Previously on our Taking the Scary Out of Startup series, we discussed the importance of company formation.
Plan & focus
Planning and focusing are two words that we try to use every day at Traklight. Not only in the big picture context of starting with the exit as the end goal and working backwards, but with our daily tasks. Each week we make a list of our top three priorities and check with the team to make sure we are aligned.
If I had a dollar for every great idea someone gives me to expand our services, we would have made our revenue target this quarter! Do not get me wrong, I love these ideas. In fact, many of our current product features came from customer feedback. I am referring to the ideas that would be a diversion into another product, service, or another subject matter completely unrelated to intellectual property (IP). On a regular basis, I have to channel my chat with Darren Hardy and politely explain that we are focused on making our current products even more successful.
I recommend adding the word “no” to your vocabulary and to have a parking lot for good ideas. Saying no is not being rude; you have to guard and jealously focus your time until you have a repeatable, scaleable sales process and revenue stream. You can only reach your goals if you stay on track. Internally, we call out other team members to “focus†on a regular basis.
This start-with-the-end-in-mind approach is somewhat challenging for a startup because things move and change so quickly. You must have a focused plan to get to your ultimate goal whether that is lifestyle, business, or complete exit within a short time frame.
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