If there is one thing that highly successful people have in common, it is discipline. They rarely waste time, they see every moment as an opportunity and they make plans (even if those plans are flexible). So here are some tips for becoming more like them:

1. Look for smarter ways to work. It is easy to get stuck in the same methods and processes: we are generally all creatures of habit! Be efficient in your procedures and ensure that you are not getting distracted by unimportant tasks that can wait. Prioritise your day and stick to a plan.
2. Watch your finances. Particularly if you are more on the creative side of business, it can be intimidating and daunting to keep on top of your finances. But ‘knowing your numbers’ will give you a great deal of useful information about how your business is performing and which direction to focus on. Make analysing your financial reports a part of your weekly tasks.
3. Find new business. Some of us are really great at networking and building relationships with prospective and current customers. Many of us need to work at this, which takes a disciplined and planned approach. Schedule in regular face to face meetings with like-minded business people, keep in contact with your customers (and thank them for referrals) and always be on the lookout for opportunities to connect.
4. Manage yourself. We all have times of procrastination and less productive days. However, being disciplined with our health (including sleeping and eating well) can have a great impact on our ability to be decisive or push through hard work.
5. Sell yourself. Train yourself to see every interaction, whether it is face to face, online or via more formal marketing, as an opportunity to ‘sell’ your brand. You and your staff are the face of the business. Have a disciplined approach to consistently projecting an image that encourages customers to interact with you. As Jim Rohn summarises for us, “Discipline is the bridge between goals and accomplishment."

Michelle Grice writes a weekly column for business women in The Western Weekender

Actually this heading is probably a bit misleading: if you’ve been in business for more than 2 years, you will know that none of tips in this article are ‘secrets’ or even new ideas. However, if you are anything like me, they are things that fall by the wayside far too easily – and it is good to be reminded!

The following tips relate to your productiveness and how best to ‘get things done’:

1. Have confidence. Too many women in business let lack of confidence affect their business, either in the form of telling yourself you are not good enough or saying yes to things that you’d rather not do. You are a better business owner than you give yourself credit for – ignore the negative voice in your head and focus on your goals and dreams.
2. Check the company you keep. Surround yourself with productive and successful people and remove yourself from negativity or naysayers. You need inspiration and help from people who will cheer you on and celebrate your successes.
3. Focus, focus, focus. Everyone has a long to-do list. But it’s the people who know how to chunk it into manageable pieces who are productive. Set a timer for 10-20mins and focus solely on getting a job, or part of a job, completed. Then move on to the next. Multi-tasking is most often not as productive as it might appear.
4. Work smarter. Are there jobs you can outsource? Are there better ways to structure your time spent with clients? Are there ways you can adapt previous work instead of reinventing the wheel each time.

So re-acquaint yourself with these ‘secrets’ and start being more productive in your business.

Michelle Grice writes a weekly column for business women in The Western Weekender

Richard Glover recently wrote a fantastic article in the Sydney Morning Herald titled ‘I’d rather be a second-class citizen’. The premise of the article was that while coming first is fantastic, it essentially requires you to be obsessed and to sacrifice many things for your goal. He wrote it in response to the focus on winning a gold medal at the Olympics and how “suddenly everyone has a problem with people who come second. It has to be gold or nothing”. His personal preference is for coming second in everything because it signifies a much more balanced and therefore happier life.

Does this also apply to running a successful business? At the risk of sounding like I’m suggesting that you aim low, I think it does apply. In a previous article, I wrote about someone who said that she is “a slave to her business”. Although she appeared to be talking about her business in a positive light, I was horrified at the thought of being trapped by my business. My aim is for my business to work for me, not the other way around.

So in business, if achieving ‘gold’ means sacrificing time with my family then it is silver I choose. If it means I have no interests outside of running my business, then silver seem like a much better option.

I’m not suggesting you shouldn’t aim high and achieve the best you can. But ‘the best’ should mean that you are not forsaking everything else in order to reach your goals. Are you really successful if in the process you’ve lost everything else?

Michelle Grice writes a weekly column for business women in The Western Weekender