Are you serious about building a great business? Really?

Most entrepreneurs think they are dedicated to building their business. But I question that. I think the majority of entrepreneurs are just dabbling. Sure they’d like to have a successful business, but they don’t really crave it. The problem is that business today is really, really tough. Unless you absolutely, madly desire to create an awesome business it probably won’t happen.

Competitors that are keener, more fired up, will eclipse you. Customers will sense your lack of fire and choose another supplier. You may get some growth, but you won’t get the hypergrowth that defines a highly successful enterprise. You need to be really serious to make it in today’s business world. Here’s a quick test you can do to ascertain how committed you are to creating an extraordinary business:

You need to be able to say Yes to at least 8 out of 10 of these points:
You think about your business night and day.
You know all the best companies in your field.
You are clear on the flaws and weaknesses of your business, and your main competitors.
You arrive at work early.
You know your business’s key numbers intimately.
You are always studying ways to better market your products.
You are constantly making tiny improvements to how you run your operations.
You have turned your business into a system. Ideally summarised in a manual .
You have white hot desire to create a great company.
When you talk about your business to friends, staff or clients it is with genuine enthusiasm.

So, looking at these, how do you measure up? Which of these points do you need to work on? The rewards for building a great business are extraordinary: massive wealth, high self esteem, exemplary lifestyle, kudos from society, significant contribution to mankind. But you’ll get none of these until you get really, really serious about building your company