What exactly does it take to manage a business?There are a specific set of skills, experience and personality traits that you need to run a successful business.
Are you a business owner? There are many benefits to running your own business, including unbridled earning potential far beyond what you could earn as a staff member of someone else’s business. However, with that benefit comes additional stress because the business’ success depends on your performance. Running a business can mean focusing on what is truly important to you, such as providing an exemplary service or selling valuable goods to consumers that assist them with their lives. In addition to this, you can employ other people, giving them steady earnings and a sense of meaning and purpose.
But what exactly does it take to manage a business? There are a specific set of skills, experience and personality traits that you need to be successful. This helpful article will detail these, and you’ll learn what you need to run a successful business. Read on to discover more.
Most Business Owners Have Studied Business Management
Most successful business owners have taken business management online courses or have otherwise studied business at a tertiary level. For instance, an MBA, or Masters of Business Administration, is a standard qualification for business owners. You’ll learn how to run a business by studying business administration and management. A course can help you to learn how to manage budgets, manage people, and tend to the daily operations of most types of businesses. Furthermore, while you’re studying, you’ll meet other budding business owners, and this is a valuable networking opportunity as you can leverage relationships to grow your business or form mutually beneficial arrangements.
You’ll Need Resilience
This is a trait that is not always mentioned regarding business owners. You need to be resilient. Running a business can be highly profitable when things are going well, but it can be a struggle during downturn periods. It won’t be smooth sailing the whole time. There may be setbacks - supply chain issues, disputes with clients or customers, issues with your staff, project delays, and other unforeseen calamities. Without resilience, you may not be able to weather these storms. You need thick skin and the capability to bounce back after a rough patch.
Impeccable Time Management Skills
This is an essential quality for business owners to have. You’ll often have conflicting priorities, all of which require your attention. You need to be able to manage your time effectively. Business owners can draw on various time management techniques, such as using your calendar to schedule blocks of work, setting deadlines for yourself and partitioning out your day to achieve different goals. You can always work long hours to get things done, but you also need to allocate some time for family, relaxation, social life and other miscellaneous life responsibilities. Without adequate time management skills, you could be left floundering, and your business will suffer as a result.
People Skills
Unless you’re a sole trader, running a business means employing other people to perform functions for the enterprise. Depending on the nature of your business, you’ll need staff with specific skill sets and experience. For instance, if you run a retail business that sells goods online, you’ll need warehouse staff to pick and pack orders, customer service people to deal with customers and resolve complaints, and other people to perform various tasks related to running your business.
This means that you need to have people skills. As a leader, you’ll need to inspire people to perform well for you, mediate any issues that arise between staff members, and keep everyone happy. Good staff morale is good for business, so you must compensate your teams well and provide good working conditions. Knowing how to manage people is a core skill of a business owner or manager.
Strategic Thinking
A great business manager will be able to think strategically. Business strategy is a driving force of a successful enterprise. For instance, your business needs to stand out in a crowded market to survive and thrive. Developing a sound business plan requires strategic thinking and planning. You need to devise ways to stand out amongst competitors, offer a valuable product or service and scale up the business to drive profit. This takes vision, drive, flexibility and the ability to pivot when things don’t go according to plan.
Budget Management
This is another core business component of an owner or manager. Making money costs money - there’s no such thing as golden eggs in the business world. You need to stay abreast of outgoing costs. For instance, you must pay wages, rent, utilities, tax, insurance, and suppliers, and pay back business loans if you’ve taken them out. Managing budgets is integral to your business’ success. Without good money management skills, your business could operate at a loss, which means no profit and the potential to close down.
Dedication and Commitment
Finally, it takes dedication and commitment to run a successful business. You won’t make it to the big time if you do things half-heartedly. An effective business manager or owner is one hundred per cent committed to the business and needs to roll up their sleeves to get things done when required. With a firm commitment to your vision and dedication to making it a reality, you’re well on your way.
A Business Savvy Summary
This helpful article has covered exactly what it takes to manage a business. You need these skills and abilities to perform your role well if you're a business owner or manager. It’s worth studying business management to get an edge on the competition and upskilling in areas where you have a deficit.
