3 Ways to Cut to Grow Your Business

I was coaching a fellow entrepreneur the other day regarding his sales emails and he asked me “How do you know what to cut?”

I’ve heard other great suggestions in the past from my friend The Perfect Host, Jim Cerone stating to take out all of your “I’s” and “me’s” and “my’s”. Fellow NSA speaker Alan Berg has also suggested in the past (and I recommend this as well) that you end your correspondence with your client (wherever you have the conversation, email, messenger, text, etc) with a question. These are both great suggestions however I would recommend that we go a little deeper.

I would encourage you to get to the heart of the matter and find out what’s truly important to them. One question I like to begin with is “What’s the one problem you’re struggling with the most regarding my product or service?” This is a simple question that leads to a conversation yet also positions you as the solution. You begin to find out what’s most important to them about your product or service. That’s from the email standpoint and communication with your client, now let’s move on to another area you can cut.

I just went through a move from a house I lived in for over 15 years to a new home and it’s amazing HOW MUCH stuff piles up. Before my wife and I moved our family, we went through and PURGED. A. TON. OF. stuff…yeah stuff…that’s what I meant to say. 🙂

What about from your overall business standpoint, how do you know what to cut?

Walk through your place of business. If you find a piece of equipment that hasn’t been used in a while and made you money, sell it. I find that many entrepreneurs are people in business who love their toys, the tools of the trade so to speak. A company will put out a special and oh, I gotta have it, I gotta have it, oh, you run and buy it, you know, use it for a year and you just wasted your money. Are you better off putting that money into actual, you know, education, something that might spark your brain? Something that might actually, you know, move you forward? Or you’re better off putting that money into a vacation for your family? Are you better off putting that money into, you know, a fund for your son or daughter for the future for them?

If you find someone not pulling their own weight, re-evaluate their position, job performance and have a sit down with them to see how you can help them succeed in their position. Always put the mirror on yourself FIRST in this situation and ask how you could assist them to make them more successful. Maybe you can, maybe you can’t but at least you know you did all you could to help them be vital in their role in your company. What are you doing to cut things from your business that maybe aren’t making you money or that maybe aren’t bringing you fulfillment?

Finally, how do you know what to cut out of your life?

I would encourage you to examine this very carefully. Be pensive about it when you think about what is actually bringing you enjoyment, fulfillment and what is actually moving you forward.  Be careful whom or what you cut out of your life. Find ways to only involve those that help you move forward. Sometimes it may be a close friend you have to cut out of your life that has shown their true colors of not being a true friend, maybe it’s a family member. Those are hard choices but you have to make the hard decisions to decide what makes you happy and what moves you forward.

I hope these 3 ways to cut to grow your business help you in some way. I know they have made an impact on my life.