Life and Business Improvement

In nature, there is a cycle which brings great blessing to the earth. It is known as the hydrological cycle. It takes two process, through evaporation and rainfall. In evaporation, water evaporates from the oceans and lakes, then rises in the air mass and forms clouds. Then the moisture condenses and comes down as rain to water the earth. This makes the land fruitful and productive. The excess rainfall overflows back to the lakes and oceans where it comes from and this process begins again. In business, the products or services you are offering to the market has its cycle that it must follow. The theoretical aspect which also applies in the practical starts from the initiation/development of such a product or service to its introduction, growth, maturity, saturation and decline. Once it gets to the declining stage, the product or service has completed its cycle and must start all over again. This hydrological cycle has to be understood by every business man or woman and anybody that wa

Spending has been part of our lives since money replaces trade by barter. My grandma used to put all of her cash in the cookie jar. As farm produce were sold, it went into the cookie jar. As needs arose, the money to pay for them was taken out of the cookie jar. When the cookie jar was empty, there was no more spending until more cash was earned. As time went on and the management of expenses became more complex for grandma, she gave up cookie jar and started to use an envelope system. Money was placed in various envelopes according to the allocations of the income – one envelope for soup ingredients, one envelope for clothes, one envelope for school fees, one envelope for medicine, and one envelope for giving. Despite using envelopes, the cookie jar principles still applied. The income was allocated and placed into the envelopes, and money was spent in the various areas allotted. When an envelope was empty, the spending stopped until more cash was earned and placed in it. In examinin

One day on a cool weathered Thursday, I strolled down stairs of my office into a jewelry store just to assess the prices of things. On getting into the store, I noticed a well-dressed young man purchasing a Rolex watch. I noticed that a Rolex watch has become a symbol of success among young men. This man was purchasing a relatively inexpensive $3,000 Rolex (many sell for over $20,000), and yet, when the receipt was written up, I noticed that it was for $10,200. I thought there must be some mistake, but it turned out that the price of the watch was $30,000. But this man had purchased the watch with $1,500 down payment and a balance payable for one year. When he walked out of the store with that watch on, he was giving the impression that he could afford a Rolex wrist watch. Yet the question is, could he really? We all make such mistakes in our financial life. In fact I made such a million times. I have seen and hold money but always, it disappear before my very eyes. Many of you have pa

Ideas it is said, rules the world. This statement is as true as the spoken words of God. Ideas put food on the table, ideas puts money in the pocket. Ideas sets one apart from the crowd. Ideas are vital ingredients that the soup of this world cannot do without. So where can you get ideas that will put money into your pocket? The first place to get good ideas is within you. You hear me right – within you is full of ideas that can make you one of the richest person the world has ever known. Lets look at it this way, when God created the world, did He created us with the cars we drive today? Okay, lets look at it another way, when God created us, did He created us with the light bulb we are using today? I am sure you are understanding yourself now. When God created us, did He created us with the computer? So if God did not created us with these things, where did they come from? They were all hidden within us. Some hundred years back, Henry Ford has an idea within him that he wants people

There was a little boy whose father asked him one day: “What would you like to be when you grow up?” and he replied, “I’d like to be the best footballer.” The next day, as early as 5am, his dad came to his room and woke him up. When he checked the time, he was surprised that his father would wake him up so early. He said, “Daddy it is just 5am, I still have to sleep.” But his father said, “No, my boy. Last night you said you wanted to be the best footballer. If that is going to happen, then you have got to learn to wake up early, jog and train every day. If you do this until you are eighteen years old, you will be the best.” Reluctantly, the boy got up from bed and went to jog with his daddy. The interesting part of the story is that the boy ended up being the best. What does this tell us? It is not enough to make a decision for success; you have got to wake up early and start heading towards your goal. You can’t still be in bed at 8am in the morning and expect to be the best; it does

Internet, e-commerce, e-business, cyber-commerce or whatever you choose to call it, has come to stay. In the real sense, Internet is embracing comprising so many units such as e-business, e-shopping, e-health, e-mail and all the Es. Internet is a technology that has accelerated the way business is conducted. It has enhanced the way business transactions are carried out more than any technology that has ever been invented. In fact Internet is invented for business. The world over, Internet is accepted more than football. Internet has increased the profitability of many companies from zero percent to ninety-nine percent. The Internet has made millionaires from “dumb heads” more than the best medical device can do. In this age, if you are not utilisation the benefits of Internet for your business, you are operating twenty-three hours behind the clock. How well is your business benefiting from this money minting technology? This is a question I know that will put many of you at the excuse

Can your integrity and character recognize each other if they meet in the dark? I want you to ponder over this question, have an answer to it before continuing the reading of this article. Let me asked you in another way, ‘can somebody believe you for who you are?’ Do you keep your words? If you promise to do something, do you keep your promise? These are very vital questions that deal directly with your integrity, reputation and character. They determine how your customers, friends, colleagues and even family members look at you. If you made a promise to your child, keep it. Don’t underrate him/her. Because, what they see you doing as a father or mother, they will eventually follow suit. It is better not to promise than promise and fail to keep it. If you know what you are promising is not possible for you to keep, apologize to the person and explain why you can’t keep your promise. It may hurt initially, but the pains can be easily absorbed more than that of disappointment. If you p

Life has phases and stages. It is like educational pursuit. If you don’t start from primary school, nobody will admit you into secondary school, likewise, if you don’t finish secondary school, no one will admit you into the university even if your father is the VC; so is life. You must follow life stages, whether you like it or not. The Holy Book says “there is time for everything under the sun. The time to be born, the time to be married and be given to marriage…” So wait for your time, it will surely come. And when it finally comes, you will shine in spite of your age. I hear people comparing themselves with others “just see Peter of yesterday is now driving a car. When we were in school, I use to teach him, so and so…” You don’t need to look at other people like that. It is their time that is why they are “enjoying”; when your own time comes, no one will stop it – not even the witches and wizards in your entire village. Looking at people like that brings envy and jealousy; and this

Customers are the reason why businesses exist. Without customers, there will be no business. That is why the adage that ‘customer is a king’ cannot be disputed. Building customer trust and loyalty is not only based on strong brand but the company’s promotional programmes and their customers’ treatment. Both selling and influencing suffer from the similar misconception that success requires a company to aggressively or cleverly push a product or idea. This misunderstanding leads to inappropriate behaviours. For example, people can become evasive, aggressive, or overly talkative and agreeable. Selling and influencing depends on getting behaviour right, by moderating openness and assertiveness with warmth and competence. Combined with a great product or brand, this goes a long way to building customer loyalty. Knowledge of customers’ needs and appealing to customers’ emotions is a key factor in building trust and bond with customers. This trust is used to develop stronger bonds and grea

This article is motivated by one of my female readers who text me that she want to start a business but don’t know what to do and don’t have money. The first step involved in starting a business is your desire to start, which is the fuel of success. Desire when natured can become an instrument of achievement. Secondly, believe that what you desire will surely come to be. It may not be within one year or two not even three but as far as you are alive, it will be fulfilled. Thirdly, identify the kind of business you want to start and why (your purpose). You have to know the purpose why you are going into business. Is it financial gains, to be your boss or what? The next thing is, you have to love what you are doing. Don’t just go into a business because your friends want you to or you see people rushing into it. If you don’t love what you do, the business will become a burden to you. Have the knowledge of how the business is run or operated.  Many peopl

Effect not Equal to Cause when Planning a Strategy When reviewing a business it is essential to cut through the symptoms of problems and reach the underlying causes. Questions which can assist in revealing the real causes include: ·          "What stopped the business from?" ·          "What caused the cause of?" ·          "Why didn't the business achieve a 25% return?" By way of an example consider why this company may be unable to increase its market share: Because it cannot penetrate major customers, because its product range is too narrow because the company doesn't have the capability to produce additional products, because of shortcomings in R & D because of a lack of expertise and resource because R & D is not an immediate priority because of a lack of profits because of a high interest burden because the company is over-reliant on borrowings because the share

The Vision The first step in developing a strategic plan is to develop a realistic Vision for the business. This should be presented as a pen picture of the business in three or more years time in terms of its likely physical appearance, size, activities etc. If someone from the Mars visit your business, what would he see (or sense)? Consider its future products, markets, customers, processes, location, staffing etc. Here is a great example of a vision: I will go to America, which is the country for me. Once there, I will become the greatest bodybuilder in history.......... I will go into movies as an actor, producer and eventually director. By the time I am 35 I would have starred in my first movie and I will be a millionaire...... I will collect houses, art and automobiles. I will marry a glamorous and intelligent wife. By 40, I would have been invited to the White House. The Mission The nature of a business is

If you don't know where your business is going, any road will get you there. Entrepreneurs and business managers are often so preoccupied with the immediate issues that they lose sight of their ultimate objectives. That's why a business review or preparation of a strategic plan is a virtual necessity. This may not be a recipe for success, but without it a business is much more likely to fail. A sound plan should: Serve as a framework for decisions or for securing support/approval. Provide a basis for more detailed planning. Explain the business to others in order to inform, motivate & involve. Assist benchmarking & performance monitoring. Stimulate change and become building block for next plan. A strategic plan should not be confused with a business plan. The former is likely to be a (very) short document whereas a business plan is usually a much more substantial and detailed