Fitness

How fit is your small business? I would suggest that your business is only as fit as the people in charge. Like people, businesses can get sick. Some are even chronically sick. Just as people become lathargic, fat and unhealthy due to lack of exercise, so do businesses become unhealthy and unfit when the business does not sufficiently and regularly increase the energy levels of the business.

How can you "increase the energy levels" of your business? By investing time and (money if you have it?) into education, innovation, technology, marketing, greening, brand imaging and other similar workouts. Just like your gym workouts, your small business' heart pumping, sweat inducing, strength building workouts must be preceded by a warm up session, and concluded by a cool down period. That is just a fancy way of saying proceed cautiously as you embark on allocating capital. Know what needs the most work and create a triage. The goal is to get beyond the status quo. But in this economy, you have to get an okay from the "doctor" before you go full throttle into something, before you spend money in a certain area. Remember the ultimate goal: CUSTOMER SATISFACTION. What will get you there with the minimal pain and maxium gain?

Get the fire of Prometheus under your belly and give your inner mogul a workout. Start brainstorming about how to make your company as "fit" as it can be. A small business owner has to continually strive to move the business from one level to a higher level. That means you have to intensify the workout. Always think: Get to the next level. Do not remain static. But do things gradually to prevent "burn out" or injury.

By the way, what is your "Noodle score?" I was just reading about a new startup who, using Google like algorithms, can predict your "Noodle score." No, it has nothing to do with pasta. It is about using certain criterion to predict the "worth of your company." Have you heard of it? You should log on and input your info. Your company may be worth a cool million already. Hey, you never know.