback?

Let me know what you find! Do you think it might lead to finding more happiness?

Miami

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