One the things that I love to do is jogging because it helps me to distress. So in 2007 when a group of people in my workplace decided to run Half a Marathon (21 km or 13 Miles) to raise money for charity, I joined in. Everyone was talking about how challenging and hard it would be and that motivated me to join a gym and get a personal trainer, because I wanted to succeed and not collapse halfway through the run.
My personal trainer was really good. He planned out my daily exercise routine which included lifting weights, stretching and running for 45 minutes every day. He also advised me on what to eat so that I was in the best form possible for the run.
So on the day of the run I was as fit as Serena Williams, strong and excited for the run. I had my power playlist sorted which included my old time favourites ‘I’m a survivor’ by Destiny’s Child and ‘Boom Boom Pow’ by The Black Eyes Peas J. I was R-E-A-D-Y!!
That was one of the most fun runs I have ever had. I completed the run after 2hours and 18 minutes and I felt awesome!
10 years later, I had another opportunity to run. This time, I was doing a shorter run – 10km with a group of friends. I knew I had done a 21km run before so this was going to be a piece of cake for me – or so I thought.
– Did I attend the gym like I had before? No
– Did I go on a special diet to prepare? No
– Did I run for 45 minutes every day? No
I mean – how difficult could it be?? Right? WRONG!
On the day of the run, I sprinted leaving my friends behind because to me, they were running very ‘slowly’. A whole 20 minutes later, I was sweating like a pig and hyperventilating. Then I came across this HILL and oh my goodness!!! I swear that hill had a climb of 90 degrees and while everyone was moving forward, every step I took was talking me backwards. I thought I was going to die. My friends who I had left behind leisurely run past me and disappeared into the horizon. They were gone!! I soon gave up running and walked the rest of the way, finishing almost 2 hours later.
So why did this supposedly easier run feel so difficult? Because I was not prepared. I had only focused on the output (doing the run) and not the input (the work I needed to do to prepare).
I find that many small businesses are more like my 10K run, where they focus on the output – things like increasing profit by 20%, increasing customer base by 300%, raising £10,000 from investors etc. These things are outputs. While they are important measure of business performance, they are lagging indicators which means that they are the last thing measured most of the time and by then it is too late to do anything to change them.
As a business, one of the most important things you can do for your business is to determine the individual steps that you need to take to get the outcome that you desire. These are what we call the Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) and the usually track your progress towards achieving your goal.
For example: – If you want to increase your customers by x% The KPIs would focus on how to engage with your client or potential clients: How many clients do you reach out to daily? Is your diary full with appointments? What is the customer feedback? – If you want to increase your profit by x%. The KPIs would focus on operational efficiency: How much are your fixed costs compared to variable costs? What is your expenses policy? – If you want to have enough cash to operate your business. The KPIs would focus on cash collection: How long does it take for a client to pay you? What are your payment terms?
The output is the sum of how all these KPIs come together, and as long as you focus on that, you have a chance to drive your business performance with intention and get the results that you want.
What are you focusing on in your business?