Life happens

Dan Miller tells a humorous, but insightful story about a limo driver who says that his job is temporary until he can start his own limo service. When asked how long he has had his “temporary” job, he replies, “Twelve years.”

Most of us are probably aware of individuals who spend a lot of time talking about what they are going to do “someday”. They dream about future exploits but do nothing about accomplishing them today. And then, they wake up and find that years have passed and they are no closer to their alleged goal.

There is certainly nothing wrong with having dreams. Setting goals and envisioning what life would be like if they were achieved can provide valuable inspiration and motivation. This is even more true when our goals are long-term. But dreams alone will get us nowhere—we must also take action.

Employees and your personal goals

A small business is a blank canvas. We get to determine what we put on that canvas. We get to determine what type of company we own. This applies to every aspect of the business, from the clientele we target to the image we present. From the type of work we do to the types of painters we employee.

An artist does not simply throw paint on his canvas (not a true artist). He begins with a vision of what he will create. He plans his final product long before he begins to create. We must do the same with our business.

If we wish to hire good employees we must begin by identifying where we want to lead them. We must identify our vision for our company. We must picture what our company will look like in a year, five years, or ten years down the road. We must identify our Definite Chief Aim. Only then can we determine the path to take to get there and the type of people who will help us.

Our vision serves as our guiding light, as the goal toward which our efforts are directed. If that vision is unclear or undefined we essentially have no direction—we move aimlessly and inconsistently. We are shooting at an unknown target.

However, if that vision is clear our actions can become more consistent. Our actions can move consistently towards our goal. And we can communicate where we are going and how we will get there.

Collecting seed corn for your small business

I grew up in a rural area. Our nearest neighbor owned a working farm. The oldest boy was my age, so I frequented the farm to ride horses, feed the cows, and assorted other activities.

One day the farmer was taking the kernels off of a load of harvested corn. He had usually stored the corn without doing this, which he then fed to his animals. I asked about this activity. “This is my seed corn,” he said. I still didn’t understand. “Next spring I will need to plant another crop of corn. If I don’t save some of my harvest from this year, I won’t have anything to plant. These are the seeds for next year’s crop.”

So it is with a small business—if we don’t save some of today’s harvest, we won’t have any seed corn for next year. If we don’t save some of this year’s harvest, we cannot grow our business.

In the case of our business, cash is the seed corn. Cash allows us to advertise, to purchase and maintain equipment, to invest in training, to save for a rainy day. Cash allows us to invest in our business and provide benefits. Cash allows us to grow our business. Just as a farmer can’t grow a crop without his seed corn, a business can’t grow without cash.

The farmer gets his seed corn from today’s crop. The businessman gets his cash from today’s sales—but only if it is built into his price. If his price does not include seed corn the cash will not be available. If he does not anticipate tomorrow’s needs he will not be able to meet tomorrow’s expenses.

The farmer plants more corn than he needs today. The excess becomes his seed corn. The businessman must charge more than he needs for today’s expenses, and the excess becomes his seed corn.

I see many small business owners focus on their immediate income and expenses. This short-term approach denies them seed corn. For what will they do when equipment needs replacing? How will they advertise? How will they weather a temporary lull in business? Without seed corn, they can’t. As a result, they get locked into a vicious cycle of feast or famine.

Those who do not collect seed corn will have nothing with which to plant next year’s crop. And without a crop, there will be nothing to harvest come the fall.

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