5 Ways Backlogs Can Be the Death Of Your Company

Apr 12, 2017

Tech entrepreneurs are busy. However, you do not want to fall behind on your work. You want to make sure you are not getting backlogged. Tech entrepreneurs are already busy. Having a backlog of work will create more stress and make you even busier. This could very well be fatal to you and your company.

  1. Backlogs will burn you out.

You getting stressed out is the worse thing for your company. You need to be able to keep your company energetic and enthusiastic to get the work done. If you are stressed out, then you won’t be able to do the work properly, creating more backlog. You will not be able to achieve your short-term goals or meet your deadlines if you have a backlog. You’ll be running late to everything and stressing out, making you unfit for the job you created.

2. Backlogs will burn out your employees.

You do not want your employees getting tired and stressed out. Late nights happen, but having them all the time because you are constantly trying to catch up on work is not acceptable. Take care of those who work for you. Make sure they are getting breaks at reasonable intervals, and rotate your employees so that the same people are not working all the time. If your employees can’t work properly, then the company isn’t working. You may have started it, but the employees keep it running. Don’t let them get stuck with backlog. Keep up on your deadlines and short-term goals, and celebrate accomplishments with them.

3. Backlogs burn out your resources.

Backlogs create a rush. Rushing around uses up all of your current resources, not giving you time in between each project to replenish them. There is a lot of work that goes into what you do. Whether that is ink and paper for printing, venues to host events or finances, it will all eventually run out if you are constantly using them without allowing for breaks. Without the proper resources, your company will not be able to function or complete its projects properly.

4. Backlogs burn out your clients.

If you are a business that takes clients, then backlogs will destroy your company. You don’t ever want to have deadlines pass without having completed and turned in the work. Your clients only have so much patience, and they will only give so much grace. Eventually, it will get to the point when your client will leave you and go to someone else. A decrease in clients is a decrease in income. Lower income means a lower pay.

5. Backlogs burn out your ideas. 

When you have a backlog of projects, you, your coworkers and your employees will run through ideas to try to catch up and get them done. It will only stress you out, make you tired and give you no desire to complete your job. Do not let backlogs build up or you will lose motivation and inspiration. These two things are vital for any company to stay on its feet.

Do not let backlogs build up. They will only damage your company and lower your morale. If you honor your customers and respect your employees, then a backlogs should never happen. Keep up to date on your work, and, if you can, get ahead. Never let yourself fall behind because that will lead to a chain of disasters that can be avoided. Stay organized, and keep your tasks written down. It is possible to run a business without building a backlog.

4 Reasons Every Business Should Hire From the Top Down

Apr 9, 2017

If you own a small business, and you’re looking to expand, then you must be looking to hire some people. As a tech entrepreneur, this is a great opportunity to look for people who have the potential to grow within the company and to help make the company grow. That is exactly how you should choose who to hire. You don’t want to hire people when you are in a rush or panicked. Take your time, and look at each individual candidate for hire. Analyze their potential within the company, and if they have the skills you are looking for, hire from the top down.

1. Hiring from the top down helps you hire people with similar goals.

Hiring people with similar goals is important. If they do not have similar goals, then it will create confusion within the company. Hiring someone who is like-minded will help build up and improve the company rather than create confusion. You will want to hire someone who can encourage you toward and help you achieve those goals.

2. Hiring from the top down will help you find people are committed.

If the people you hire are not committed, then your projects will take longer to complete. You will want to hire enthusiastic people. People who are enthusiastic will remind you of why you’re doing what your doing and will encourage you to keep going. Committed people will help keep up the moral of the team and  negativity out of the work space.

3. Hiring from the top down helps you find specific people to fill your need.

Look for people with specific skill sets. Know who you want and what you want them to do. If you aren’t specific, then you’ll go through a long training process. Training isn’t bad, but if you have a short term goal coming up, then you will need to be specific. You need to find people who can jump right into the project without holding the company back.

4. Hiring from the top down will help you create a team with the same mindset.

You want a team with the same beliefs and core values. If the people you hire do not hold to the same core values that you do or that the company does, then it will create dissension within the team. A group of people working together need to see eye to eye. If they don’t, then it is much easier for arguments to break out. If the team is arguing, then work isn’t getting done, and the project is being delayed. Know your core values, and hire people who agree with them.

If you’re looking to expand your company, go for it. As a tech entrepreneur, you should keep in mind the hiring process and be specific. Hiring from the top down may take a little longer than just hiring the first people who apply. However, hiring from the top down helps you find people who are fit for the job and take little to no training. Know your coworkers and employees. They represent the company, so you want to make sure you are hiring people who can do so well.

5 Simple Ways To Stay Focused on Your Business Goals

Apr 6, 2017

It is important for every business to have both short-term and long-term goals. Having goals shows that the business is improving and has plans to keep improving. However, for Tech Entrepreneurs, this is not easy. It requires a variety of skills and, therefore, requires you to use those skills every day.  A tech entrepreneurship requires you to identify potential in people and  business opportunities, and it requires you to use that potential. This creates a busy life.

It gets incredibly easy to lose track of everything that needs to be done or everything you want to do. This busy life makes it easy for you to lose sight of the goals you have in mind, and it makes it seem as if you do not have the potential, skills, resources, or time to make them happen. Not achieving any of your goals, short term or long term, then affects the business in a negative way because not achieving your goals means you aren’t growing, or you aren’t growing as fast as you would like. So how do you not lose focus and keep achieving your goals?

1. Take care of your body.

This may sound simple, but it’s harder than you think. Living a busy life can often mean getting little sleep, so you can get that last project done. It’s the same with eating. It’s easy to skip breakfast when you’re in a rush out the door, and it’s easy to forget about lunch when you’re busy overseeing different tasks and keeping up with work. Next thing you know, you fall on the couch at home, too tired to make dinner. Believe it or not, lack of sleep affects your health in different ways. It can affect your blood pressure, which can affect how you treat your employees or anyone you work with. It can affect your low blood sugar, which can affect how you perform. Taking care of yourself should be first and foremost.

Sleep when you can. Sometimes getting little sleep can’t be helped. As for the food, keep snacks on you. Whether that is granola bars, yogurt or a bag of peanuts keep something nearby to munch on throughout the day, you’ll be surprised how well that keeps you focused. This is important because if you can’t take care of your body, how can you take care of your business properly? Stay healthy, so you can physically achieve your goals.

2. Drink water, and take short walks around the office or wherever it is that you work.

Not moving enough and sitting behind a desk for eight hours will make your brain slow. You’ll get bored and more frustrated than you would from lack of sleep. Remember to get up, and drink water. Water will help to keep you hydrated, and it gives you a nice break from staring at a computer screen or a sheet of paper. Also, it’s nice to get up and walk around for 3-5 minutes. Stretching your muscles will help work a separate part of your brain. Thus, waking it up. Keeping your brain active helps keep you focused on your goals and will help you not to get sidetracked. It will also help you come up with more inventive ways to achieve your goals.

3. Write your goals down.

Write your goals down and read them daily. Maybe have a cork board or a wall somewhere, whether it be in your office or at home, pin up pictures of what your dreams and goals look like. Always have them around to keep yourself reminded of why you’re doing what you’re doing. Quitting is always easy. Achieving those goals are not, but it’s much more rewarding. Keep your goals in front of you, so you have something you can chase after.

4. Find a team of like-minded people.

Have a team of coworkers, employees or friends who want to achieve the same goals. They can encourage you and make sure you don’t lose focus or heart. They will be the ones that remind you why you started in the first place. They will also be the ones that help you develop your ideas and bring in resources to make your ideas happen. You can’t do it alone, and even if you can, it will be much harder doing everything by yourself. Besides, it’s much more fun having a group of people you can trust cheering you on rather than trying to find the motivation yourself.

5. Use the haters as motivation.

Never forget your original source of inspiration, and always be finding new forms of motivation. People are always going to tell you that you can’t or that it’s not worth it. Prove them all wrong. If there is any reason to do what you are doing, it’s to show people you can, and that it is worth it. Someone in the world needs your idea to manifest, and you need your idea to become a reality. Do it for people, but never forget that you’re doing it for yourself, too.

Tech Entrepreneurs have a lot on their plate, but that doesn’t mean you have to take your goals and dreams off of it. Take care of yourself, surround yourself with like-minded people, and keep motivated, and you’ll do just fine. Your goals are possible, and you are just the one to fulfill them.

5 Situations When You Should Fire Your Client

Feb 20, 2017

There is lots of material out there written about how to maintain a healthy client relationship, but very little written on when to let go of a stubborn or uncooperative client. Of course, the first thing you want to do is try and resolve any issue that might be steering you towards terminating your client relationship. However, when your client’s demands or habits go from occasionally being difficult to interfering with you or your employee’s health and wealth, it’s time to really look and see if they are a perfect fit.Continue Reading

The Customer Is NOT Always Right

Feb 11, 2017

“The Customer is Always Right” is mantra that has been repeated throughout the customer service industry, to the point where it has become accepted as the industry’s golden rule. In my experience, and in the experience of many others, this is not always the case. If you interact with a large enough client base, statistically some of them are going to be unreasonable and negative. Spending your time, or your employee’s time bending over backwards for people who refused to be satisfied is a waste and potentially harmful to your business.Continue Reading