Resolve to Lead from a High Place

There will be many opportunities to leverage and challenges to overcome in the coming year. Embrace them, but remember the most critical thing is to stay true to your brand promise and lead from a higher, more strategic place.

• Don’t cut that last minute deal when it will create an imbalance in the market place and ultimately cost you profit dollars.
• Don’t keep that one customer who doesn’t fit your business model, treats your team poorly or causes havoc in the market place — let them be your competition’s problem.
• Introduce only those products that truly fit within your brand promise, as those that don’t will taint your current successful products.
• Find a way to dramatically change the way you look at your industry, identifying nuances you never noticed and gaps no one else is filling. Then, build a business model around that.
• Define two-three core competencies that differentiate you from your competitors, then scream it to the industry. Don’t let your competitors tell your story for you.
• Be confident and get the value your products and services are worth — don’t blink.
• Select a day each month on which your organization can do no emails, and instead create an opportunity to simply listen to your employees and your clients.

Finally, never say, “I don’t have time to be strategic.” Find time by focusing on the critical (strategic) versus the urgent (tactical). Great leaders find time and lead from a place of strategic thought. Tactics create busy work, while strategies create sustainable profitable businesses.

Yes, this is the season to be thankful for the past year and be excited for what the New Year holds for your company. Resolve yourself to position your company at a higher level, and enhanced business results will follow.