MOST Analysis

Mission Statement

The objective of the Priority Identification Phase of the program is to continue building on your work from the first three phases. By this juncture you have already established your goals and begun planning with those goals in mind. You have also evaluated the present state of both your business and your personal life in relation to your desired work-life balance and analyzed the feasibility that you are willing to do what it takes to make it happen. During this planning phase you will be guided through steps to analyze the data you have amassed and begin prioritizing the development, implementation, and testing. Again your mentor will be a valuable resource during this phase, providing guidance to help you prioritize your time and resources; critical in your quest to capitalize on opportunities and effectively allocate resources to maximize momentum while minimizing burnout. At this point in the program the curriculum and mentor will be focused on providing guidance to place emphasis on implementing strategies to work smarter instead of harder and to leverage strengths while compensating for weaknesses. Following the program, utilizing the mentor, and being coachable are all critical to the ultimate success of each participant. So, in simplistic terms, if you are able to consistently work smarter, not harder, then you can achieve a healthy work-life balance while also making more money. Once your priorities are identified and the steps are taken to rank and categorize these priorities into the proper order you will be ready to move into the next phase and start identifying your All-Star in-house and outsource partners.

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Objectives

01. Priority Identification: departmental SWOT analysis; strategy research & development. Time Allocated: 1 Month
02. Self Care: departmental SWOT analysis; strategy research & development. Time Allocated: 1 Month
03. Corporate Entrepreneurship: departmental SWOT analysis; strategy research & development. Time Allocated: 1 Month
04. Innovation: departmental SWOT analysis; strategy research & development. Time Allocated: 1 Month
05. Growing Funds: departmental SWOT analysis; strategy research & development. Time Allocated: 1 Month
06. Company Growth: departmental SWOT analysis; strategy research & development. Time Allocated: 1 Month
07. Processes: departmental SWOT analysis; strategy research & development. 1 Month
08. Communication: departmental SWOT analysis; strategy research & development. Time Allocated: 1 Month
09. Business Focus: departmental SWOT analysis; strategy research & development. Time Allocated: 1 Month
10. Culture: departmental SWOT analysis; strategy research & development. Time Allocated: 1 Month
11. Profitability: departmental SWOT analysis; strategy research & development. Time Allocated: 1 Month
12. Relationships: departmental SWOT analysis; strategy research & development. Time Allocated: 1 Month

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Strategies

01. Priority Identification: Each individual department head to undertake departmental SWOT analysis; strategy research & development.
02. Self Care: Each individual department head to undertake departmental SWOT analysis; strategy research & development.
03. Corporate Entrepreneurship: Each individual department head to undertake departmental SWOT analysis; strategy research & development.
04. Innovation: Each individual department head to undertake departmental SWOT analysis; strategy research & development.
05. Growing Funds: Each individual department head to undertake departmental SWOT analysis; strategy research & development.
06. Company Growth: Each individual department head to undertake departmental SWOT analysis; strategy research & development.
07. Processes: Each individual department head to undertake departmental SWOT analysis; strategy research & development.
08. Communication: Each individual department head to undertake departmental SWOT analysis; strategy research & development.
09. Business Focus: Each individual department head to undertake departmental SWOT analysis; strategy research & development.
10. Culture: Each individual department head to undertake departmental SWOT analysis; strategy research & development.
11. Profitability: Each individual department head to undertake departmental SWOT analysis; strategy research & development.
12. Relationships: Each individual department head to undertake departmental SWOT analysis; strategy research & development.

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Tasks

01. Create a task on your calendar, to be completed within the next month, to analyze Priority Identification.
02. Create a task on your calendar, to be completed within the next month, to analyze Self Care.
03. Create a task on your calendar, to be completed within the next month, to analyze Corporate Entrepreneurship.
04. Create a task on your calendar, to be completed within the next month, to analyze Innovation.
05. Create a task on your calendar, to be completed within the next month, to analyze Growing Funds.
06. Create a task on your calendar, to be completed within the next month, to analyze Company Growth.
07. Create a task on your calendar, to be completed within the next month, to analyze Processes.
08. Create a task on your calendar, to be completed within the next month, to analyze Communication.
09. Create a task on your calendar, to be completed within the next month, to analyze Business Focus.
10. Create a task on your calendar, to be completed within the next month, to analyze Culture.
11. Create a task on your calendar, to be completed within the next month, to analyze Profitability.
12. Create a task on your calendar, to be completed within the next month, to analyze Relationships.

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Introduction

What Are Your Company’s Top Priorities?

Business priorities are actions or goals that assist your team in completing day-to-day chores as well as additional responsibilities. This could entail making decisions or developing duties to help your company run more efficiently. Customer service, personnel management, and developing and implementing a marketing strategy are all examples of company goals. It’s critical to take your time when determining your business goals so that you can compile a comprehensive list that addresses all of your company’s requirements.

Make your company priorities measurable by including the actual amount of the improvement you want to see. If you want to grow your company’s sales by 50%, for example, you’d mention that number in your goals and make sure your team members are aware of it. Having a measurable figure can help to clarify your goal, increasing the likelihood that the organization will achieve it. Also, to assist your personnel in completing the goal, strive to make your business priorities apparent.

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Setting Company Priorities Has A Number Of Advantages

Setting business priorities has numerous advantages, including:

Managing Your Company

Business priorities might assist you in achieving your objectives. A mission statement is a declaration that defines a company’s vision or aims. Setting business priorities can assist you in achieving and exceeding your objectives by focusing on a single aim. Setting goals is also easy with a clear roadmap because you and your organization will know what the firm requires to achieve.

Locating Resources

Setting business priorities can also assist your organization in focusing on the things that will help it succeed. Business priorities can assist you figure out how much money you’ll need to reach your objectives. This can be in the form of time, money, business procedures, or outside assistance. Having business goals can also assist you in identifying and implementing business processes that could be improved.

Managing Your Workforce

Another advantage of establishing company priorities is that it can aid in the efficient management of your workforce. Employees can use business priorities to set their daily, weekly, and occasionally monthly activities to assist them achieve both personal and company objectives. Employee productivity may rise as a result of having a defined goal to strive for.

Making Plans For The Future

Defining corporate priorities can also aid in long-term planning. Because changes can occur unexpectedly, it’s critical to set goals that will assist your firm prepare for unanticipated outcomes or circumstances. This could include personnel layoffs or promotions, as well as the application of new laws or policies. If you have other investments or stocks, business priorities can also act as a safety net for your firm.

How to Prioritize Your Business

Here are seven stages to assist you determine your company’s business priorities:

1. Examine Your Company’s Mission Statement

Understanding and evaluating your company’s vision is the first step in determining your business priorities. Define the mission of your organization and how you and your workers will carry it out. Consider improving the readability and clarity of your mission statement so that your staff can readily express the company’s vision. You can visualize what priorities could assist you reach your company’s mission by examining your company’s vision. To aid you in this endeavor, make a list of precise statements that characterize your business so that you can explain its goal to others using relevant examples.

2. Make A List Of Your Strengths And Weaknesses

You can identify strengths and weaknesses inside your firm once you’ve defined and evaluated its vision. Reliable customer service, regular sales earnings, or an amazing database filing system are examples of strengths. Bad communication, a lack of backup plans, or poor money management are all possible flaws. Knowing your personal strengths and weaknesses can also help you figure out which aspects of your company you should outsource and which you should keep in-house.

3. Establish Objectives

You can begin identifying and creating your business priorities after completing the first two processes. Consider setting defined, attainable, and quantifiable objectives. The more specific and practical your objectives are, the more likely you and your team will achieve them. Measurable goals are essential for seeing visible and tangible achievements. Make it one of your business goals to address during meetings, for example, if you need additional product development ideas right now.

4. Collaborate With Other Members Of Your Team

Collaborate with your coworkers to select the most important priorities for your business. Set business priorities that enhance the company’s aim while also supporting the requirements of the workforce. Create work surveys, organize weekly meetings, or simply communicate more with your employees to achieve this. Employees can convey their ambitions for themselves and the firm when you communicate with them. Having conversations with staff and receiving input might help you figure out which areas need to be improved first.

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5. Sort By Importance

Consider ranking your company priorities by importance now that you have a general concept of what they are. Some items on your to-do list may be more urgent than others, so start with the most crucial ones. For example, if your accountant suddenly changed businesses, you should make finding a new person a top priority. By defining the role of each goal and how its presence affects the firm, you may determine which goals take precedence. Other goals may be less important to your company’s visions, so they can be worked on later.

6. Sort By Category

You can categorize your priorities as well. This is a smart technique to categorize your list items according to their relationship. Organizing your things by category makes it easier for you and your staff to organize and navigate your to-do list. If your company has a lot of similar goals that you could group together in one area, this is a good sort of organization to use. Finances, marketing and advertising, sales, and development are some examples of categories. Create these categories to meet the needs of your business.

7. Track Progress Of Results

You might experience excellent results in your organization if you set business priorities. This might refer to a variety of things, such as higher sales, productivity, or customer approval rates. It’s critical to keep track of your outcomes so that you can see tangible evidence of your company’s success. Tracking your results may demonstrate how important business priorities are to your firm, encouraging you and your workers to set new goals as needed.

Is it all work and no play? It’s possible that you’ll need to alter your approach to time management

Freedom is a top value for entrepreneurs, but it is not a top priority. That’s a mistake.

For entrepreneurs, finding extra time to enjoy life is analogous to hunting for the holy grail; unfortunately, your search will be fruitless. Yes, each day is only 24 hours long. It is, nevertheless, absolutely viable to increase your productivity at work in order to claim more personal time. It’s not so much about controlling the clock as it is about making the right decisions. It all comes down to personal values, priorities, and limits.

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What Are The Things That Are Most Important To You?

Work may appear to be the most important aspect of your life, but is it really? You obviously want your company to succeed, but at what cost? It’s not beneficial for you or your business if you’re missing out on life. Entrepreneurs who prioritize family, friends, self-care, and activities they enjoy do better in business, in my experience.

When entrepreneurs are questioned about their personal values, connections, along with financial independence, are at the top of their list. Many people assume that the financial freedom that their company will provide in the future must come first. Prioritizing what you value the most, on the other hand, can be a stimulant for success. This does not have to be the case if you have the appropriate mindset, make sensible choices, and set proper boundaries.

Make a list of your top three values and define them. What needs to be in place in your life for you to feel happy and complete? I’m sure independence is on the top of your list; after all, isn’t it why you became an entrepreneur in the first place? Allowing yourself frequent tastes of that independence, whether for free or for a fee, will help it become a more permanent part of your life.

Examine Your Priorities And Options Carefully

When entrepreneurs express dissatisfaction with the amount of time they have in the day, we immediately look into three things: the type of work they choose to do each day, the fears or concerns that keep them from doing what they should be doing, and the habits they’ve developed around how they spend time in the gaps between their productive action points.

Make A List Of Your Priorities And Break Negative Habits

How much time do you spend thinking about what you should do in between chores and appointments, only to become overwhelmed and/or confused? Or maybe you push ideas of what you should be doing out of your mind. How much time do you spend staring at emails or scrolling through social media? You may become engrossed in your research or planning for longer than is necessary. If you’re being completely honest with yourself, you’re probably wasting more time than you’re actually producing. These bad behaviors are generally used to make people feel busy but aren’t actually productive. This is due to a lack of clarity, feeling overwhelmed, and fearful procrastination.

Keeping A Time Journal Is A Good Idea

Workers’ expected workweeks were compared to actual time recorded in time diaries in this study. The results demonstrate that those who claimed their “typical” workweeks were longer than 75 hours were considerably off the mark. They overestimated by roughly 25 hours on average. These guys weren’t lying; if you don’t prioritize, it can feel like you’re working 75 hours a week. Non-productive activities fill in the blanks, and before you know it, dinner time has passed you by and it’s dark outside.

A time diary is useful since it can indicate time-wasters as well as how much non-entrepreneurial work you do. If you can employ someone to take part of your responsibilities off your plate, do so. If you use the time you’ve freed up wisely, the money will return back to you tenfold (or more).

Set Reasonable Limits

Do you set time limits for yourself? Strong limits will help you free up a lot of time, which you can (ideally) spend sleeping, eating, grooming, running errands, and having fun outside of work. Instead of allowing constant interruptions, limit your personal calls and schedule specific times to meet with employees, clients, and vendors. Turn off notifications and refrain from checking your email during the day. It’s rare that you’ll need to answer right away. Also, make sure you understand your vision, goals, and next steps completely. This insight will lead you through the process of making wise decisions.

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Make Decisions That Are Consistent With Your Ideals

Every week of the year, we all have 168 hours accessible to us. That’s a lot of time when you think about it. Your life will instantly improve if you build your schedule around the activities that are essential to you, rather than hoping for spare time to appear out of nowhere.

This does not mean that work should be prohibited totally during the evenings or on weekends. Let’s face it, you’re a business owner. It’s all about setting healthy priorities, getting rid of time wasters, and being flexible with your schedule.

Too many businesses like to live in chaos because it gives the impression that they are working hard to realize their goals. Rather, choose to work efficiently. Yes, sacrifices will still be made, but they will not be as frequent. There is a significant difference between the two.

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Case Study

A legal structure is one of the first things that companies must figure out. Nellie Akalp, a serial entrepreneur and the founder of CorpNet.com, assists startups and small business owners in protecting, managing, and staying in compliance with all legal obligations.

With her 16-year business partner and husband Phil, Akalp launched her incorporation filing service. After obtaining a $100 domain name in 1997, the pair launched their first business, an online legal document filing service, from their flat. They worked relentlessly to expand that business, and it soon began bringing in $1 million in sales every month. Intuit bought the company for $20 million in 2005.

However, they only retired for a short time before deciding in 2009 that they were ready to start a new business.

“We looked at the marketplace for incorporation filing services at the time and no one was offering a service that really benefitted their clients in the way I would want to engage with small business owners,” Akalp explains. “That’s when we decided to create a niche for ourselves and started CorpNet.com during the height of the recession.”

Here’s what she had to say:

Starting a firm during the height of the recession was difficult, but we were able to stay afloat because we were very responsive. We wanted to develop some fantastic content and spread it across numerous platforms when we established CorpNet.com because social media was really taking off at the time. We established our brand as experts on small businesses by using social media to carve out a place for ourselves.

Social media must be a part of your marketing plan if your company is to be successful. You might as well close your business if you don’t have an efficient social media strategy these days. It’s not enough to have it to run a business; you also need to know how to use it to engage current and new clients.

Making sure you know your priorities is the key to achieving a work-life balance. Maintaining a strong marriage with my spouse is one of my top responsibilities, especially when it comes to running a business and co-parenting with him. Another is ensuring that I am happy and healthy in order to be a good leader, mother, business partner, and wife. It all comes down to being organized, planning ahead of time, and creating time for me as a person.

Every day, I get to work alongside my best buddy, which is the most incredible thing I could ask for. It isn’t for everyone to run a business with their spouse, but it works for us. We’re able to put our egos on the back burner. If we can’t agree on a business decision, we’ll seek input from mentors and other colleagues. Even if they advise anything that goes against Team Phil or Team Nellie’s wishes, we’ll always choose the greatest solution for our company.

You can’t make success your objective if you want to be successful. The key for anyone who is just starting out with a new firm is to focus on becoming significant rather than being successful. You can and will achieve your objectives if you have the vision, drive, and determination. You can conquer any barriers or problems that come your way.

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Four Key Takeaways for Fast-Growing Businesses

1. Do not attempt to dominate the entire globe. Change is a constant in fast-growing businesses. The operating environment can change on a dime, so being able to analyze the situation quickly and prioritize the most important items to focus on is crucial. Attempting to tackle too many things at once exhausts you, and you rarely make meaningful progress in the manner you desire.

2. Keep your attention until you’re satisfied with your work. Jumping from priority to priority before you’ve made the progress you need is one pitfall. With a laser focus on fewer priorities, you and your team can ensure that your efforts are driving the organization in the most vital direction at the time.

3. It all boils down to balancing dynamic tensions. This, in my opinion, is what makes leadership so tough. The capacity to successfully assess your existing operating environment and prioritize work efforts while keeping in mind that you’re balancing your business on the head of a pin. Leaders must consider both the external and internal factors in order to achieve long-term success. We must maintain consistency while remaining adaptable to changes in the business environment. Quinn and Cameron’s competing values framework does an excellent job of describing the dynamic tensions that all leaders must manage if they are to be successful.

4. Prioritization and planning are iterative processes. Strategic planning cycles that last more than a few of years don’t appear to hold much water for most small, growing organizations. Because today’s corporate environment changes so quickly and radically, a shorter planning period is encouraged.This enables for a faster rate of evaluating and adapting one’s strategy. Companies begin to consider strategic planning as a continual learning and evolving process rather than an annual procedure by which they must live (or die) no matter what happens. An iterative approach like this allows firms to stay adaptable and prioritize the actions that will benefit them the most at any given time.

It’s not easy to run a fast-growing corporation. As an entrepreneur, there are many things that demand your attention in today’s fast-paced business world. Understanding the context in which you operate, identifying all possible areas of focus, and being disciplined enough to devote your full attention to a prioritized subset of tasks will allow you to have a greater impact in the areas that matter most to your success. As things in your environment change, you can use this good momentum to take a step back and examine and alter your priorities.

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Executive Summary

Chapter 1: Priority Identification

Why Should Business Owners Prioritize Tasks?

Entrepreneurs are in charge of a variety of tasks related to launching a firm, including crafting a business plan, developing a marketing strategy, establishing a successful hiring procedure, and managing finances. You’re more prone to overlook important responsibilities and miss deadlines if you’re overwhelmed.

“As an entrepreneur, more than any other role, you have limited time to accomplish a never-ending list of tasks and to-dos,” said Felipe Zambrano, vice president of Avatrade Marketplace. “As a result, it’s critical to organize your time in order to be the most effective and move your company faster.”

Entrepreneurs must acquire a handle on what needs to be done, when it needs to be done, and to whom they may delegate for the health of their firm – and their own well-being.

“You only have so much time during your day to get things done,” said Forrest McCall, owner of entrepreneurship blog Don’t Work Another Day. “By wasting time on tasks that do not yield results in growth for your business, you might find your business stagnant. By prioritizing tasks with the highest return on investment, your business can see tremendous growth.”

How Does An Entrepreneur Prioritize Tasks?

Organize your projects and manage your time in a logical manner. This guarantees that essential business issues are addressed and that your time is well utilized. Sort your responsibilities into priority order and schedule your week appropriately.

Use the ABCD task-management strategy to rank your obligations.

Improving productivity entails allocating your time wisely, which begins with planning. Follow these four success tips:

1. First and foremost, establish your “A” priority. Consider what your primary concentration would be if you had nothing else to accomplish the next day. There were no meetings, calls, or reports — nothing. Begin with a clean slate. What factors would have an impact on your long-term results? The answers are your “A” priorities: key activities that help you move forward with your main goals. Hiring a new account manager, preparing a large proposal, or opening a new branch site are examples of “A” priority. These high-priority tasks should account for 20% to 30% of your time.

2. Take care of your “B” obligations. The activities in your job description that must be completed today — the duties that keep you active – are referred to as “B” activities. Corresponding with clients, processing claims, overseeing staff, inputting data, reviewing contracts, sending products, or updating a database are all examples of “B” tasks. Most employees spend extra 30% to 40% of their time at work on “B” responsibilities. After you’ve completed a “A” responsibility, attend to them.

3. Put the “C” requirements where they belong. The unexpected or unwritten portions of your job that must be completed are referred to as “C” activities. “C” requirements are frequently created for you while you design your “A” priorities. Department meetings, routine requests, expense reports, filing, sorting, and reading updates are just a few examples. 20 percent to 25% of your time should be spent on “C” chores. Your paperwork alone can take up to five hours each week within this context. Traveling is a “C” requirement as well. It must be completed, but it is not a critical component of your job’s success.

4. Eliminate all “D” activities. Finally, there are activities that begin with the letter “D.” The letters “D” stand for “delete,” “delay,” “delegate,” and “drop.” Casual online surfing, delegating tasks, and reading email newsletters are all examples of “D” activities. Fixing a photocopier jam, waiting for software to load, or calling the help desk are all “D” tasks that take up a lot of time technologically. Be on the lookout for “D” activities. Miscellaneous time can account for up to 5% of a week’s work.

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Chapter 2: Self Care

The Most Important Factor In Maintaining A Healthy Relationship With Yourself And Your Company

The road to entrepreneurship is not always easy.

More than just sales training and strategy are required to focus on obtaining appropriate clients, producing sales, and driving your sales success.

Starting and building your own company is nothing like working for someone else; in fact, selling for your own company is extremely different than selling for someone else.

Success in business needs us to show up as our actual selves in our marketing, branding, and conversations with potential consumers when we are our brand. This raises a whole new set of concerns that require far more than simply business training; maintaining mental and physical health is critical for long-term business viability.

Growing a business online necessitates us as entrepreneurs being visible on social media on a regular basis, which can lead to tiredness if we don’t take pauses.

Self-care has become somewhat of a buzzword in recent years, but simply taking 20 minutes after each solid block of work, rather than leaping from one activity to the next, can make a significant impact in our mental health and wellness.

You must do both the inner and outside work as an entrepreneur, and the more successful you become, the more vital this becomes.

Meditation, self-help literature, thinking practices, and even therapy can help you maintain a happy and healthy attitude in both life and work.

Make Self-Care A Priority In Your Life

Yes, we must put in the effort, which necessitates some ‘hustle,’ especially when we are just getting started in our businesses, but self-care should be an integral part of your work week.

Long baths, nature walks, massages, and meditation are examples of this, but whatever makes you feel good is what you should do.

Self-care is important for two reasons: first, it prevents burnout and keeps us sane and well, but it also allows our creative juices to flow, which is where you’ll get your best business ideas as an entrepreneur when we’switch off’ from work.

Assemble a support group of people who are familiar with the reality of being your own boss. This isn’t always our friends or family, but rather new people we encounter on the job.

Having a network of peers who are on the same path as y