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Next, ask yourself: If I accomplish the


items on my to-do list, will they advance me closer to our target objective?


Now, assess. If you answer yes, then


you are most likely dedicating enough of your personal resources to working ON your business. That is, your efforts are focused on an initiative that will improve the company and/or move the company toward a common goal. If your answer is no, then examine the items on your To Do list again. Maybe those items are important, critical items that must be completed and are part of a different, or more important objective. That’s ok as long as you and your team are realistic about which priorities are most important. Or, as is often the case, your days and weeks are filled with work but the results of those efforts aren’t directly tied in to a high priority, critical objective, like growth. When that happens, it is time to reevaluate how you should spend your time and delegate the “working in” tasks to somebody else.


Finally, ask your management


team to perform the same test. I’m not advocating that you micro manage your staff’s task lists. But, you can help guide them to focus on what’s most important if too much of their efforts are on tasks that do not advance you closer to your priority objectives.


Case Study Example: Personal Lines Insurance Agency One of my first clients when I relocated to St. Augustine was a second- generation, family-owned, mid-size regional insurance agency. The business was doing well. The founder was semi- retired and his son, who grew up in the business, was now President. The agency was profitable. They had a talented, trained and experienced team. They earned a strong reputation in the community. They had over 3,000 customers. Everyone was busy.


The agency was successful, but they


hit a plateau. At the time, the personal lines insurance market (auto/home/life) was soft and rates were very competitive. Lower rates are great for customers but mean an automatic pay cut for


®


commission-based business models like an insurance agency. In addition, new competitors were entering the market to take advantage of the fast-growing population in St. Johns County (which is still one of the fastest growing counties in Florida). But, this agency wasn’t keeping up with its share of the expanding market. In addition, the big direct to consumer insurance companies were making it very easy to buy car insurance online making it even more difficult to earn what was typically a first line of coverage.


And, again, everyone was busy.


Serving over 3,000 customers can run you ragged. And the demographics of those customers was aging. That meant fewer referrals were coming through the traditional happy customer word of mouth pipeline. With all of that customer service activity, the leadership team was not focused on growth. Something had to change or over time, the agency could watch its hard-earned business deteriorate around them.


Turnaround One of the first steps was to make growth a priority. That meant assembling the leadership team to develop a strategic growth plan. Part of that plan included a commitment to dedicate time each week to work ONLY on business growth. To make good on that commitment, the leadership realized they would have to hire and retrain some of their staff in order to free up capacity of their more


A Special Offer For ICI Members ICI members will now be able to access my online course, “How to Build Your Growth Strategy” and receive 25% of the price. Check it out in the Resources section of the ICI website at www.investmentcasting.org.


seasoned sales reps to go out and hunt for new business through new channels.


Once the strategic planning was


done, the agency leadership then used the planning time to focus on growth ini- tiative, holding each other accountable to follow through on growth initiatives each week. It took several years to realize the fruits of those efforts, but, today the agen- cy is experiencing conservative growth while maintaining its profit margins.


Working on your business is really about active commitment and requires you to shift focus and priorities:


1. Make growth a priority 2. Dedicate time each week to work ONLY on business growth


3. Formulate a strategy 4. Create an action plan 5. Execute the plan 6. Monitor progress 7. Adjust and adapt


These steps can help keep this growth killer locked up.


Don’t Lists and 4 Hour Work Weeks


Many of us were taught to manage our day with a To-Do List. In fact, some


of us can’t or refuse to start the day without one. But, do you have a Don’t List? It’s a hot productivity topic theme that regardless of what tasks you want to accomplish, if you want to be increase productivity, stick to a list of things that you won’t do. While I am a serial list maker, I have stopped making daily task lists and now use weekly to-do lists since my projects tend to take a long time and require input from many other people. Also, while I am far from ever creating a Four Hour Work Week, I do like Tim Ferris’s approach to daily task lists. He recommends focusing on only two things per day. Complete the first before 11am and the second before 2pm.


May 2019 ❘ 27


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