Can You Really Claim to be an Entrepreneur?

Jean-Baptiste Say was a French Economist who lived from 1767-1832. He was best known for his Theory of Markets and their relationship to entrepreneurs. His Law of Markets holds that supply creates its own demand. For example, before the cell phone was created, did we know that we needed one? Not likely. However, once the i-phone or Android versions were created, our demand for them has grown immensely.

He goes on to expand his theory by generating three primary questions, as outlined by my own Business Coach Dan Sullivan, Founder of The Strategic Coach:

1. “As an individual entrepreneur, what are your personal resources that can quickly be taken to a higher level of productivity?”
   1. In essence, are you using your expertise/skill set to your maximum advantage? Are you spending 100% of your time “in the business” doing daily activities, or are you investing part of your time “on the business” planning your future course, as well as tracking your YTD progress both financially & in terms of business efficiencies?
   1. The interesting thing is that, regardless of your business size, the most optimal approach can yield large dividends, whether your revenues are $4 million or $20 million annually. I’ll have more on this in my next blog.
2. “As an entrepreneurial company, what are your organizational resources that can quickly be taken to a higher level of productivity?”
   1. Are your people being maximized? Is automation a possibility for your operation? I had a Client whose fruit packing facility was able to go from 10 to 4 employees with only partial automation. I also had a dairy Client whose milk barn automation, using robotics, allowed them to go from six milkers down to just two plus a part time relief person.
   1. The paybacks on these changes were huge, while also relieving the owners of considerable management time & effort.
3. “What are your… resources that can be quickly taken to a higher level of productivity?”
   1. Can your land & buildings be used differently? Do you even have some that are currently idle?
   1. With some simple changes, can we generate higher levels of productivity?

Take some time this week to think through some of these potential changes in your business. While some of them can be scary, the results you can achieve are often just what your business may need to get to the “Next Level!”