Other business authors discuss why businesses fail. I prefer to focus on the positive: businesses that thrive and why they become successful. There has been so much negative news over the years about job loss in NEO that I wanted to find out first hand the true story. I talked with nearly 50 small successful Northeast Ohio companies and I found out things were not quite as bad as the news portrayed.

I found three things that inspired me and helped me understand that the small business market in NEO is alive and well. Companies that are doing well exhibited three primary behaviors: the business owner exhibited a positive attitude, the business created and implemented a sound business strategy and they had the discipline to they focused on the strategy.

The attitude of the business owner is the single most important principle described in the book. The owner must accept 100% of the responsibility for the results of the business. When responsibility is accepted, action can be taken to make the necessary changes to accomplish the desired results.

When success is achieved, these owners are generous in giving credit to others within the organization. Without exception, the most successful business owners understand it is all about people: hiring and retaining the right people, eliminating ineffective people, and providing the necessary resources for employees to master their tasks.

Having and implementing a sound business strategy is next. A large complex strategy is not necessary; a one page document will do. However, the business strategy does need to be well thought out, carefully crafted and well executed. The business strategy will define and drive the activities and behaviors the organization must execute to become successful. If you do not have a business strategy, the organization becomes like a ship without a rudder - it can't be steered - it just goes in circles. A business strategy should include such things as: a financial plan, marketing differentiators, product strategy, and employee retention strategy, etc.

The other two attributes become much more effective when discipline is in place. Discipline can be defined as "staying the course," and executing the strategy. The most successful companies understand the value of discipline and they work hard maintain the course defined by the business strategy.

A poorly crafted business plan that is well executed is far superior to a well-crafted business plan the sits on the shelf.

Discipline is not overreacting to market changes, staying focused on your core markets, and measuring success as defined in the business plan.

Business success is contingent on these three principles: attitude, strategy, and discipline.

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