Business Culture – Part 3

This post has some questions to help you discover and develop your business’ culture.

As a business owner you are foremost a leader. But, being a leader doesn’t mean you need to have a big personality with loads of charisma. Many of the most successful business leaders are quiet and thoughtful.

However, being a leader does mean being more open and honest with yourself (and everyone else) about what is inside you than you may have ever been before. Developing your business’ culture can be a journey of self discovery.

You need to be brave and there will be lost of excuses to do something else. But, once you start you will be surprised how quickly you can establish your culture and how profound it is. Remember, the objective is to connect your business and what you do every day to what matters most to you. You will discover or rediscover your true passion.

When you look in the mirror you will feel a sense of pride. When struggling with a difficult challenge you will have the energy of purpose to drive you on. As Accountants in London our culture help me deal with the challenging work.

We can have towards values which result is pleasure and we can have away values which keep us from feeling pain. These questions cover both perspectives and I hope you find them useful:

What do you want to be known for?
Think about your personal brand, your reputation. In other words what you would like people to say about you when you are not in the room.

What do you NOT want to be known for?
Think about the things you do not like in others. Is it not being loyal or perhaps looking out for number one.

If you won the lottery what work would you do for free?
If you were financially independent what would you do? Would you really play golf all day? Most people start a business because they love what they do. What work do you love doing and would do for free if you could?

If you could pay to avoid some work what would it be?
Many business owners find themselves in a position of enjoying some work but almost resenting some work. What would you pay not to do if you could?

What result do you want customers to get from your service/product?
What final outcome do you want for your customer? The outcome we want for you is a business that makes you truly happy. What do you want for your customers?

What do you want customers to avoid by buying your service/product?
Think about what are you helping your customers avoid? We want you to avoid being trapped in your business, feeling frustrated and uninspired.

What motivates you to go the extra mile?
Have a think of work where you over deliver. What gets you motivated enough to do more than people pay you for?

What saps your energy?
We all have things that drain us. It could be people not paying on time or not wanting to do the job properly.

Write the answers down and see if any common themes come up.