Lost Momentum - Why my Business Failed

Never lose your momentum, this is one clear reason why businesses fail?

It is easy to step aside and have some rest when all is going well with your endeavors may it be a business or other personal goals. Telling your self that some short break is what you deserve after all your hard works and efforts.

To illustrate my point better I feel it is appropriate to share an experience that has taught me well in running my business and in life in general. I run a small outsourcing business that operates in a small office. What I do is I look for available jobs online that can be performed home-based such as data entry, transcription, SEO and website design works and hire others to do the work.

The small business has been operating for more than three years and thus far has already net almost a million pesos. Though I already gained that much, the business is still in its start-up stage. And as a start-up businessman I have many different hats which I gladly wore; manager, secretary, marketing, human resource and janitor.

Despite my lack of skills when it comes to marketing I managed to add at least one new client each month for the past year. Together with the growing number of clients, I keep my people educated and motivated, I make sure they are well trained and know how to think and use their own judgement. I do this by regularly meeting and brainstorming with them or sharing them a principle I’ve read in a book.

I must say that I have done an excellent job wearing different hats - marketing and handling people. It made the business running pretty well, it came to the point that the business doesn’t seem to need me anymore. My employees doesn’t need new training and I don’t need to always be online to meet with our clients. I felt that I need to have some “break”, a time to relax and “enjoy life”.

I guess my definition of “having a break” was totally wrong or has gone too far. I went out of town traveling with my wife, we went shopping and eating in restaurants. I chat with my people once in a while and answer their questions whenever needed. When I’m at our office I sit in my desk with them but I was’t really there, my mind is somewhere else. I impress my mind that I was being productive and busy by surfing the internet watching YouTube tutorial videos or reading eBooks about entrepreneurship, I was “sharpening my saw” as Stephen Covey put it, but the truth is I was not. I was being stupid, lazy, careless, unproductive - my momentum in running the business was lost.

While I was away from the office, some of my people are slacking. When I’m around with them at the office I see some of them chatting with online friends every now and then. I give them a tap on their shoulders to remind them of their tasks. I started receiving emails with complaints from some clients, I will then just forward the email to the person in-charge of the project and expect him or her to fix it. These actions didn’t turned out so well. I guess my employees’ actions are just representations of their boss.

Projects are done, clients one by one disappeared and it’s very rare that some come back. I have to lay down one employee at a time. Now the business has got my attention again. Only this time I’m not as good as I was when I am in the thriving stage, the momentum was gone.

To keep a momentum back it takes the same level of effort and energy you exerted when you started it. My only option to keep the business back is obvious and that is to start all over again.

No matter how professional or knowledgeable you may be in your field of expertise you have to remain on top of the game. Even the best practitioner need regular training to stay up-to date on the latest research and procedures. Momentum is something you have to work at to maintain.