Be Prepared to Succeed: Do Your Homework before Starting New Businesses and Jobs

My first business school course was in marketing management. The professor told us that most marketing problems occurred because those in charge of marketing failed to do their homework about what customers wanted and needed.

We were curious about that observation and asked him why this was the case, and the professor said he had no certain answer. His best guess was that people became comfortable with what they were doing and didn't want to travel much or meet many new people.

Since then, I've counseled thousands of entrepreneurs about starting new businesses and even more business people about changing jobs. From what these people have told me, the marketing professor was too narrow in his observation that marketing problems are due to managers not doing the necessary homework. Entrepreneurs and those looking for jobs usually don't do their homework either, often leading to disastrous consequences.

Whenever I check on former students of my small-business classes, I am struck that their problems could have been avoided if the students had done homework that they skipped. As a result of operating in ignorance, the small business owners either find it too difficult to find customers, spend more money than they can afford to attract customers, or make expensive operating mistakes in providing what isn't wanted instead of what is desired.

Here's an example of useful homework that a small-business owner can use to avoid such problems. For most small businesses, there are only a few thousand potential customers. Starting with a random sample of those potential customers, those starting up small businesses can gain highly accurate perspectives of what they will face by first interviewing and observing 300 people.

Every problem identified during the interviews and observations will save those starting up small businesses thousands of dollars annually. As a result, the value of such investigations can be hundreds of thousands of dollars over just a few years. I carefully explain that point to every person I meet who is interested in establishing a new small business.

How often do these entrepreneurs conduct the necessary interviews and observations before starting their businesses? Less than one percent of small-business entrepreneurs I meet ever take this essential step.

Instead, I've seen entrepreneurs spend their last nickel (often wasting as much as hundreds of thousands of dollars) to develop products and services few people want . . . a lesson which could have been discovered at little cost through interviews and observations.

Job seekers often aren't any better about doing their homework before taking a job. Rarely does someone learn enough about a position that is being considered to know what the work is like, how to work smoothly with their potential boss, what knowledge and experience are required to succeed, and the personal benefits and costs of such work. Not surprisingly, many people don't like their jobs and start looking for new ones after only six months.

Consider, by contrast, what a trial lawyer does. One of the cardinal rules of courtroom effectiveness is never to ask a question for which the attorney doesn't know the answer. Just to meet that test often requires hundreds of hours asking questions of potential witnesses and reviewing documents. The trial lawyer may also employ investigators, experts, and jury consultants to fine-tune the information to gain more insight and to make it more useful for the client's benefit.

As you can imagine, a conscientious trial lawyer might learn from the importance of being thorough to do a lot more homework in developing a new business or looking into a new job than even conscientious business people do. My expectation on this point was validated recently when I met Professor Andrew Goodman of Rushmore University (an online school), a well-respected barrister (trial lawyer) in England.

Professor Goodman deeply impressed me with how much homework he is willing to do before starting a new job or business. After he approached Rushmore about teaching conflict management and dispute resolution on a part-time basis, he decided that he needed proper preparation to teach the courses and requested that the dean allow him to be the first student to earn an MBA degree in the program he had designed. Why did he make this decision? He felt that he should experience the program from the graduate business student's perspective before teaching it to anyone. The school's dean accepted that proposal and served as Professor Goodman's academic advisor and tutor.

From his MBA studies, Professor Goodman reports that he gained important skills in disciplining his time and being flexible in his study methods. More importantly, he gained a better ability to connect with and empathize with students studying for graduate business degrees while holding down full-time jobs. His students have appreciated that part of his learning the most.

The benefits for Professor Goodman didn't stop there. Developing the curriculum, earning an MBA degree, and beginning to teach business students were just the beginning of a major new business he later launched. Here's how he did it:

First, he reshaped the course material he had prepared into four books and approximately 20 published articles that explain his views on conflict management and dispute resolution.

Second, he revised the course material to make it appropriate for training non-lawyers outside of a university setting and began a new business offering training in conflict management and dispute resolution.

Third, earning an MBA helped him realize how lawyers could be more effective in managing their activities. As a result, he developed a training program to share that learning as another offering for his new training business.

Here is some essential homework you should prepare before starting a new business.

1. Interview a statistically significant, random sample of potential customers who don't know you to find out what they buy now, where they buy, what they like and don't like about what they buy, what needs they have that no one is serving, and what it would take to make them curious about your offerings.

2. Observe a substantial number of purchasers and users of these offerings to see what problems they have that weren't mentioned in the interviews. Ask the people who are observed about those problems and discuss how they would like the problems to be solved.

3. Read at least five books containing business plans that were written by people who have started reasonably similar businesses which describe the results they experienced.

4. Work in different kinds of positions at least three similar businesses for at least two weeks to find out how the businesses operate and what the key challenges are.

5. Learn about business model innovation and develop an improved business model that will attract and serve customers better than competitors.

Here are some job-related homework assignments to do before you take a new position.

1. Ask people with varying lengths of experience in this type of work how long most people stay in this position and why they leave it.

2. Find at least three people who used to do this kind of work and don't ever want to do it again. Ask them why they feel that way.

3. Locate the most successful three people you can who have done this job and find out what these persons' views are on how to be highly successful in the position and to gain satisfaction from the work.

4. Talk to as many people as you can who have been laid off or fired by your potential boss to find out how they view working for the boss.

5. Talk to as many people as you can who have received promotions after working for your potential boss to find out how they describe working for the boss.

Naturally, if you want to do even more homework, you can also add some relevant education to your preparations. If you do, study what you can use every day in the new business or job.

Be prepared to succeed!

About the Author

Donald W. Mitchell is a professor at Rushmore University, an online school. For more information about ways to engage in fruitful lifelong learning at Rushmore to increase your success, visit

http://www.rushmore.edu

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Patients Are Dying For Attention

Every year, multiple personal injury claims are brought against the National Health Service because of medical negligence cases that have either led to the death or serious injury of a patient.

The NHS has held an enviable reputation over the years as an institution dedicated to the health of the nation.It has been funded by the government and by tax payers money and, although it has experienced its ups and downs within its management, by and large it has been a worthwhile organisation that has saved the lives of millions of people through diagnosis and treatment.

However, the money that is ploughed into a system that Britain was so proud of, has tailed off.The investment from the government is not what it once was and with the growing population and the fact that people are now living longer, there is an ever-increasing strain on the NHS.

Because of this, drugs are not uniformly available to everyone, hospitals are having to use contractors for cleaning and cooking - something that would once have been done by hospital staff trained in absolute cleanliness - and there is a severe shortage of staff with the few available working unacceptably long hours and under performing in their duties.

This leads to untold difficulties.Human error is a part of life but when it comes to having peoples lives in your hands, standards have to be that much higher.Because they are not, mistakes are made, people suffer personal injury at a time when they have no choice other than to put their full trust in a failing system and they have to trust their lives to the doctors and nurses who are, themselves, suffering unbearable pressures.

Personal injury from medical negligence is something that is occurring more and more frequently.Doctors are tired after working double shifts and attention to detail unfortunately comes at the expense of patient's lives.Just this week, a twenty nine year old social worker lost her life to medical negligence after a hospital stay saw her have an operation to remove gall stones.

Normally a relatively straight forward procedure, there is a risk of internal bleeding afterwards and despite the woman's cries for help, doctors were too busy to attend to her.Her family were at her bedside and repeatedly asked the doctors to help her but they insisted she didn't need a review.

Vital signs were not regularly checked and many of the basic checks that would normally have been carried out, were missed.The woman bled to death in extreme pain.

It seems unbelievable in the modern day, with all our modern equipment and the amount of tax money that we all pay, that this could possibly happen.We are not talking about some third world shack style hospital with the local witch doctor performing rudimentary operations, this is modern day Britain with all its high-tech, well-researched, well tested and proven medical practices.

It seems ironic that we are losing people in these types of surroundings when it just seems so unnecessary.

Because of this, families are often desperate for answers and are just as often met with a wall of silence from hospital staff.This is immensely frustrating for those left behind.Their loved one goes for what should be a routine operation and never comes home due to something as simple as a lack of attention.

When hospital managers are not forthcoming with answers, families will often seek the assistance of a personal injury lawyer.When the hospital finds it has a law suit on its hands, they will then sit up and take notice.Compensation is often paid out in high amounts in these cases, and rightly so.

Yet for the families, it is more about finding out what went wrong and also for someone to be held accountable.Death of a loved one is one of the most difficult things to come to terms with but in this day and age, without explanation, it can be even harder.

About the Author

Shaun Parker is a leading legal expert with many years of experience in the compensation industry.

Find out more about personal injury at http://www.stewartslaw.co.uk

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The Intentional F&I Manager-Part 1

An Intentional F&I Manager does things with a purpose, and on purpose

Its an exciting day in the F&I Department and many F&I Professionals are reaching record performance levels. As the economy struggles and the prices of everything from gas to groceries rises sharply, people are more watchful of their money. They will only buy things that have real value to them. Thats exactly the kind of customers I want in front of me

The "Intentional" F&I Manager does things with a purpose and on purpose The F&I Professional has a well-developed belief in his products. He knows what they cover and how they benefit the customer.

Other, less "Intentional", F&I Managers complain how tough it is and make excuses for under-performing. When you ask these F&I Managers what went wrong last month, certain are contiguous to lead out that their failure was due to a handful external factor, which prevented one another delight in accomplishing their purpose. "Vagrant manner by Sales Managers, sales employees and those darn local credit unions are killing us", is whatever you will take heed to. The cleanly thing you can be sure to pull off in F&I without strategically struggle is ruin Creating came around dealerships as regards to the nation-state, there emerges a specific variance between the prosperous F&I managers and the less than-performers. The flourishing F&I Manager realizes a lot added objects intentionally than their not up to-operating peers. Lets stock a glance at the street of an "Intentional F&I Chief".

Suffer an "Intentional Plan"
A specialist football artist that realizes not realize the playbook and a expert baseball performer that refuses to take batting exercises pass through one mania in general. They are destined to upset An F&I Authority must understanding an intentional plan by atmosphere goals, practicing his build and operating to constantly hone his prosperity or they are destined to dissatisfy as anyhow

The side road to an intentional F&I wareses steadily begins along furthermore setting goals. Each day, journal and publication projections should be thoughtfully envisioned to invite outbreak and bestow a target to leap for. Goals must be joint along furthermore the dealer or GM to enable themselves to have room for us in charge in our efforts to raise our production. Relating these on a daily reason will stock our month loves going adrift and carry us on go after. In my incident, I experience received there to be three classifications of Ambition setters: Gamble-Takers, Tenderness-Takers and Less than-Takers

The Dice-Taker is always seeking for further brand knowledge and will book consistently to maximize his prosperity so he can give a customer concentrating and review developing presentation. These are the managers who are fun to book in addition to, as they are for all time starving for acumen, and repeatedly strive to become improved at their make.

The Affection-Taker requests naught to do also the difficulty to maximize. If they can effortlessly hold the status quo and recommence to stay at their fresh level of production they are agitated. All of their excitement is absorbed on making agreed numbers dont go losing, not on acting to see each other go up

The Not up to-Taker is the boss that bothers me the more or less. Their crave to learn and accelerate gave up the ghost a long-lasting episode ago. Their deep-seated drive is to catch an F&I outlook at a dealership where no one expects a lot of. Minimal manner expectations, no stress to improve, easily absolute the work, and vend whatever the buyer needs to buy. At all they put on the market is unintended, since the customer desirable it.

Its moment for these managers to get hold of something else to do.

Review your production more than the previous 90 years and ascertain how intentional your policy has been and class a determination to turn into a Gamble-Taker Your lucks for victory add to in proportion to the epoch you assign maneuvers, provision and envisaging for your then buyer. You must transform extraordinarily intentional as well as behold to preparing practice conduct as allotment of your each day each day.

Clients these days appeal passed through professionals. They required a big shot who worries regarding their precise situation, and who has the proficiency to abet one another class good decisions.Excepting they dig up a professional in the F&I office, they will disregard the event as beside the point, and a wilderness of their time. Workers will fervently pay for factual skill. It is your affair to throw in it to one another

Every week, you must spend episode springing up ways and convalescing your ability to effectively inundate purchaser objections by way of the use of visual aids and improved entails-step forward inquiries. You hunger to role-functions, videotape and synopsis actual deliveries to improvement foresight on your presentation, or organize an in-contain consultation by your dealerships drills provider in demands to suffer your consultative sales manners evaluated. You should calendar 20 minutes into every day to exercises your build. No Excuses You cant add to your income level any higher on the outside than you grow on the in.


As regards to the Architect

Inventor Bio
Ron Reahard is senior practice adviser for Reahard Associates Inc.,which provides customized in-dealership FI exercises,

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The Intentional F&I Manager-Part 1

An Intentional F&I Manager does things with a purpose, and on purpose

Its an exciting day in the F&I Department and many F&I Professionals are reaching record performance levels. As the economy struggles and the prices of everything from gas to groceries rises sharply, people are more watchful of their money. They will only buy things that have real value to them. Thats exactly the kind of customers I want in front of me

The "Intentional" F&I Manager does things with a purpose and on purpose The F&I Professional has a well-developed belief in his products. He knows what they cover and how they benefit the customer.

Other, less "Intentional", F&I Managers complain how tough it is and make excuses for under-performing. When you ask these F&I Managers what went wrong last month, most are quick to point out that their failure was due to some external factor, which prevented them from achieving their goal. "Poor performance by Sales Managers, sales recruits and those darn local credit unions are killing us", is what you will pick up. The competently craze you can be agreed to triumph in F&I without strategically effort is ruin Making came over dealerships almost the country, there emerges a definite change between the flourishing F&I managers and the less than-performers. The thriving F&I Supervisor achieves a lot additional bits and pieces intentionally than their below-performing peers. Lets hold a peep at the street of an "Intentional F&I Superior".

Know-how an "Intentional Plan"
A expert football artist that does not acquaint with the playbook and a specialist baseball actor that refuses to hold batting maneuvers suffer one thing in all-purpose. They are destined to dishearten An F&I Expert must have an intentional strategy by surroundings goals, practicing his make and performing to consistently hone his prosperity or they are destined to fail as anyhow

The street to an intentional F&I merchandises constantly begins and environment goals. Each day, journal and weekly projections should be thoughtfully configured to invite growth and provide a target to hop for. Goals must be common plus the dealer or GM to enable themselves to admit us guilty in our efforts to raise our production. Repeating these on a every day basis will take our month relishes surging adrift and hold us on go after. In my event, I tolerate received there to be three classes of Objective setters: Bet-Takers, Care-Takers and Not up to-Takers

The Wager-Taker is often craving for extra make savvy and will work reliably to maximize his acquisitions so he can bestow a customer fixed and analyze building presentation. These are the managers who are fun to book also, for they are steadily ravenous for shrewdness, and constantly strive to turn into more adept at their make.

The Fondness-Taker desires zero to do also the pressure to accelerate. If they can just stock the status quo and recommence to stay at their novel level of production they are agitated. All of their energy is absorbed on creating sure numbers dont go losing, not on performing to see each other go up

The Below-Taker is the boss that troubles me the certain. Their hunger to master and intensify gave up the ghost a long time ago. Their fundamental spur is to find an F&I feelings at a dealership where no one expects a great deal of. Minimal manner expectations, no strain to intensify, effortlessly complete the job work, and market it whatsoever the customer requests to buy. Whatever they put on the market is unplanned, since the customer considered necessary it.

Its moment for these managers to search out something in addition to do.

Examine your production higher than the last 90 years and resolve how intentional your strategy has been and variety a determination to become a Wager-Taker Your chances for triumph raise in percentage to the era you deplete practice, planning and envisaging for your subsequently purchaser. You must become extraordinarily intentional and observe to scheduling practice action as portion of your daily routine.

Clients these days bid competent professionals. They solicited anyone who worries with reference to their precise situation, and who has the knowledge to support themselves variety accepted decisions.Unless they get your hands on a professional in the F&I place of business, they will disregard the affair as unrelated, and a desert of their period. People will willingly pay for authentic skill. It is your interest to throw in it to one another

Every week, you must assign age springing up ways and recouping your aptitude to fruitfully weigh down purchaser objections via the use of visual aids and improved demand-breakthrough inquiries. You desire to role-perform, videotape and review real deliveries to gain foresight on your presentation, or organize an in-suit consultation by your dealerships exercises provider in make a request to know-how your consultative sales manners evaluated. You should plan 20 minutes into every day to drills your generate. No Excuses You half truths augment your proceeds level any higher on the outside than you grow on the in.


Almost the Discoverer

Discoverer Bio
Ron Reahard is senior maneuvers consultant for Reahard Associates Inc.,which offers customized in-dealership FI maneuvers,

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