Standing Still is the Same as Going Backwards

I was on a train recently and what happened to me us something I am sure has happened to you before. I was watching the train to the right of our train and I had the sensation that we were moving backwards. However, when I looked to the platform on my left I realised that we were standing still. It jolts your spacial awareness for a split second. It's an unusual sensation which also reminded me of something that was uppermost in my mind at the time.

The recent troubled economic times have changed our business lives. Those businesses who have been standing still and have not been looking at the competition have been blissfully unaware of what is happening to them and have suffered greatly or in some cases, failed altogether. But those of us who keep an eye on the competition (the train on the right in my metaphor) were immediately aware of a sensation of moving backwards.

Even though that sensation is deceiving, as long as the competition moves forwards without us, we may as well be going backwards.

The point I am trying to make here is that it is all too tempting to complain about how difficult life is for the small business owner in this present economic climate. Believe me, I have been tempted many times to complain about the difficulties encountered by Web Designers like myself. But this helps nobody. We have a straight choice. Stand still and complain and let the competition run ahead of us or move your own business forward and keep up with or stay ahead of the competition.

Small Business Marketing is All About Never Stopping

As a Web Designer in Nottingham, I am privileged to have an insight to many small businesses and meet many entrepreneurs. What I have noticed is that there is absolutely no correlation between success in business and other factors you might think would be relevant such as intelligence, age, experience and all round business knowledge. Whilst some of these things might help you in business they are by no means a guarantee of success. What all the successful small business owners do have in common is an incessant desire to improve business all of the time.

All the businesses that are a runaway success continue to be so because of the owner's tenacity. Once success comes, some of us might be tempted to slow down or even stop, they are not satisfied and are hungry for more. They continually place pressure on their employees, their suppliers and most of all on themselves.

Moving Forward is THE Key to Success

I cannot stress enough that I have met many failed and many successful small business owners and this experience has led me to one inescapable conclusion. The business owner who continually strives, in both good times and bad, is the one with a business that at least keeps up with but more often than not stays ahead of the competition. They fear their competitors. Not in a defeatist sort of way but in a pragmatic sort of way by constantly reminding themselves that if they don't keep moving forward as fast as possible, these competitors are ready to pounce and eat up every last morsel of their business.

We would all do well to remind ourselves of this every hour of every day and to constantly think of ways of developing our businesses so that we too can be successful.