Can you re-invent yourself?

“The times…they are a-changing.” How frequently have you heard this phrase in your business career? What impact does it have on you when you hear it? Does it make you cringe or does it excite and invigorate you?

The months of November through March are busy time periods for firms that are serious about leadership, cash flow, and profitability. Since we live in a 12-month calendar, each December tends to be closure for one year and January is the birth of a new season and business year, a new beginning for your business. This is particularly true for companies with a calendar-based fiscal year.

Companies with strong leadership know the tremendous value in creating a tangible, measurable strategic plan for the next 1 – 3 – 5 years. The economic turbulence that currently surrounds us is providing a larger than normal incentive to create a clear-cut plan to implement. As you create that plan in these turbulent times, there are several questions that all of us should ask ourselves. How close am I to my clients? Have I invested the time to visit them and ask how their business is changing? Has our firm proven its ability to listen, to ask probing questions, to analyze data, and to provide valuable insights and solutions? Do they trust me? Do they trust our firm? How strong is our relationship with our customers right now? Is it stronger than ever? Were there a few bumps in the road last year? How did we handle them?

After acquiring their inputs and defining their specific needs, is our firm willing to re-invent our products or services to continue earning revenues as our clients’ needs change? Or are we too stuck in our ways to see the changes in the marketplace?

The more uncertain the times, the more we need to look at the strength of our relationships. The trust our clients have in us is priceless, and should never be taken for granted.