A few months ago, I published two blogs about mistakes that I’ve witnessed that company owners and executives have made that damaged their organizations. The following are a few more that you should avoid.
- Being intimidated by industry leaders
It is OK to respect the leading companies within your industry or proposed industry. However, fearing introducing new products or services, or not entering a marketplace where there are well entrenched companies because of fear, is a big mistake. In many situations there are reasons to go up against the established marketplace leaders. They have proven that the marketplace is viable and potentially lucrative. They are not as nimble as your organization. Market leaders avoid diluting their established product’s market share by introducing competition from within. Bigger companies often become inefficient as they grow. While not all of the newcomers to the mattress industry, or the non-alcoholic beverage industry will survive, they certainly overcame their fears.
- Getting advice from unqualified sources
Also known as the “Uncle Louis” method. Everyone, especially at family holiday dinners, has an opinion about what you are planning or doing in your business. Most of the time this advice/opinion comes from a concerned person who is not qualified by virtue of:
- Not having industry or marketplace knowledge or experience.
- They are not privy to all the relevant information.
- They have experience that is completely unrelated to your industry/marketplace.
- They are not trained in the area that they are giving you advice about. Tax advice from someone who is not a CPA, for example. Or legal advice from someone who is not an attorney.
- Withholding necessary information from your advisors
Withholding information or giving your advisors incomplete information can be a nearly fatal mistake. For your advisors and professionals to give you their best relevant advice they need to have the total picture. Many of the bankers I know have horror stories about businesses that they could have helped if only they had the complete picture before it was too late to assist them.
- Being in denial that you have a problem
Denying that there is a problem leads to massive delays in addressing serious issues that are potentially preventing your company from achieving better results and success. Don’t be the bottleneck to your own success.
- Not forming a trusted “board of advisors”
Owning a business or functioning as a senior executive within an organization can get very lonely at times. Most successful company owners and corporate executives seek out mentors or form advisory groups to address their everyday management and leadership concerns. Of course, for mentoring or advisory groups to be effective, you must avoid many of the mistakes presented in the ongoing series of blog posts.
Stay tuned for more posts in the coming months about mistakes you should and can avoid.