Great things are not built in one giant leap – it’s built through the power of incremental steps.

You can achieve your dream lifestyle through your business, and that requires making reliable profits. But dreams take time to come to fruition and call for patience, perseverance and resolve. Rushing to the end goal creates the risk of building a business on a foundation made of sand.

Besides, the creative process of the journey to whatever your finish line may be, is part of what fuels your entrepreneurial spirit. Without that, business would be pretty boring.

In our blog Why Making Profit is a Good Thing, we discussed the uncomfortable topic of ‘profit’ and why businesses need to be designed for achieving it. Let’s now consider why it doesn’t have to be, and perhaps shouldn’t be, a race.

The Realistic Formula for Profit

The Tortoise meanwhile kept going slowly but steadily, and, after a time, passed the place where the Hare was sleeping. But the Hare slept on very peacefully; and when at last he did wake up, the Tortoise was near the goal. The Hare now ran his swiftest, but he could not overtake the Tortoise in time. – The Hare & the Tortoise

We live in a time of rapid innovation. We often read stories of entrepreneurs launching their way to instant growth that they could barely keep up with. It’s tempting to get lured into the appeal of quick profit (or what appears to be quick), but is it realistic to demand this of your business? Or to hold that expectation for yourself? If you’re relying on campaigns going viral – only to get caught in a hamster wheel of going from one launch to the next, burned out from exhaustion or disappointment – it’s time to reconsider your approach.

Most often, the formula for building a profitable business comes down to focusing on one or two things (your products and services) and making it great, with the consistent quality your loyal customers can rely on. This is not something that happens overnight.

By properly building your ‘signature’ product or service with steady, incremental steps, supported by consistent and reliable processes, the quality will stand the test of time and changing trends. Your well-earned 5-star customer service ratings, or valued service or product(s) that continue to meet their needs, will stand out from the competitors as solid and reliable.

How to Build a Stable Profit

 “Success is not final, failure is not fatal: It is the courage to continue that counts.” – Winston Churchill, former British Prime Minister

With the combined years of experience our BWMD team has, we understand the journey to building a profitable business, and the pitfalls along the way. Here are tips that we recommend every business owner be familiar with. In addition, we suggest reading our blog Why You Need to Work On Your Business – Not In It.

• Work smarter, not harder. What does this mean for you? It could be prioritising tasks better, adjusting your strategic plan, restructuring your team, updating processes or upgrading equipment for better efficiency.
• Learn the art of delegation. Working smarter requires delegating, to free you up for leading, building, and growth. Approach delegating like the success of your business depends on it. It’s that important.
• Build replicable processes. Like a well-oiled machine, systems and processes are the structure for any business to run well. Be sure to read How to Build an Effective Management System for a deeper dive into this.
• Seek expertise. Don’t leave your business to chance. A compliant and growing business needs the solid support of accounting and legal professionals and business advisors. Invest in continual learning and self-development to hone your entrepreneur and leadership skills.
• Be patient. Set short and long-term goals to stay focused. Rome wasn’t built in a day, and tracking your progress with milestones and achievements will keep you inspired, faithful, and persevering.
• Don’t sacrifice your health and relationships. Pace yourself. Hustling 24/7 is not sustainable, and burning out is not necessary to build a profitable business. Of course, delegation and prioritising play a part in avoiding burnout, and if you’re in need of upgrading some bad habits, check out our blog Ten Tips to Improve Your Habits and Business.

Need Help to the Finish Line?

The team at BW Miller Dean guides business owners to reach it, by providing reliable support and solid expertise. We help business owners like you to design your business in a way you can achieve your profit and revenue goals. Contact us today to see how we can help you.