This dilemma is especially perplexing as we begin the new year. We’re determined to make a change. We’re determined to stop beating on dead horses. And we’re determined to seek out and recognize alternatives. There’s been books written about how entrepreneurs on the edge of success have been distracted by the shiny ball. If only they had worked a little harder a little more focused… But no, they were distracted.

Somewhere between the dead horse and the shiny ball is the answer. Is that horse really dead after all? Or maybe there is something in that shiny ball that will save him.

Most entrepreneurs have just completed a year working hard on their main project while, at the same time, entertaining new opportunities. As we start the new year we should take a lesson from the ancient Japanese craft culture. At the end of every year they clean their shop. They do this to show respect for their workplace and it is their opportunity to sort things out mentally and physically.

Take Inventory

By looking at their inventory, they discover what sold and what didn’t sell. Although this simple exercise seems obvious, most entrepreneurs just plow ahead without really taking the time to acknowledge and validate what worked! What’s left in inventory are the un-sold products and slow moving items. Now they’re taking up room in your physical and mental workspace. It’s time to reflect on how much energy you put, and continue to put, into your slow movers. You’ll need that space and mind share in the new year!

Clean House

Pick up everything you’ve made and decide if you want to keep it, change it, or just plain get rid of it. When you look at each initiative you have pursued in the past year, the ones that didn’t work don’t have to be a total loss. What did you learn from each experience? How can those lessons help you when applied to your main pursuit?

One approach is to reorganize. Take your failed and nonproducing initiatives and incorporate them into the one or ones that worked. Have you acquired new skills, new contacts, or new referrals that will help you in the new year? Identify them and make a list to acknowledge them, so you will have gotten the most out of those “shiny balls.”

Refocus

Use the experiences of the past year to help you focus on your true customer. They may not be the people you have been pursuing. Like a fisherman casting about hoping for a bite, now it’s time to pull in the lines, check your bait, and move the boat in the direction you experienced the most action.

There is a market for what you have sold in the past year. It’s time to move closer by better addressing that market. How did the customers who bought products from you last year find out about your offerings? How can you improve those channels? Identify and endeavor to utilize any new communication skills you have learned over the past year.

Has the market for your main pursuit changed? How can you modify your product and your presentation to become more relevant and compelling? Time to talk to your customers.

We know that years are just arbitrary measures of time. But they also represent a period of work that we can learn from if we take the time to take inventory, clean house, and refocus. So while everybody is feeling compelled to blastoff in new directions, maybe we can emulate those Japanese craftsmen with reflection, analysis, and redirection.

Here’s to a New Year made better by the last!

Who We Are

Michael Houlihan and Bonnie Harvey co-authored the New York Times bestselling business book, The Barefoot Spirit: How Hardship, Hustle, and Heart Built America’s #1 Wine Brand. The book has been selected as recommended reading in the CEO Library for CEO Forum, the C-Suite Book Club, and numerous university classes on business and entrepreneurship. It chronicles their humble beginnings from the laundry room of a rented Sonoma County farmhouse to the board room of E&J Gallo, who ultimately acquired their brand and engaged them as brand consultants. Barefoot is now the world’s largest wine brand.

Beginning with virtually no money and no wine industry experience, they employed innovative ideas to overcome obstacles, create new markets and forge strategic alliances. They pioneered Worthy Cause Marketing and performance-based compensation. They built an internationally bestselling brand and received their industry’s “Hot Brand” award for several consecutive years.

They offer their Guiding Principles for Success (GPS) to help entrepreneurs become successful. Their book, The Entrepreneurial Culture: 23 Ways To Engage and Empower Your People, helps corporations maximize the value of their human resources.

Currently they travel the world leading workshops, trainings, & keynoting at business schools, corporations, conferences. They are regular media guests and contributors to international publications and professional journals. They are C-Suite Network Advisors & Contributing Editors. Visit their popular brand building site at www.consumerbrandbuilders.com.

To make inquiries for keynote speaking, trainings or consulting, please contact sales@thebarefootspirit.com.

The post Casting About or Fishing Where the Fish Are appeared first on The Barefoot Spirit.

We wanted people who were not only qualified, but also had foundational qualities we could build upon. We wanted to see our staff achieve the highest and best use of their talents – many of which did not manifest for a year or so.

We looked for enthusiasm, confidence, honesty and integrity. We also looked for a willingness to learn. And, they had to be fun. It is much like finding a new friend, and we created great friends in the process.

The key to developing great people is to start with good people – and then provide the environment, encouragement, resources, and flexibility for them to become their best.

• Culture. A positive company culture is essential to the nurturing people. Constructive attitudes toward mistakes and a policy of permission allow for greater creativity. Use positive language. Talk about what you want, not what you don’t want.

• Compensation. Brian Tracy says most performance problems are caused by compensation systems. Reward for production and growth. Clearly state what you want in each phase of their training.

• Encouragement. Catch your people doing something right. Tell them two things they did well for every one thing they can improve. As their “boss,” you become an authority figure they look to for validation.

• Monitoring. Know what questions to ask of the data. Identify the metrics that best quantify performance. Make the reporting intervals as short as possible, especially during the first 90 days.

• Mentoring. A person is worthy of your time when they quickly pick up on concepts and extrapolate principals to other applications. Put more energy into him or her. Your time and efforts will be rewarded when you start with the right people.

• Acknowledgement. Give public acknowledgement, and tie it in to how it affects everybody’s salary, security, and potential. When you educate staff about what individual team members contribute, this encourages them to do even better.

• Written Resources. Have a policy of documentation. The same mistakes will not be repeated, the nuances of a job can be passed on, and your new hire can study what is expected of her. To keep job descriptions current, ask everyone to update their own annually.

• Training. Having written materials will reduce the training time. Stage this information so the new hire can focus on mastering one aspect at a time. Expect to spend three to six months in training before proficiency is achieved.

• Conferences. People want to improve their skill set. Of course, this will add to their resumes. However, if you are paying them right, they won’t leave, and they will create the income for their own raises. So, yes, send them to training conferences.

• Architecture. Natural and supplemental lighting, air conditioning, workspace, and noise levels all effect production and concentration.

• Best IT. Probably the most frustrating part of any new job is learning the IT and protocols. Have an IT “guy” who can quickly “fix” problems. Make your systems intuitive and user friendly.

To get the best out of your people, find out what they excel at. Then, redesign their jobs to fit those skills. Ask others to pick up the aspects of the former job that still need to be done. You might be surprised at the positive response. Don’t put the square peg in the round hole. Build a square hole.

Who We Are

Michael Houlihan and Bonnie Harvey co-authored the New York Times bestselling business book, The Barefoot Spirit: How Hardship, Hustle, and Heart Built America’s #1 Wine Brand. The book has been selected as recommended reading in the CEO Library for CEO Forum, the C-Suite Book Club, and numerous university classes on business and entrepreneurship. It chronicles their humble beginnings from the laundry room of a rented Sonoma County farmhouse to the board room of E&J Gallo, who ultimately acquired their brand and engaged them as brand consultants. Barefoot is now the world’s largest wine brand.

Beginning with virtually no money and no wine industry experience, they employed innovative ideas to overcome obstacles, create new markets and forge strategic alliances. They pioneered Worthy Cause Marketing and performance-based compensation. They built an internationally bestselling brand and received their industry’s “Hot Brand” award for several consecutive years.

They offer their Guiding Principles for Success (GPS) to help entrepreneurs become successful. Their book, The Entrepreneurial Culture: 23 Ways To Engage and Empower Your People, helps corporations maximize the value of their human resources.

Currently they travel the world leading workshops, trainings, & keynoting at business schools, corporations, conferences. They are regular media guests and contributors to international publications and professional journals. They are C-Suite Network Advisors & Contributing Editors. Visit their popular brand building site at www.consumerbrandbuilders.com.

To make inquiries for keynote speaking, trainings or consulting, please contact sales@thebarefootspirit.com.

The post Find Good People – Make Great People appeared first on The Barefoot Spirit.