Opportunity level of a companyâs life cycle.
Achieving the Objective or Goal at Level 1
Since this level of the business life cycle has two parts, it requires you to meet two different objectives or goals. The first, as I mentioned earlier, is determining whether ownership is right for you. In order to accomplish this, it is necessary for you to answer three key questions:
1 . Do I have the talent and skills to be a great owner and leader?
2 . Am I experienced enough to evaluate, or create, an opportunity?
3 . Do I have the leadership courage to bet on myself?
These are important questions, and answering them honestly takes a prospective ownerâor, for that matter, an experienced oneâa lot of soul searching. It requires a kind of self-analysis that you may have never conducted before, but it is a critical part of the process. In fact, if you donât answer these questions honestly, and decide mistakenly that ownership is what you want, regardless of how promising an opportunity may appear, you will lack the passion needed to drive a business toward success, meaning, at best, the business and you will struggle. However, if after careful self-analysis you correctly decide ownership is for you, this self-analysis will help you visualize the kind of opportunity that would be best for you.
Once the ownership issue is decided, the goal is to decide what opportunities may be available to you and which you may have to create. You should bear in mind, though, that opportunity seldom falls in your lap. In most cases you have to create it. This is an important point, and one that new owners as well as owners looking to expand their businesses must take into account. For everyone who chooses ownership as a career, selecting the right opportunity is one of the most challenging aspects of the process, primarily because there are some opportunities that are questionable at best, and some that are certain to fail. The challenge is separating the good from the bad and the legitimate from the phony. This is why the focus on leadership and analysis at this level is so importantâyou want to get this right because there is little room for error.
Although it is important to review Level 1 for all the Facts of Business Life before you make an ownership or opportunity decision, as far as leadership is concerned there are essentially two questions you must ask yourself: (1) does the product or service I am considering have a long life span or life cycle, and(2) can a business selling this product or service make continuously sufficient profits? That is, is the reward worth the risk? There will be other questions that have to be answered before you make a final decision, but if you canât answer âyesâ to both of these in regard to any particular opportunity; there is no point in pursuing it.
âSufficient profitsâ is an important phrase, and one that is open to interpretation. Whether profits are considered to be sufficient is usually based on how much is needed to pay off the initial debt and to keep the business running for an extended period of time. But when you are answering this question, itâs also important to take your personal concerns into account. If all you want is a business that will enable you to pay your bills and go out to dinner once a month, it would probably be relatively easy to find one. But you probably want more than that out of your own company, including the fun of owning and operating a continually successful business, and the ability to enjoy the freedoms that a significantly profitable business can provide. And if thatâs what youâre looking for in becoming an owner, it is essential that you do the kind of thoughtful research and analysis at this level that will enable you to achieve it.
----
Finding the Right Opportunity
I knew even before I started a business that ownership was what I wantedâall I needed was the opportunity and some experience. My
Achieving the Objective or Goal at Level 1
Since this level of the business life cycle has two parts, it requires you to meet two different objectives or goals. The first, as I mentioned earlier, is determining whether ownership is right for you. In order to accomplish this, it is necessary for you to answer three key questions:
1 . Do I have the talent and skills to be a great owner and leader?
2 . Am I experienced enough to evaluate, or create, an opportunity?
3 . Do I have the leadership courage to bet on myself?
These are important questions, and answering them honestly takes a prospective ownerâor, for that matter, an experienced oneâa lot of soul searching. It requires a kind of self-analysis that you may have never conducted before, but it is a critical part of the process. In fact, if you donât answer these questions honestly, and decide mistakenly that ownership is what you want, regardless of how promising an opportunity may appear, you will lack the passion needed to drive a business toward success, meaning, at best, the business and you will struggle. However, if after careful self-analysis you correctly decide ownership is for you, this self-analysis will help you visualize the kind of opportunity that would be best for you.
Once the ownership issue is decided, the goal is to decide what opportunities may be available to you and which you may have to create. You should bear in mind, though, that opportunity seldom falls in your lap. In most cases you have to create it. This is an important point, and one that new owners as well as owners looking to expand their businesses must take into account. For everyone who chooses ownership as a career, selecting the right opportunity is one of the most challenging aspects of the process, primarily because there are some opportunities that are questionable at best, and some that are certain to fail. The challenge is separating the good from the bad and the legitimate from the phony. This is why the focus on leadership and analysis at this level is so importantâyou want to get this right because there is little room for error.
Although it is important to review Level 1 for all the Facts of Business Life before you make an ownership or opportunity decision, as far as leadership is concerned there are essentially two questions you must ask yourself: (1) does the product or service I am considering have a long life span or life cycle, and(2) can a business selling this product or service make continuously sufficient profits? That is, is the reward worth the risk? There will be other questions that have to be answered before you make a final decision, but if you canât answer âyesâ to both of these in regard to any particular opportunity; there is no point in pursuing it.
âSufficient profitsâ is an important phrase, and one that is open to interpretation. Whether profits are considered to be sufficient is usually based on how much is needed to pay off the initial debt and to keep the business running for an extended period of time. But when you are answering this question, itâs also important to take your personal concerns into account. If all you want is a business that will enable you to pay your bills and go out to dinner once a month, it would probably be relatively easy to find one. But you probably want more than that out of your own company, including the fun of owning and operating a continually successful business, and the ability to enjoy the freedoms that a significantly profitable business can provide. And if thatâs what youâre looking for in becoming an owner, it is essential that you do the kind of thoughtful research and analysis at this level that will enable you to achieve it.
----
Finding the Right Opportunity
I knew even before I started a business that ownership was what I wantedâall I needed was the opportunity and some experience. My
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