Dealing With The Anxieties And Stresses Of Managing Your Own Business

Many business owners have to deal with a lot of stress and anxiety nowadays. It can be tough to have your own business and to be successful in what you do. As a result, here are some suggestions on how you can reduce the stress of having your own business.

The first step is to manage your expenses and pay your bills on time. Develop a budget, do not spend more than what you make, and learn to reduce your expenses when you can.

Learn to manage your responsibilities by assigning certain tasks to others. If you do not have time to do a task, then let your assistant do it. You are only one person and can only do so much on a given day. Do what is most important and delegate the rest.

Talk with your customers and employees on a regular basis. Find out what is on their minds. Ask for any suggestions on how to improve business productivity and morale. Communicating with your workers and clients will help prevent future problems and conflicts.

Most importantly, develop a business plan and follow it. Being organized and goal oriented is very important in managing a business. Following a plan or set of goals will prevent you from a lot of stress and anxiety.

Learn to take it one day at a time. Instead of worrying about how you will get through the rest of the week or coming month, try to focus on today. Each day can provide us with different opportunities to learn new things and that includes learning how to deal with your business problems. Hopefully, when the time comes, you will have learned the skills to deal with your situation.

Be smart in how you deal with your business problems. Do not try to tackle everything all at once. When facing a current or upcoming task that overwhelms you with a lot of anxiety, break the task into a series of smaller steps. Completing these smaller tasks one at a time will make the stress more manageable and increase your chances of success.

Managing a business can be stressful, but the key is knowing how to manage your anxieties. There is a right way and wrong way to manage a business. Continue to learn effective techniques in managing your business and improve your bottom line. This will go a long way in getting rid of your stress and other business problems.

BIOGRAPHY:
Stan Popovich is the author of “A Layman’s Guide to Managing Fear Using Psychology, Christianity and Non Resistant Methods” – an easy to read book that presents a general overview of techniques that are effective in managing persistent fears and anxieties. For additional information go to: http://www.managingfear.com/

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The Need to Fire Employees by Phil Cooke

I read this post on Phil Cooke’s blog at http://www.philcooke.com/firing.  This is very instructive for business owners, especially Christian Business owners.  I’ll post my comments at the end of the guest post.

Ever struggled with firing someone? I was teaching media professionals in Santiago, Chile a few years ago, and found this post I had written shortly after the visit. One morning before class, I was reading in the last section of Acts 15 and the beginning of the next chapter from the New Testament. It was about a division that arose over a potential partner in ministry:

36- “Then after some days Paul said to Barnabas, “Let us now go back and visit our brethren in every city where we have preached the word of the Lord, and see how they are doing.” 37 Now Barnabas was determined to take with them John called Mark. 38 But Paul insisted that they should not take with them the one who had departed from them in Pamphylia, and had not gone with them to the work. 39 Then the contention became so sharp that they parted from one another. And so Barnabas took Mark and sailed to Cyprus; 40 but Paul chose Silas and departed, being commended by the brethren to the grace of God. 41 And he went through Syria and Cilicia, strengthening the churches.”
(NKJV)

It’s interesting that Paul and Barnabas were a team up to that point, but for their next journey, Barnabas wanted to include someone named John (called Mark). But Paul knew that John had left them once before – in other words, (and for whatever reason), he just couldn’t cut it at the level they were working.

I’m sure Barnabas wanted to be sensitive an give him more chances. He probably said something like “But he has a good heart, he loves God, and should go with us.” But Paul absolutely stood his ground – not willing to take someone who had quit on them or not produced in the past. So they decided to go two different ways. Paul chose Silas – someone with a proven past – and Barnabas took John called Mark with him.

Then I did a search, and discovered that that’s the last time you hear anything at all about Barnabas and his work with John (called Mark.) It may have been successful, but considering how much the Bible had mentioned him earlier, if it was successful, I tend to think it would have been recorded in some way. On the other hand, Paul went on to another 12 chapters of journeys, exploits, and success for the Kingdom of God, and yet the trip Barnabas and John called Mark took is never mentioned again.

That’s when I was struck by the gravity of hiring employees, shaping the members of our team, and building departments in the hope of becoming more effective. In the book “Good to Great – Why Some Companies Make the Leap, and Others Don’t” by Jim Collins, he uses the analogy of a school bus. He believes the key to a successful organization is:

1) Getting the right people on the bus
2) Getting them in the right seats
3) And getting the wrong people off the bus

Chances are, what you’re doing in hiring, firing, and developing the team around you is probably more critical and important than even you might realize. I don’t know your particular situation, but as leadership expert John Maxwell would put it, developing the leaders around you is the most important aspect of your job.

My point? In the Christian community, we all tend to be compassionate when it comes to firing people, and as a result, our churches, ministries, and religious media organizations are filled with people who are unqualified, unenthusiastic, and costing us money, time, and momentum. If you encounter an employee who is detrimental to achieving your vision – for whatever reason – by all means help him or her, but first – get them “off the bus” so they stop becoming an obstacle to the forward movement of the organization. Believe me – all the other employees know that person is a problem, and it’s most likely causing great anxiety and resentment. So by all means, get them help if they want it, but first, get them off the team and replace them with someone who values your vision, and is committed to seeing that vision accomplished.

I’d like to hear from anyone who’s experienced anxiety over firing anyone, but who discovered that once it was done, it was the right thing for the organization…

I encourage you to visit Phil’s blog at http://www.philcooke.com/firing and enter your own comments.  Here’s what I commented:

Phil, You’re spot on. I had to fire several people in the past year, both for performance reasons and for financial. Firing someone was the hardest, most emotional thing I ever had to do. I was physically sick about it, but this person was not catching the vision, was mishandling client relationships, and costing me money – but yet I wanted to be gracious. I misunderstood was grace was. That by enabling this person, I was doing damage to her, to my clients, to my other staff, and to me. It had to be done. Doesn’t mean we don’t love the people, it can be done in love, but when it has to be done. It has to be done.

What do you think?

Popularity: 58%

Ten Lessons For Every Business Leader

As I was shaving this morning, the thought came to me. What are the ten foundational lessons that I have learned as a business owner? What ten things would I write in concrete for a young entrepreneur? So, over the last few weeks I have massaged this list several times and am now ready to share with you. I hope that you will consider these options and incorporate one of two of these ideas into your workplace.

1. Keep your spouse informed and include him or her in every major decision, especially the key personnel issues, including hiring. Make family time and vacation time a priority. Get alone regularly to think, have some weekends with your spouse, and enjoy time with your children before they grow up and afterwards. (Proverbs 19:14)

2. Gather an Inner Circle or “Counsel of Advisors” around you that have your best interests at heart, are not involved in your business, and will ask you the hard questions. Choose people who will be there for you in times of stress when you need wisdom and encouragement. (Ecclesiastics 4:9-12)

3. Treat your employees like family and be genuinely concerned for their welfare. Hire slowly and fire quickly. Remember that attitude is far more important than ability. Get the right people into the right spots. Find out what each person is passionate about and find the right fit for him or her in your company. The best way to attract the right people is to create a strong company culture. Relationships provide the true foundation for all of your success in the marketplace.(I Kings 7:14)

4. Get out of the office and visit your customers. Take advantage of conventions and trade shows. Listen to what your customers want and need. Solve their problems, and they will make you successful. Keep your promises to them whatever it costs. (Ecclesiastics 7:5)

5. Respect your vendors and develop true partnerships with them. Pay your bills on time and do not take advantage of them. They can become key allies with you in getting new customers. (2 Kings 4:7)

6. Make timely and accurate accounting a priority. Understand your margins, break even points, and fixed and variable expenses. Keep a close watch daily or weekly on your cash flow. Become an expert on pricing. Build your business on profits and prudent use of debt. (Proverbs 27:23)

7. Put all agreements with your fellow shareholders and executives in writing. On one page you should be able to clarify the key points of your understanding. Clear understandings at the beginning will help you to avoid most lawsuits. Settle all disagreements as quickly as you can without the time and expense of going to court. (Luke 12:58)

8. Make friends with your competitors and learn from them. You will be a better business leader if you are watching and learning from them. They may become useful acquisitions or alliance partners. (2 Samuel 7:1)

9. Be generous with your profits, particularly with your employees and your community. Help your employees to save for the future and share in the rewards of the company’s success. Caring and generous leaders attract followers. (Proverbs 11:25; 22:9)

10. Value input from other leaders. Be involved in a regular small group of business owners or executives from which you can learn much and be held accountable. Practice the habit of continual learning and give your life to the next generation of leaders. (Proverbs 19:20)

Conclusion: Regardless of your service or product, these ten foundational truths will help keep you on the right path as a leader. Without values and peer relationships, you as a leader will not survive the challenges of the marketplace. But, with a strong foundation and peers who care, you will be able to withstand any attack upon you as a leader or upon your firm.

Kent Humphreys has been a business leader for over thirty years. From 2002 through 2007 he was president of Fellowship of Companies for Christ International (FCCI), an organization that equips and encourages Christian business owners who desire to use their companies as a platform for ministry. He now serves as a worldwide ambassador for FCCI.

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