Do you know the five questions business owners must ask to achieve ultimate success?
If you want to change your life and your business, change the questions you’re asking.
Whether you realize it or not, the strategies for growing your business are the same for selling it.
Who am I, and how do I know?
I was the kid who started his business right out of school with no money, experience, or team. I failed forward all day, every day. It was my grit and passion that kept me in the game long enough to experience success.
Success brought an unsolicited 7-figure offer based on 3-times EBITDA. My gut instinct told me something wasn’t right. I said “no” to the 7-figure offer and “yes” to mastering the art of the sale.
Two years later, I said “yes” to a 9-figure offer based on 13-times EBITDA.
I created a 9-step road map of preparation that gave me the certainty to capture maximum value. Today, I pay-it-forward and help business owners prepare through a 90-day program.
The 90-day program, called the Deep Wealth Experience, teaches you the 9-step road map. Along the way, you remove mistakes and have the certainty to capture maximum value.
You are the world’s expert on your business. You already have all the answers. What you want are the questions that make a difference.
Do you know the questions business owners must ask to position you for success?
Keep reading.
Questions Business Owners Must Ask: What Painful Problem Are You Solving?
A problem well stated is a problem half-solved – Charles Kettering
When it comes to questions business owners must ask, at the top of the list is what painful problem are you solving?
There are problems, and there are painful problems.
Read “Why You Need To Create Market Disruption To Lead, Succeed, And Prosper.”
A business that thrives in both revenues and profits has found a painful problem and solved it. The problem is so painful that people are only too happy the pay the business to remove the pain and the problem.
When you first started your business, your passion had you find and solve a painful problem. You solved the problem so well that you attracted customers and grew your business.
The irony is that the success many businesses experience is also the cause of their failure.
In life and in business that the only constant constant thing is change.
Most business owners fail to change and adapt after initial success. Your customers find new painful problems that need solutions.
Your competition is hoping and counting on your apathy to do nothing.
Capturing the maximum value on your liquidity event hinges on your future growth. It’s no coincidence that the survival of your business depends on the same growth.
In other words, when it comes to both the survival and value of your business, it’s either grow or perish.
You solved a painful problem yesterday, but what have you done to solve a new painful problem today?
When done right, finding and solving new problems is the path to creating a market disruption. And it’s a market disruption that paves the way for increased revenues and profits.
Your future buyer will pay a premium for your business as a result of a market disruption. And you’ll enjoy a thriving and profitable company.
Keep your business forever or sell it tomorrow. You choose either of these two great options.
When it comes to questions business owners must ask, do you know the second question?
Keep reading.
Congratulations On Identifying A Painful Problem. But Do You Actually Solve It?
Winners chase after good enough. Losers chase perfection – Jeffrey Feldberg
One of the questions business owners must ask is if they actually solved the problem itself.
Read “Make More Money Now By Solving Massive Problems.”
Congratulations on identifying a painful problem. You may even believe that you have solved the problem for the marketplace.
But did you solve the problem?
Don’t let the simplicity of the question have you lose focus on the issue. There are too many stories to count of businesses that failed to solve the intended problem.
Yesterday’s success doesn’t guarantee success today. All too often, businesses spend valuable time and money on a solution that doesn’t work.
How do you know if you solved the painful problem?
As simple as it sounds, ask your customers. Market studies, surveys, and focus-groups may have you believe that you’ve succeeded.
In business and life, you must know.
Speak to your customers for their candid and honest feedback. Did you hit the mark or miss it?
Solving a painful problem is essential. The future of your business depends on it, as does a market disruption.
Solving a painful problem does two things. First, solving painful problems creates profits. Second, profits increase the value of your business for your future liquidity event.
As you go through the process, remember good is better than perfect.
When it comes to questions business owners must ask, let’s do a recap.
You’ve found a painful problem you’re passionate about solving. After careful consideration, you’ve determined that you actually solved the problem.
Great!
Of the questions business owners must ask, do you know the third question?
Keep reading.
Questions Business Owners Must Ask: Is Your Business World-Class?
The way that you become world-class is… by asking good questions – Tim Ferriss
Questions business owners must ask themselves is if their businesses are world-class.
Read “Enterprise Value: What You Need To Know To Succeed And Prosper.”
Technology has accelerated innovation and shrunk the marketplace. Neither the market nor future buyers tolerate businesses that are not world-class.
My liquidity event was a success because of the 9-step road map of preparation that I created. Each of the steps builds upon the other.
Step eight of the road map has you take two necessary actions. You’re finding both skeletons in your closet and the hidden Rembrandts in your attic.
Finding the hidden Rembrandts in your attic is essential for three reasons:
- Differentiation between you and the competition
- Converts customers into raving fans
- Increases the value of your business
Both your customers and future buyer look for world-class businesses.
You may have solved a painful problem, but it’s not enough. If you’re not world-class, your business is a failure waiting to happen.
The 9-step road map prepares your business for a liquidity event as much as it does to increasing profits.
It’s the art of preparation that has you create a blueprint to optimize your business’s value.
If you’re not finding hidden Rembrandts in your attic, there aren’t Rembrandts.
What can you do if you don’t have Rembrandts?
Find ways to innovate and reinvent your solution to give you a competitive edge. The 9-step road map will help you, and in the process, help your business to dominate and win.
The Case For You Not Running Your Business
The path to greatness is along with others – Baltasar Gracian
Questions business owners must ask includes asking if your business runs without you.
Read “Why You’ll Be Happier And Richer When Your Company Runs Without You.”
With a simple “yes” or “no,” does your business run without you?
For most business owners, the answer is “no.”
Believe it or not, your company will thrive and prosper when you don’t run it.
For many business owners, the business is them, and they are the business.
Your business is in business because of you. Your passion, talent, and vision had you find and solve a painful problem.
It’s now time to hand the baton to your talented team to run the business. In the process, you get back your time and lifestyle.
With your time, you can now work on the business instead of in the business. You continue to find new painful problems that you’re passionate about solving.
In the process, you increase profits and the value of your business. Your business is now attractive to buyers for your future liquidity event.
Buyers pay a premium for businesses that run without the owners. Your future buyer knows what you did yesterday and today. What your buyer wants is a profitable company for tomorrow and the years ahead.
Buyers need to know they have a profitable business with or without you. In other words, you have no business being in business unless it runs without you.
Questions business owners must ask saves the most important question until the end.
Do you know what it is?
Keep reading.
Questions Business Owners Must Ask: Are You Doing The Right Thing?
Management is doing things right; leadership is doing the right things – Peter Drucker
Questions business owners must ask includes asking if you’re doing the right thing.
When it comes to both your business and yourself, you are the world’s leading expert.
You have the answers but don’t have all the questions.
If you want to change your life, you must change the questions you ask.
Asking if you’re doing the right thing is a question that impacts the areas of business and personal.
On the business side, you may have identified and solved a painful problem. Your business may even be world-class, and at the same time, runs with you.
Congratulations, you’re doing the right thing in four of the five areas.
Asking if you’re doing the right thing is what brings it all together. You’re not doing the right thing if your industry in decline or has shrinking margins.
Case in point is Blockbuster and Kodak.
Yes, as the saying goes, hindsight is 20/20. That said, there were warning signs along the way.
You’re not doing the right thing if you feel bored or burnt out. Either find ways to reinvigorate yourself or exit.
Questions business owners must ask needs to have a resounding “yes” to all five questions. If you’ve checked off all the boxes, you’re lined up for success.
Keep your thriving and profitable company forever, or sell it tomorrow. You choose, and either choice is a great one.
Conclusion
There are five questions business owners must ask to achieve success.
Most business owners dream of the day when they’ll be living the dream from their liquidity event. It’s your mission to ensure that you’re doing the right things to get you from “here” to “there.”
You’re only as good as what you can do today and tomorrow for your customers and the future buyer. Your future buyer is more interested in tomorrow while your customers focus on today.
Questions business owners must ask help you navigate your journey. When you do things right, your journey has you optimize your business value.
How do you do things right?
Preparation.
My journey had me create a 9-step road map of preparation, and at the same time, say “yes” to a 9-figure offer. It was no coincidence that the 9-step road map helped me grow my business. The right preparation helps you create a blueprint to optimize business value.
Today my mission is helping business owners level the playing field. The 90-day Deep Wealth Experience, grounded in the 9-step road map, is how I help business owners.
When you’re prepared, you have the certainty that you’ll capture the maximum value. Knowing, instead of believing, will have you do the right thing at the right time.
The questions business owners must ask is the start of your preparation. Start with the first question and stay with it until you’ve answered it. Make the necessary changes. When done, move on to the next question until you’ve answered all five questions.
The best time to prepare was years ago. The next best time is today. Whether your liquidity event is in one year or ten years, the time to prepare is today.
Here’s to you and your success.
Your Raving Fan,
Jeffrey Feldberg
Today, Feldberg's passion is helping you extract your deep wealth. The 90-day Deep Wealth Mastery program helps create a solid foundation for three areas: increasing profits to enterprise value and optimizing post-exit life. Deep Wealth Mastery offers strategies and insights drawn from Feldberg's rich experience. The strategies from the trenches get results. Jeffrey's vision is to increase the social fabric of society one entrepreneur at a time.
Learn more through https://iapdw.com/prosper
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