Ready, aim, fire

Reflections on Branson Centre of Entrepreneurship - Session 3

To view Session 1 click here
To view Session 2 click here
To view Session 3 click here


One of the "aha" moments that I had during the "Strategise it, Plan it, Do it" session was that as an entrepreneur  there is no room for living by default. Well, technically there is - if your goal is to fail, then living by default is a great way for you to achieve that goal.

This session has prompted me to examine myself carefully and ask some tough questions.  It wasn't fun admitting that there was disparity between my principles and their practical application in my daily activities, both personal and professional.  Eek! I've determined though, that I'm not going to shy away from making change where its evidently needed. In my personal life, and my business - my plan is to live with purpose, not by default.

The practical exercises have helped me to pinpoint what is really important to me - as a person, and how that affect the business I run. I've evaluated how I currently do business, including how I deal with customers, suppliers and managing finances. I've identified a number of areas where things need to change. Goals have been set, and action steps have been identified.

A big realisation that came through facilitator feedback on my homework (thanks Bushera Bashir!) is that goal setting as a business is broader than just financial. Its easy to focus on wanting to make more money when you are currently cash strapped. Its not a bad thing to want to make money, but it should be as the positive knock-on effect of really understanding your market, planning well, working smart and addressing areas that have been identified as weakness in your SWOT analysis.

The bottom line is do your homework, get yourself ready (SWOT, systems and research) set your goals, aim - and then FIRE!