The Five Stages of a Business

Formulation

In this stage, perform a brain dump about all you are doing, thinking, and planning about your business. You put together business plans, budgets, marketing plans, recruiting plans, economic forecasts, etc. You commit to paper everything you can think of about your business.

Concentration

Concentration is characterized by lots of energy and activity going out but little coming in. For every ten actions you take, only 1 produces a result. You’re not spinning your wheels because your actions are on purpose and designed to keep your business running. It’s just that you’re expending much energy with very little to show for it.

If you’ve ever had to jump-start a car by popping the clutch, you know what I mean about concentration. Remember how you got behind the car, which was at a dead standstill, and pushed and pushed with all your might, but the car barely moved?  You put out a lot of energy and hard work with minimal results. The car just barely began to roll forward. But then you entered Stage 3.

Momentum

Using our car analogy again, momentum is where you still apply energy and effort, but now you’re beginning to see results. The car is starting to move. It’s picking up steam. You’re still struggling, but the car is moving faster and faster, and it’s getting easier to push. Instead of 10 actions, momentum is now to produce one result, 7 to 1, 5 to 1, 3 to 1, and so on.

More phone calls are being returned, connections on Social Media increase and individuals are starting to recognize you. You’re putting out advertising, and more people are responding. You’re going on sales calls and closing more sales. You can feel the momentum building.

Stability

In this stage, your business has become fairly stable and predictable. You know that if you do certain things, customers will show up. Ads produce a steady stream of clients, cold calling or prospecting gets so much business, etc. If you go on x number of appointments, you’ll close y number of sales. Your conversion rates are steady and predictable. It’s one action out, one result in.

Breakthrough

If you reach this stage (and I say if because, in my experience, few businesses ever get here), your business takes off, often in unpredictable ways. The phone is ringing off the hook. Your seminars are filled to overflowing, and you’ve got so many client appointments you can’t keep track of them. In fact, you’re getting calls and leads from the proverbial “out of the blue.” Someone’s aunt’s brother’s cousin’s sister calls you, and you can’t even remember where you met the first person in the chain.

Business cards you left at someone’s office months ago fall into the hands of someone you don’t even know. They call wanting a meeting as you are the answer to all their problems. On some level, you could almost say you’ve got too much business. You must generate new structures and systems to handle and manage it. It’s almost like going back into formulation again because, in essence, you’ve got a totally new business different from the one you conceived back in Stage 1.

Overview

These stages are linear, and if you skip over one, you usually pay the price somewhere down the road.

If you don’t formulate and go into concentration, you’ve got a lot of activity but no direction or purpose. It’s random and ill-conceived.

If you don’t do the legwork of concentration, you’ll miss valuable learning experiences and insights that only come from hard work and perseverance.

I have occasionally seen clients in the real estate field go from momentum to breakthrough (a quick explosion of leads and appointments and listings and buyers). They get so wrapped up in servicing those clients that they stop prospecting and lead generating. Then when things calm down, and all those houses are sold, and buyers have found homes, there’s no business, and they must go back to concentration again, hitting the phones, walking their farm area, etc., and it takes them 2-3 months to get back to building a stable business. So be aware of following the model one stage at a time.

Brad Warren, Land Banking Consultant @ https://www.linkedin.com/in/bradleykwarren/

Brad Warren was a national and international speaker, author, seminar leader, and business coach.  He travelled to 19 foreign countries and 27 of the United States over the last 40 years, teaching a wide range of business courses, including time management, communication skills, lead generation, and negotiation skills.  

He's also coached over 500+ business owners on goal setting and accomplishment, business planning and implementation, and how to be more effective and productive. 

He is the 2014 recipient of the Bay East Association of Realtors Affiliate of the Year award and the author of Just Sold! The Real Estate Professionals Guide to Selling More in Less Time. 

He’s spoken at the National Association of Realtors 2016 and 2017 Annual Conventions on Time Block Your Way to Success with Less Stress! and he’s also certified to teacher.

The ONE Thing, based on the national best-seller of the same name by Gary Keller and Jay Papasan.  After 40+ years as a business coach, speaker, and trainer. Brad transitioned to a new career as a land banking consultant, helping patient investors build generational wealth by investing in land.

Brad Warren welcomes your calls to learn about land investment. LinkedIn

Making Changes that Directly Impact your Business

Very few would argue that to be successful with health and fitness, you have to find which workout is best for you, the gym, running, spin class, boxing, or crossfit, and commit to it. Combine exercise with healthy eating of nutritious foods with getting enough sleep, drinking water,  watching your caloric intake and your Body Mass Index (BMI), and arguably you have a recipe for success. 

A great thing for business owners to consider is how taking care of your body directly impacts your business. I’ve been very fortunate throughout my career to be healthy and rarely catch a cold or flu. That’s not to say that I haven’t had challenges. They are part of life. I’ve been successful through several surgical procedures, including double foot reconstruction, Ventricular Tachycardia (VT), and Atrial Flutter (AF). Having my heart rate go up to 280 BPM was both scary and telling. It confirmed my heart, although a little confused, was strong and reconfirmed my ability to recover quickly after various procedures. I tell you this to share the fact that the work I put in over the years is worth it.

When Illness Happens It Does Make a Difference

I’ve worked hard to take care of my fitness and nutrition for many years. Some might say my procedure challenges should not have happened if all that fitness stuff works. However, the key during these and other challenges in my life, I have missed little to no work and recovered in record time due to investment in my fitness. Angela Dimos, Strength Training and Weight Loss Coach, says exercise and healthy eating are more important than ever.

I have seen evidence of what Angela says in my life and with others. When you invest in self-care now, and in the future, even if you haven’t done so before, it will keep you on the path to success. Taking care of yourself today will allow you to continue working on your business moving forward. Caring for your own health and fitness will allow you the opportunity to strengthen your business too.

I Know This - But Do you Do it?

Some business owners are reluctant to do the work necessary to get their business in shape. They continue to press forward, hoping to get different results without changing anything. It is not dissimilar to working out yourself, becoming fit enough to rise to the challenges life throws at you. Your business workout should include; strengthening, development, endurance testing, and training.

An Olympic athlete would never think of starting their journey without engaging in the proper training and coaching; neither should you. Business requires the same commitment, doing “business push-ups,” working hard on your business structure and processes for your ongoing success.

If you would like a glimpse into your business strength, take your 10 Minute Business Strength Test

By Michelle Ricketts

Overall, health and fitness always played a part in Michelle’s life and continue to be part of her consulting approach today, differentiating her from others in the industry. Michelle guides business owners to develop a self-sustaining business, generate more revenue, and take back time to do things that excite them!

Raised by a strong, independent single mother, Michelle’s vision and values were instilled early. Michelle’s entrepreneurial journey started in the 90s in event planning and speaking. In addition to Michelle’s over 30-year Corporate career in Media, Logistics and Financial Services, her passions shaped Michelle’s experience, providing innumerable opportunities to give back as a volunteer.

Passionate about making a difference, Michelle is on a philanthropic foundation, “Board of Advisors,” building sustainable schools in developing countries and supporting Digital Samurai’s efforts, an entrepreneur focused on reducing youth unemployment in Africa through apprenticeships.

Michelle’s 35 years as an Account Executive spanned credit card processing and financial services, transportation, logistics, media, and consulting, with many projects including managing consultative alliances, live event management, and sales team leadership. In 2021 Michelle completed Wardell International Advisor training and had recently undertaken S.O.S. Sales Objection System group training with renowned trainer Joe Marcoux. Her career and entrepreneurial ambitions have taken Michelle outside Canada, providing extensive experience in multiple markets in North America and beyond.

You can find Michelle Ricketts on LinkedIn at https://linkedin.com/in/michellericketts