They are the lifeblood in every community. They open opportunities for millions to have stable jobs. With their unequalled efforts, they have been providing the needs of billions of customers. This week, it’s about time to salute them for all their hard work. Since 1963, small businesses have been recognized in the US with a week-long celebration. On its 51st year, the theme is about “Innovate and Inspire.” Here are 15 ways that small business owners can do to innovate and inspire:
- Make it your everyday goal to inspire. You should be the source of inspiration to others. The simplest most achievable to do this is to start your day with a smile. As the famous author Alyssa Spear once said, “Smile, even when you’re trying not to cry and the tears are blurring your vision.” Grumpy should not have a room in your day.
- Learning is a never ending process. Have you done all you could to learn and move forward? You can learn new things every day. Try to find inspiration at work, from people around you, and even from your everyday routine.
- Make no room for ego. Drop the “e” in “ego” and instead add the words “let it.” Ego is a heavy burden which slows you down to innovate and inspire. Just let it go!
- Be flexible. What makes small business owners succeed in 5, 10, or even 20 years is the ability to be flexible. Learn to adjust with new technology, information, and circumstances.
- Carry your passion. It is the fuel that ignites creativity, ideas and willingness to move on. Without passion, it is hard to innovate.
- Visualize. How do you see your business in long term? What if there are new competitors, risks and other factors that may affect the business? How ready are you to take new challenges? A clear vision on where you want to go and what you want to achieve will help you to innovate.
- Embrace resilience. There’s an age-old saying that goes, “”I was wrong,” builds more respect than, “I told you so.” Be willing to admit mistakes. The more important thing is that right after you get knocked down, be able to dust yourself off, get up at once and move forward.
- Sell. The core of every business is selling. It doesn’t matter if you are an in-born salesperson or a just applying the art of selling. When you’re in small business, you inspire others with how you sell your vision – to customers, prospective partners, staff members, employees, and even funding sources.
- Be decisive. Decisions are crucial in small business. Smallbiz owners should therefore have the knack of gathering as much information in the quickest ways possible, sort them out and apply critical decision making. There are
- Live a balanced life. To be the source of inspiration, entrepreneurs should adopt a strong sense of business perspective. They should be able to know when to start and when to stop; when the road is leading to success or they are just striving after the wind; when to make a fight and when to let go.
- Have a Knack to Manage Risks. Smart business owners develop the ability to manage business risks. Be innovative by sniffing out location-based services, target market, and others.
- Use business tools to improve your business. Take help of business mapping tools that are easy to use to identify key factors that affect your business, understand your market, learn about your competitors, and create business plans to innovate.
- Love yourself. The message of the song, “The Greatest Love of All” holds true to small business owners. Have a strong sense of self – it will keep your head up above while being surrounded by talented and successful people. Develop self-confidence and people skills. These are the traits that will help them get through the day.
- Be thankful. When was the last time you say “thank you” to your employees? Even if your employees are your family members, never end the day to say thank you. It builds up confidence and inspire them to go to work every day without a heavy heart.
- Be original. So the other bake shops in your area are serving the same baked goods. Why would people buy from you if they can buy the same chocolate muffin from others? Learn to deviate from the norm. Add some spice, perk up the flavor, and you’ll see the line of your customers getting longer.
