Compass: Your Roadmap to Business Reinvention

Joyce is one of my “reinvent your business” clients who likes to take things to the edge, fall off the edge, and either soar or splat.

We were discussing all the different aspects of her business model that she could reinvent: her target audience, her product/service offerings, her delivery model, her marketing model, etc. But we kept focusing our thoughts on “What does the client want?” Hey, it’s a great question — but it was limiting the discussion.

So I asked Joyce, “What could you do that would make your clients really, really angry?” She is a business consultant to medium-sized businesses, and they have certain expectations of her even if she is a solo entrepreneur.

Asking this odd question can generate great ideas.  Here are some of Joyce’s answers:

1. Double our prices
2. Reduce our quality
3. Take a longer time to deliver our services
4. Take a week to answer emails and phone calls
5. Show up at their office in a clown suit (or with clown-like answers)

By asking this question, Joyce was able to see which pieces of her business model were most important to her customers — and which were not:

• Nowhere did she mention HOW she delivered her products and services.
• Nowhere did she mention WHO delivered her products and services.

So these were two great starting places to consider reinventing in her business model.

Bingo! Asking this outrageous question opened her eyes to places where she could transform.

Question For You: If you were to ask yourself this outrageous question, what answers would come up for you? Share your comments here!

The reinvention of daily life means marching off the edge of our maps. 

–Al Waller

If you’re not busy, raise your hand.

Ha! I knew it!

Everyone is busy. Everyone has a full calendar and a full To Do list. So where are you supposed to find time to think about the future of your business and how you will reinvent it?

Of course you know that you have to find the time to think about the future of your business or it will sneak up on you and bite you in the butt.

A Calendar for Reinvention Your Business Model

I can’t offer a miracle time-creator pill (but wouldn’t that be cool?). But here’s how I’m carving out time to plan for my business reinvention — maybe some of these tips will work for you.

1. First I had to figure out the best time of day for me, the time when I’m thinking clearest and the time when I have energy and vitality. For me, that’s early in the morning.
2. Next, I picked several one-hour time slots each week, 8AM – 9AM, and booked an appointment with myself. No phones, no email, no hubby, no cats. I did this for a four-week period, two self-appointments per week for a total of 8 hours for the month. This time is used for brain-heavy thinking and planning.
3. Then I figured out my most dreamy times, the times when my brain is shut off and my heart and intuition are open. 3PM is my mental down time.
4. I scheduled 4 one-hour appointments in a month (once a week) to visit the lake and just sit for the hour from 3PM – 4PM. No cell phone, no laptop, no paper, no pen. Just me and the waves and the ducks. This time is used to sit quietly and just let whatever comes up to ripple to the surface of my consciousness. I figure if it’s important, I’ll remember it later and write it down, but I don’t want to stop the flow of energy by stopping to write down notes during this one hour “business meditation.”

It might take you a month or two to schedule these appointments with yourself. Just get them on your calendar.

The final thing I did was schedule a business reinvention weekend for myself, away from the house. I was lucky that I had a business trip planned so I extended my stay so that I could have three days of undivided attention to my business future.

I also used a mastermind group retreat weekend to focus on my business reinvention and talk about it with my mastermind group colleagues. But you might find a willing friend who will let you stay in their guest room for a few nights and who will understand if you’re incommunicado for part of that time so you can spend quiet time reinventing your business model.

Question for you: How are you carving out time to devote to planning your next business move? What suggestions do you have for people who know they need to find time to think and dream about transforming their business, but also lead very busy lives? Leave your comments below; I’d love to hear from you!