Over the past several months, I’ve been talking about several themes of small business management; namely building a happy business, the Courtesy System, attracting perfect clients, etc.  After serious reflection, I’ve come to realise that these topics fit into a simple formula that you can use to create a business and a lifestyle that is not only enjoyable, but profitable.  I call this formula the Happiness Equation.


Over the coming months all of the blog posts will comprise at least one part of the equation.  The “Happy People” variable of the equation includes anyone (and everyone) who interacts with the business – customers, suppliers, employees, partners, service providers, and even your family!  The “Efficient Business Systems” variable addresses all of the processes and procedures necessary to make your business run.  The end result – when implemented and applied correctly – is Profit.

Continue reading "Happiness Equation: Happy People + Efficient Business Systems = Profit" »

Change…most of us humans don’t deal well with it to start with.  Add on a business owner role, and change is even less welcome.  Think about it.  We’ve invested a lot of time and effort into “perfecting” our business processes and procedures to get them to work successfully.  So why fix what doesn’t appear to be broken?  The problem is that even though everything looks like it is working smoothly, that doesn’t mean that it’s working as effectively as it should.

It’s somewhat like the frog in boiling water analogy.  You slowly turn the water up and the frog doesn’t realise anything is wrong until he’s already cooked.  If you haven’t figured it out yet, you’re the frog!

I was with a client the other day and her response to my question about why things were done the way they were was, "Well, that's the way it's always been done."  To me this is like raising the red flag and sounding the siren for immediate change and improvement in the system.

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There are six steps you can follow to integrate fun with work . I have worked with and studied many happy (and unhappy) businesses, and have found time and again, that the happy workplaces excel at each of these six steps, whereas unhappy ones always fail at one or more of them.
 

GIVE PERMISSION FOR PEOPLE TO BE WHO THEY ARE

Allow people to bring the best of their whole self to work each day. Leadership is essential to all businesses. The Leader creates the vision, the leader sets the tone for the journey; the leader embodies the value that by integrating fun and work you will achieve a happy and more profitable business.

There's a great example of a happy and profitable business in the book by Stephen C. Lundin Fish!: A Remarkable Way to Boost Morale and Improve Results. This is a the story of the Pike Place Fish Market in Seattle. Employees interact with customers using play; they toss fish and tell jokes, they dance with the customers. The result is happy and motivated employees and happy and committed customers.

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For some reason creating a happy business doesn't come easily for most businesses. Many can't figure out the right ingredients for a happy business, which often leads to high employee turnover, low productivity and poor profits. To many, the idea of a happy business seems expensive, difficult and has no direct connection to the bottom-line.

How do we create workplaces where people are happy and enjoy each other, their work and the customers?

First of all: you can’t make people happy. People choose to be happy or not happy!  You can't motivate people anymore than you can empower them. Employees have to motivate and empower themselves. However, you can create an environment where they can be happy, motivated, and empowered.

Continue reading "Creating a Happy Business - think cake!" »

Believe it or not, but happiness is the best and fastest way to achieve business results.

It literally pays to be happy. Studies show that businesses with happy employees consistently outperform their less happy competitors.

Considering the challenges businesses face, creating a happy business is the number one strategic imperative and the only way to long-term success.

So, what exactly is happiness at work?  It’s a feeling of happiness derived from work.

If you were looking for something a bit more esoteric, then I’m sorry to disappoint, but that’s all it is.

Continue reading "A happy business is not some “Airy Fairy” idea!" »

Mission is born from values.  Values are deeply held beliefs about what is good, right, and appropriate and they are deep-seated and remain constant over time. We accumulate our values from childhood based on teachings and observations of our parents, teachers, religious leaders, and other influential people.

Life is much more fulfilling when we orient around our true values. Our values are an expression of our true selves. Unfortunately, we have all been overly influenced by fear and guilt that comes from “should” and “ought to” and “have-to,” to the point that what we really value has often been buried deep inside us.

Continue reading "Aligning your personal mission and business mission. Does it matter?" »

Want to know a secret?  You do not have to look far for perfect customers; they are standing all around you.  There is just too much fog between you to see each other.  Even worse, you may keep changing your identity so that when they think they have found you, they turn around and you are gone.

One common mistake made by many business owners is that they try to be all things to all people.  The image and message they create about their business is very broad and vague so as to avoid alienating any potential customers.  What that means is that your company appears ordinary and the customers you most want to serve cannot see that you are the answer they have been looking for.

Continue reading "Don’t Keep a Secret Identity! Let perfect customers find you." »

Do you have any customers that:

• You avoid calling back until the last possible minute?
• You have to emotionally prepare yourself for before meeting?
• Make you wince and give you a feeling of dread whenever they walk in the door?
• Disrupt the operation of your business?
• Spread negative opinions of your company?
• Give you a headache or make you want to drink after meeting?

If any of your customers cause any of the above reactions, then you have a “Customer from Hell.”

Customers from Hell suck the life out of you; they make you start to hate your business.  If you have any Customers from Hell, it is impossible to have a “happy business.”  Most importantly, you are no longer in control – they are. 

But…that’s not the scariest part.  The scariest part is that you probably spent time and money to find the customer.  You PAID to have this nightmare!  Do you even realize that?

As business owners, we often feel compelled to chase down customers and accept anyone who is willing to pay us.  Why?  Because we have to keep money coming through the door and we consider any paying customer to be a good customer.

Continue reading "Count ‘em up…How many “Customers from Hell” do you have?" »

I’ve been getting feedback from many people that they are unhappy and angry because they feel like they don’t have any choices in the current economy or that all of the choices they do have are negative and that no matter which direction they choose, the outcome will be bad.  What people are failing to remember at this critical time, however, is that no matter how powerless we may be to what is happening around us, that no one and nothing can take away from us our ultimate choice.  That is the choice to be happy.

Unhappy people choose to be unhappy.  When the economy starts to turnaround and most peoples’ financial situations improve, take a close look around.  What you will find is that many of the people who were unhappy when things were bad are still unhappy when things are good.  That is because they choose to be unhappy, they choose to only see the negative and they choose to not embrace the good things in life like love, friends and family.

Continue reading "Are you making the right choices? Or, do you feel like you don’t have any choices to make?" »

Seemingly simple questions, but they are not so simple to answer in today's financial climate; especially if you are happy and have had success. With so many people struggling financially and looking for work, many of us feel like we will be perceived as gloating or "rubbing it in" if we are openly enthusiastic and happy about good things that are happening to us. So, we hide it or downplay its importance.

When we hide our happiness and stop sharing our success, we are actually fostering the negativity the economy is causing and lengthening the amount of time before we see a turnaround.  Perception is very powerful.  During times like these, people begin assuming that silence means unhappiness or lack of success because of our old adage, "if you don't have anything nice to say, don't say anything."

Continue reading "Are you happy? Is your business happy? Do you have a happy business?" »