Author: Guest Contributor

It’s guest post week 🙂 Below you’ll hear from Victoria Vessella of Repsly, Inc.:

Growth is always a good thing for an organization. However, increased success usually comes with increased complexities. It’s not uncommon for companies to add new employees, technologies, and offerings to their repertoire as they scale. Simplifying business processes as much as possible is critical for smaller companies that do not have the same manpower as large corporations to manage a myriad of disjointed operations. Honing in on practices that add value and eradicating those that do not allows small businesses to keep their heads above water as they expand and sets the stage for long-term success. In the words of Isaac Newton, “Truth is ever to be found in simplicity, and not in the multiplicity and confusion of things.”

Shed the Small Stuff

It’s likely that some of your business processes are cluttered with superfluous activities and multiple steps. A good starting point for achieving business simplicity is to eliminate any onerous tasks that contribute to a burdensome workload. Harvard Business Review contributors Ron Ashkenas and Lisa Bodell explain that by removing petty tasks from your everyday operations, you create a greater capacity to focus on more substantial projects, as well as additional simplification opportunities.  

For example, consider how many individuals are involved in your decision-making processes. Are there some people who can be left out of certain conversations? Do you really need “x” number of people to sign off on every proposal? Another area to review is team size. Having unnecessarily large teams causes lags in productivity as several people are trying to coordinate schedules, goals, resource usage, etc. Sometimes too many cooks in the kitchen spoil the soup; it might make more sense to repurpose select employees’ roles to other assignments where they can make a stronger impact.

The Customer Is King
Perhaps the most important factor to keep in mind when simplifying your business is its ability to attract and retain customers. It’s no secret that a solid customer base is company’s most valuable asset. Nevertheless, when businesses grow, they often become caught up in the heat of the moment and accidentally disregard that which matters most – the clientele.

Remember to consistently seek feedback from your customers on how your products and services can be improved. Make returns, exchanges, and customer service requests as painless as possible. In his article for Fast Company, author Howard Belk suggests reviewing all touchpoints involved in the customer experience to ensure that it is streamlined and straightforward. For companies in the B2B space, using a simple CRM is an effective way to keep track of key client data so as to better serve customers and meet their unique needs.

Meeting Management

Meetings are a common business process that is filled with inefficiencies. It can be tempting for company leaders to hold regular status and planning meetings in an effort to “stay organized” when they are scaling. However, meetings designed to enhance productivity are, in reality, counterproductive. A recent poll conducted by Harris Interactive Inc. found that 60% of respondents spend more time preparing for a meeting than they do attending it. Not to mention, scheduling them can be a nightmare.

Think twice next time you want to bring your team together to check-in. First, evaluate whether or not you need to hold a meeting in the first place. If it’s decided that group discussion truly is necessary, there are a plethora of other options available which are excellent alternatives to traditional meetings. Social collaboration tools enable multiple individuals or parties to virtually interact and share information in order to achieve common goals. Instant messaging apps allow team members to converse and are more agile than email. They are typically associated with faster response times as well. If face-to-face interaction is preferred, teleconferencing is a useful choice. Check out this LifeHack article for examples of specific programs that your small business can adopt to eliminate senseless meetings.

Complexity is a productivity killer that is detrimental to employee morale. Keep this in mind as your small business begins to scale. Reducing the number of low-value tasks that employees have to perform will generate more time for relevant activities. Putting the customer first at all times helps to make sure that goals are set with purpose. Finally, being strategic about meetings is imperative for efficient business process management. Remember, simplicity in business doesn’t have to be complicated.

Victoria Vessella is a content marketing journalist at Repsly, Inc. With experience working in public relations, she is dedicated to creating high-quality content that is relevant and helpful to readers.

Another guest post this week. This one comes from Rachel Craig of Quality Formations:

Working from home. Well doesn’t that sound nice? It is. It’s utterly delightful, which is why I do it on a full-time basis, with the odd trip to the coffee shop when I feel like a change of scenery or a conversation with someone other than my dogs. However, working in your own home does come with its challenges, more so if you don’t create an appropriate environment that facilitates efficiency and productivity.

There is a tendency (for some) to just sit on the couch or at the kitchen table to work. I’ve tested both methods. They’re not ideal. I’ve also tried sitting at my window seat and on my bed. Again, the outcome in both situations was a tad disappointing, yet not particularly surprising. I was in a bad mood, my back was killing me and I didn’t get a great deal of work done.

Tips for success

The key to success when working from home is to establish a routine, be mindful of your health, and create a designated, well-designed workspace. Be that an entire room in your house, or just a section of your kitchen, living room or bedroom, the space needs to be functional, organized, free from distraction and aesthetically pleasing.

A home office should also look and feel like it’s solely for the purpose of work, otherwise you may struggle to make the mental distinction between your working environment and your home environment. You don’t have to spend a lot of money, though you can if you want. With just a little bit of thought and careful planning, you can create a stimulating working environment that is conducive to maximum productivity.

1) Daily routine

Most of us function better with a degree of order in our lives. This helps us to focus, stay motivated, work more efficiently and better react to unexpected challenges. As a result, we achieve more and enjoy a greater sense of satisfaction and contentment, both at work and in our personal lives. Failure to implement an appropriate daily routine will simply lead to disorganization, stress, lack of concentration and decreased productivity. None of which are conducive to success.

By creating a clear, structured plan of what you need to do and when you are going to do it, you will work more efficiently, improve your general health and wellbeing, and achieve a better work-life balance. This may include:

• Deciding what time you’re going to get up to achieve your tasks.
• Choosing your start and finish times for work.
• Scheduling your tasks for the day.
• Incorporating regular breaks and physical exercise into your day.
• Remembering to eat well and drink fluids often.
• Making time for rest and relaxation.
• Making time for friends and family.
• Deciding what time you’re going to go to bed to ensure optimal sleep.

It’s tempting to just wing it and take each day as it comes. I’ve tried this and it’s really damaging. People who enjoy the most success in life almost always rely on routine. It’s not about doing exactly the same thing every day, it’s about planning and organizing your life based on your own needs and goals.

2) Decor

Our surroundings have a huge impact on our productivity levels, mood and general wellbeing. It’s therefore important to design your office environment with both function and aesthetics in mind. You will spend a great deal of your time in this space, so it needs to be practicable, comfortable and decorated in a way that is appropriate and thoughtful.

The color of your walls requires careful consideration because color profoundly impacts our emotions, behavior and productivity. As a general rule, avoid stark white walls. Blues, blue-greens and soft neutrals, like warm greys and yellows, are generally accepted to be the most appropriate colors for creating a healthy, inspiring and productive office space.

3) Office chair

If you’re going to be working at a computer for the majority of your day, you should invest in an ergonomic office chair that adequately supports your back and pelvis, promotes comfort and facilitates good posture. An appropriate chair will minimize the risk of developing lower back injury, neck pain, trapped nerves, headaches, poor concentration and fatigue, so your choice of office chair isn’t just a case of choosing something that looks nice or using one of your existing kitchen chairs.

4) Lighting

Lighting has a huge impact on mood, energy levels and productivity, so appropriate office lighting is essential. If you can utilize natural light, do so. Harsh artificial lighting can be incredibly damaging and promotes tiredness. Natural light has the opposite effect, but you should avoid placing your desk directly facing a window – glorious weather can be a distraction!

If you’re not lucky enough to have a window in your home office, or you don’t get much light in your designated work space, an artificial daylight lamp is a great choice for replicating natural light. They can be a little pricey, but the benefits are worth the financial cost. Your mood will improve, your energy levels will increase, you will feel more motivated and you will sleep better at night. As a result, you will be far more productive at work.

5) Boundaries

Clear boundaries are essential when working from home. When you’re in your office space, it’s time for work. You should not be disturbed, so make this clear to friends and family. When you work from home, people often forget that you’re actually working, or they think you can stop and start at any time. This can be incredibly stressful and damaging to productivity. Make it clear that during certain hours, or when you’re in your office space, you should not be disturbed.
Conversely, when you’re in another part of the house, it’s time to relax and switch off from work. When you’re on a break or finished for the day, you should remove yourself from the office space to make that mental switch from work mode to personal mode. This is why it’s so important to have a dedicated work space that is visually distinct and/or completely separate from the rest of your home, otherwise the lines can easily blur. As a result, you’ll either fail to switch off from work mode, or you’ll struggle to concentrate and stay motivated when you’re trying to work.

Rachel Craig is the senior content writer and editor for Quality Formations Ltd, industry experts in setting up a limited company in the UK.

A specialist in her field, Rachel provides in-depth guidance and advice on UK company registration, corporate compliance and starting a new business.

Another guest post for you today, this time from Danielle Levine. Here she is:

In the words of Indra Nooyi, the CEO of Pepsi:

“You must continually increase your learning, the way you think, and the way you approach your organization.”

If you want to be successful, you must always be open to learning more, expanding your knowledge, and thinking in different perspectives.

Think of your business like a flower. You must feed, water, and nurture the plant in order for it to bloom into something beautiful. If you do not contribute to the flower’s well-being, it is not going to survive.

That’s how it is in business, too. If you aren’t willing to constantly learn new things to benefit your business, well, your business will lose momentum, and eventually wither away. You don’t want that to happen, do you?

Through my time observing the management styles of multiple different companies, I have observed two types of different entrepreneurial attitudes as shown by this infographic:

As you can see, the styles of these entrepreneurs are polar opposites of each other. Entrepreneur Alex sees his employees as valuable assets to the company while Entrepreneur Bob lives in the mindset that he is already at the top of his profession, so there is no need to acknowledge and learn from his employees.

Take Blockbuster for example. Blockbuster was doing really well for a long time. It had a unique business model, and people turned to Blockbuster to satisfy all their movie cravings. The CEO, John Antioco, was overconfident in Blockbuster’s success; he saw Blockbuster as something that would always be relevant, but then Netflix came around.  

There is no doubt that Netflix came around the corner and swept Blockbuster off their feet and straight into bankruptcy in such a short span. However, if Antioco would have taken precautions to avoid this, such as innovating the business to fit the modern time period, learning more about Netflix, and maybe even taking advice from other executives and employees who might have disagreed with his plan, Blockbuster could still be around today.

Below, I will give you three important reasons why you should never stop learning as an entrepreneur so that you do not make the same mistakes as entrepreneurs like Antioco.

1. Listen to your employees – They might provide insightful suggestions to guide you on the right path

The worst mistake that an entrepreneur can make is to ignore feedback from their employees. An entrepreneur should NEVER brush feedback off their shoulders like it is nothing, especially if it is coming from the people who hold your company together. Remember, you might be the rock of the company, but your employees are the ones that keep you grounded, so take their advice; your employee’s everyday experiences in the field will give you insight on how to manage your company successfully.

2.  Live in the attitude that there is always room for improvement.

Just because you have achieved many successes, you run a thriving company, or you are respected in your field does not mean you should stop trying to grow. Take time to educate yourself. Take workshops from those who have already achieved success in areas you want to better yourself in. Always be open to new ideas, and think outside the box.

3. Pick a mentor in your field of expertise and read, research, and learn everything about them.

Remember when you were younger, you had that one person you really idolized and looked up to. In your mind, this person was the superstar that you wanted to be. Now think about the entrepreneur you look up to. This could be a big shot like Steve Jobs or Bill Gates, or somebody less-known. Try your best to follow in path of success and learn from it everyday.

In summary, determine what areas you need to strengthen and follow a disciplined path of all these reasons that I gave you to be successful. You should never doubt your abilities to improve exponentially. Remember, the most successful entrepreneurs are the people who made mistakes, failed sometimes, but never gave up.

About the Author:

Danielle Levine works on Marketing for Appfluence. Appfluence is the creator of Priority Matrix, a collaboration tool that allows teams to work together more efficiently. When Danielle isn’t reading up on the latest about productivity, she’s writing about it on the Appfluence, Productivity 101.

This is a sponsored guest post.

Accounting is an important part of any small business. While it might not be the most glamorous part of your job, messing up your numbers can stunt the growth of your business, so you want to stay on top of it early and often. Before you dive in and start balancing your books, make sure you stay away from these 5 common mistakes.

1. Only Focusing on the Short Term

When you’re so involved in the day-to-day operations of your business, it’s easy to become fixated on quick wins and short-term success. However, when you’re looking to grow and expand, it’s important to remember that accounting is not just about keeping track of today’s numbers, but forecasting future growth and identifying financial risk. Check out this Entrepreneur article, which identifies best practices for forecasting revenue and growth, and show you how to use gross margin and profit margin to reconcile revenue and expense projections.

2. Not Invoicing Clients Fast Enough

Don’t wait. Invoices should be sent immediately after the product is delivered or the project has been completed. The sooner you bill a client, the sooner you get paid. Because your invoicing is tied to your cash flow, it’s important to have invoicing processes that are as streamlined as possible. In many small businesses this can be a challenge. A free invoicing app like Viewpost can help improve efficiency and eliminate paper when you invoice your clients. Learn more about it here.

3. Mis-Categorization of Expenses

There are fairly standard categories for expenses you can follow. However, expenses are often entered into the wrong categories or too many new categories are created. This can make balancing your books confusing and waste a lot of time. If you need help, this simple guide includes a list of general guidelines for standard categorization of your expenses, or check with an accountant for expertise and guidance. Better safe than sorry!

4. Trying to Do Everything Yourself

When you first started your small business, you may have been the only person managing finances — maybe you still are. However, as your business grows, managing your books on your own can become way more challenging. As a business owner, your time is valuable. You should be focused on what your business needs to grow. If you’re spending all your time on the accounting aspect of your business, the rest of your business may begin to suffer. Be aware of how you’re spending your time and don’t be afraid to hire an accountant at some level. You may not need a full-time bookkeeper right off the bat, and can instead turn to outsourced services or a part-time contractor.

5. Forgetting to Make Entries

This might seem like a no-brainer, but it’s the most important key to effective accounting. From small transactions to large payments, it’s important to record everything. If you’re not recording deposits accurately or depositing funds into the correct accounts, you’re messing with your bottom line. Find an intuitive accounting system designed for small businesses and set aside time every week to keep it up to date.

As a small business owner, other issues may often take precedence over accounting. However, it’s important to remember that your accounting system is one major aspect of your small business and should be seen as a long-term investment. If you take an active approach to your bookkeeping, your business will see a healthy boost in performance!

Viewpost created a business-to-business network that removes the barriers businesses face during the exchange of invoices and payments. By democratizing information flow, simplifying process and removing costs and complexity that deter adoption, Viewpost effectively connects people to payments within a network of possibilities.

With a single, free connection to the secure Viewpost® network, businesses of any size exchange electronic invoices and share invoice status updates with their trading partners at no cost. Viewpost members also exchange payment for those invoices electronically, sending funds directly between their accounts at any bank. To better manage cash flow, members with extra cash can offer to pay early for a discount and those who need cash can ask for early payment. And at the touch of a button, transaction data is seamlessly pulled from or into an accounting platform. All, without requiring businesses to change their current workflows.

On the Viewpost network, trading partners easily connect with one another to save the time, cost and aggravation associated with invoicing and payments. Viewpost eliminates paper invoices and checks, provides real-time visibility into receivables and payables, and improves cash flow to make everyday business more efficient than ever. It’s simple, and good for everyone.

I’ve got a guest post for you this week from Cat Rose of Cat Rose design 🙂

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It feels like ever since Gary Keller unleashed his book The ONE Thing on decision making and setting our focus to that ONE thing; we’ve all gone crazy trying to follow his advice.

Most of us are fully aware that we don’t get our best work done when we’re multitasking: we get distracted by the vibrations of our phone, the pings from social media, the 47 tabs in the browser…

It can feel pretty overwhelming to say the least!

However, just being aware of the ‘evils of multitasking’ doesn’t make it any easier to actually find our one thing to focus on – and then stick with it.

If the first step to focussing on one thing is actually deciding on what that one thing is – we’ve already got a problem on our hands.

How many of us can honestly feel assured that we’ve picked the one thing that’s right for us?

The story that hit home for me was the one about the donkey.

If you aren’t familiar with our donkey friend, the tale of ‘Buridan’s ass’ goes something like this:

A donkey (or ass) is standing halfway between a stack of hay and a pail of water. Unable to decide which to choose, the ass keels over and dies of hunger and thirst – and, indecision.

Fortunately, we’re smarter than this donkey!

We can decide on one thing by simply using psychology to overcome our ‘focus FOMO’: our fear that deciding one one thing will mean missing out on all other options we want to have.

To do this, we should approach our decision making in a scientific way. Time to get the labcoats on…

So we start with our hypothesis. That means we decide that picking X will give us the desired result.

Next we set ourselves some boundaries.

Our boundary could be time (for example, when picking a workout routine, we might assign 6 weeks to trial it and commit to it), or money (for example, running an advertising campaign until a set budget is used up).

Whatever you choose: the idea is to measure the results at the end of the experiment.

After that period of committing fully, you can feel free to turn around and either stick with your one thing – or jump ship and try something else.

The point is not to get so attached to the thing you pick and to chill out! Know that there is always the option to try something else if it’s not working out.

If only our donkey friend picked either hay or water – he could always have come back for the other later!

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5 Simple Steps to Focusing:

1) Start with your desired outcome.

By thinking about your end goal, you have something to measure success and progress by. Write this down! It really helps me to physically write it down – I seem to process the goal and remember it better than if I type it.

Then make sure to keep it visible – a post-it on the fridge, a big scribble on a chalkboard. I like to take a picture of my note and set it as my homescreen background on my phone. Not pretty but it gets the job done!

It’s also worth keeping in mind how realistic you think your goal is in that time. The classic ‘SMART’ goal acronym is my favourite way to remember this.

You want your goal to be:

S = Specific

M = Measurable

A = Attainable

R = Relavent

T = Time-bound

2) Pick your (first) focus

If there are various ways of reaching your end-goal, it can be easy to get distracted and overwhelmed all over again. For example, if your end goal was ‘lose 5 pounds’ then there are multiple things you could do to get there. It’s worth making a big old mind map to get everything out on paper. This is the one thing you’re going to be focussing on each day – so give it some thought! Remember, after the experiment is over, you can always try out your second choice.

3) Set a boundary

As I mentioned, having a boundary will help you know when or if to quit. So it could be a time deadline, a budget – something that gives you a hard date to pause your experiment, and measure your results.

4) Buckle down!

You’ve got your goal, you’ve got your focus for each day, now you have to follow through until you hit your boundary.

5) Review your progress

Once you reach your boundary, take a look back at your desired outcome. Did you nail it? Did you achieve partial results? Was your hypothesis correct? Evaluate and decide whether or not you want to continue or whether you want to try another route. Trial and error at it’s finest!

I’d love to know what you’re choosing to focus on right now. Send me a tweet @catrosedesign!

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This guest post was penned by Cat Rose, author and business consultant at Cat Rose Design. Cat helps people reach their goals through step-by-step guides and productivity tips. To receive your free module on how to save time on social media, simply add your email here.