1. Expanding awareness is the master-key. A Business doesn’t generate $1M, $5M, $10M, or whatever it generates because that’s all they want to generate. It’s all they are aware of how to generate. By expanding awareness within the business, revenue can be increased. As long as employees only know A, B, & C, they can only produce C-level results; they can only recognize C-level opportunities. But, the moment employee’s awareness is expanded to understand D, E, & F, now they can produce F-level results; they can recognize F-level opportunities.

2. If a business is doing business the same way they were 5 years ago, they’re going out of business. For some, the “going out of business” process may be only a few months while for others it may take years. But it’s happening nevertheless. In simple and plain terms, business owners and executives must either maintain a constant drive to get better or they better figure out how to liquidate and get out before they and the other people in the business get hurt.

3. Mental laziness, paradigms, habit patterns, conditioning, the pull to be like others, the ego and arrogance of success – these are the enemies of every person and every business and they must be overcome on a continual basis. The determining factor for a business is whether or not the folks at the top of the business overcome in these areas. If the thinking and attitude of the folks at the top is “soured”, then the really good employees will move on to a better environment while all the remaining employees simply conform to what they see at the top.

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1. Be aware of what your competition is doing but don’t “compete” with them. To do so results in a game of “leapfrog” – this year your product’s a little better, next year, theirs is a little better, etc. This is a tough way to do business. This is the way to stay at breakeven or less. Instead, keep your focus on your customers and on how to “create” a better world for them. You’ll soon be so far ahead of the competition that it will just be you and your customers in the game. Where does one start in getting out of this game of leapfrog? That leads us to the next tip…

2. Start the ball rolling with strategy. Developing a strategy – a plan of action to reach a certain destination or goal – is the start. Think of all the most successful businesses that you know of or have heard of. What is their strategy? They all have one. Some have referred to this as a big, hairy, audacious goal. This is how a business moves away from reactive mode and into proactive mode. This is how you “energize” your employees – they become a part of something that is bigger than themselves – really turning them on. Here are some questions to ask. What opportunities already exist that match and align with your strategy and will move you closer to its fruition? What new opportunities can be created to get you closer to the realization of your strategy? Now, apply massive action on ALL of these opportunities to win – and win BIG! Strategy is the start. But, to really bring it on home, you must remember…

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