When I meet a business owner, I usually ask, “How’s business going?” Some owners respond by saying, “I’m really busy,” or “I’m slammed.” That’s not always a good thing. Read on to discover why . . .

Business owners tend to equivocate activity with profit. Profit is not always tied to the level of activity. Profit comes from selling a service or product for less than what it cost to provide it. 

Surprisingly many business owners don’t know their margins. They sell a service or product but may not know how much it costs them to provide it. 

Most owners clump their services or products into a big total with little understanding of what products or services make a lot of money and which ones make little money. Obviously, you want to increase your sales in areas that make more money. 

Don’t allow busyness to deceive you into thinking you are making money. You must “lift the hood” and look closely at the financials to know if your activities are paying off. Otherwise, busyness is just busyness.

Busyness is just activity. Having a lot going on doesn’t mean you are doing those things well. Sometimes it means you lack efficiency. 

Have you evaluated if your team members are using their time well? Have you looked for ways to improve time efficiency? Have you sought to eliminate activities that do not produce solid results? 

A profit-making business is like a well oiled machine. It purrs along quietly and efficiently. If an engine is running choppy, you want to improve it. The same is true for a frantic business. 

If your team members are running around frantically trying to get things done, you may need to evaluate if there is a better way to do those things. Don’t assume people are efficient. Work at maximum efficiency!

Occasionally, I meet a business owner who prides himself in how busy he is. I always feel sorry for that person. 

He assumes that running from task to task means things are going really well, or he’s really important. That’s not necessarily true.

Busyness may be a flashing light warning you that something dangerous is about to occur. 

Solid business owners are not frantically running from task to task. They have good systems and a well-managed operating system.

Busyness frequently means people are trying to do too much. When you build a business, you tend to add role after role, until you max out your capacity to handle things. 

A much better way to manage is to recognize that you are trying to do too many tasks. Instead, delegate less important or less-optimal tasks to people who do those things well. 

Just because you can do a task doesn’t mean you should do it. Choose wisely what you do and why you do it.

There are multiple aspects of running a business well. Many leaders live life in the fast lane. They work hard and long, assuming that this will produce solid results. That’s not always the case.

Instead, you want to constantly evaluate your business and make sure it is firing well on all cylinders. 

When you find yourself running from one task to the next one, take a step back and evaluate if there’s a better way to do things. Sometimes minor restructuring of your system can reduce a great deal of stress.

You can only push so hard. While you cannot eliminate hard work, you want to make sure you are working hard at the right things. Give these concept some thought. You may be really busy just because you are really busy. That’s not a fun way to live. If you help decreasing busyness, schedule a call with me: https://penncoaching.com/meetwithdave.