Three Must Have Skills for Business Owners who want to Grow

The required skill set of a successful business owner or business leader is broad with few boundaries. Plus, the best entrepreneurs continually work to improve existing skills or learn something new. It really is a never ending process. It would not take much effort to create a list of 20 skills every business owner should be very competent at. Defining this ‘required’ skill set and mastering it is a dilemma many of our clients often wrestle with as their desire to work on their business competes with the hours they are working in their business.

You have to keep climbing the mountain, but you have to start somewhere…

Here Are Three Skills to build on…

Communication:

You must be able to communicate effectively. There are very few successful business owners or business leaders that are not effective communicators. Effective communication is much more than memos or words. It includes the interpersonal skills of being able to understand what others are saying, even when they aren’t saying a word. Understanding the different behavioral styles people have and how to communicate with them so they understand you. You can have the greatest vision in your head, but if you can’t communicate it to someone else it has little value. Don’t underestimate the power of communication.

Don’t underestimate the power of communication – it’s the glue that makes everything else work.

Strategic Vision:

You have to able to pull yourself up out of the weeds of the business and look at the bigger picture. It is way too easy for business owners to get sucked into a rabbit hole that prevents them from seeing all of the other important drivers that can impact their business. Thinking strategically about your business and strategically about your planning is the best way to get clarity on the direction of your business. It gets you to ask questions about your company. It challenges you to question where your resources are being allocated. Are you investing time and money or are you wasting it.  Are you clear on where you’re heading?

As the business owner, you are the ONLY person that can create a strategic vision for your business…without that, you’re running blind.

Organized:

You can’t manage all the moving parts of a business without being organized. This can be a big obstacle for many entrepreneurial business owners. They have tons of ideas and jump from one idea to the next with very little effort. However, without some degree of organization, none of those great ideas ever gets off the ground. The good news is that there are lots of ways to improve if this is a skill you are challenged with. There are a ton of great apps to help you get organized and there are professional organization experts who can help guide or train you in this area.

You can’t scale your business without structure and organization. Otherwise, you simply have chaos. Get organized.

These three skills are only the tip of the iceberg, but you do have to start somewhere. These are foundational skills and will help you add other skills you’ll need to grow and build a successful business. What about you? Are these at the top of your list? What are some of the skills you see as fundamental to business success? As always we value your comments in the space below.

Chris Steinlage Kansas City Business Coach