Entrepreneurship Urgency of Achievement | Urgency of Achievement |
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Having ongoing opportunities to hear New Jersey Entrepreneurs speak about their experiences, I sometimes hear succinct advice that is excellent---this is what I termed as an entrepreneurial nugget in a prior article. One such nugget I heard from one entrepreneur speaking about the secret to his success is what he called Urgency of Achievement in getting his business off the ground, as opposed to Urgency of Action . Urgency of Achievement focuses on reaching an important milestone, while Urgency of Action focuses on the need to take decisive steps--almost implying non stop movement without a true understanding whether those steps are focused on the right goal or any goal at all. It does not convey the importance of reaching critical and often difficult milestones. This may result in the entrepreneur becoming lost in an unfocused and endless busy-ness that may not result in any true progress for the company. An entrepreneur's day can easily be filled from beginning to end with routine responsibilities. Return phone calls, cover payroll, read email, create proposals, talk to a vendor, talk to a customer and by end of the day the entrepreneur is exhausted. Sometimes they become confused as to why they are not moving their company forward since they are so active. This can go on for days, weeks and even months resulting in a discouraging situation of hard work and little rewards. To avoid this situation the entrepreneur needs to continually put in their sight key milestones that will result in the business model noticeably moving forward. They first must be on guard to be able to see the correct goals as they emerge, particularly since they are so consumed with daily routine.... they must not overlook opportunities that may dramatically move the progress of the company forward.. This may be the realization to hire the first sales person, outsource a key responsibiity to free up time, find a particular customer or vendor etc. etc. In addition to these opportunities being overlooked, when they are finally realized they may mistakenly be put on the back burner because they require special effort and focus that is too difficult to give. Thus the entrepreneur is working hard, but working on the wrong things. Time needs to be set aside periodically to step back and re-evaluate the goals of the company, both near and long term. Once done, specific steps outside the day's norm will need to be established to meet the goals that will have the greatest impact on the company. And though day to day routine continues at a feverish pace (the urgency of action), the entrepreneur must look up to his or her white board, or special note pad to make sure they feel an urgency to achieve this very important milestone...to devote an extra ordinary effort to an already full day because this one goal, this key step may possibly make all the difference in the world. This approach to maintaining a milestone driven company is most important during the startup stage because lost time eats up a company's cash, while they are still waiting for revenues and profits to kick in...the clock is ticking. Investors such as angels and venture capital firms are particularly concerned with how an entrepreneur has burned up their cash...and what they have to show for it. They want to be assured that their investment will used to have the greatest impact on the growth of the company, not to fund unfocused activity. Therefore, when setting up an action plan, understand the difference between being active, and creating results. Separate those activities that are associated with day to day routine from those activities that if accomplished may dramatically expand the business model. Those latter activities usually require more attention, have a bit more pain, but deep down the entrepreneur knows "those achievements" if attained will make a hard day's work all worthwhile. You know which ones they are...Don't lose sight of them. Jeanne Gray is founder of NJEntrepreneur.com and has been an entrepreneur for most of her career. She now works with owners in helping them to establish their business goals and prioritize their activities to achieve successful business growth. She may be reached at 908-917-9900 or |
