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Whilst the popular image of a scientist is of the loner working away in an isolated laboratory, toiling towards the breakthrough of a lifetime, often nothing is further from the truth! I spent almost two years managing the operational activities of a large research institute and I observed that the very best and most successful scientists continually strived to surround themselves with new expertise offering greater or different knowledge than what they already had. In many cases, their competitors became their collaborators |
How much time do you allocate towards building the ‘intellectual capital’ of your business? It has been said that if you study the best in your field for one hour a day for three years (ie just over 1000 hours), you’ll be an expert in your field. If you study the best for one hour a day for five years (ie just over 1800 hours), you’ll become a world-class expert! For a small business, that level of national or international recognition can catapult your results much further than any marketing campaign! So, what’s on your iPod?
Do you use the 80/20 rule in developing your collaborations and networks? 80% of your results will come from 20% of your interactions with others. Are you strategic in identifying and choosing the 20% that can make the most difference to you and your business? Think visibility through influence!
What does your support team look like? Does your business structure look more like Wonder Woman or Superman (ie you need superpowers real bad!!) rather than a finely tuned Grand Prix Racing Team (ie everyone knows exactly what they are doing, why and when)? Even if you are the only person in your business, your support team is critical – start outsourcing anything that does not best reflect your talents or expertise: e.g use people who offer expert mentoring, coaching, technical support, bookkeeping, administration, marketing, cleaning… etc.
Combine the answers to these three questions for your business, take action and you’ll achieve expert status much faster than the average – that’s called leverage and all small business owners need to know how to achieve it!
Which shoulders would you like to stand on (or have you stood on)? Share your thoughts in the comments section below.
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