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Can Hyperfocus Make Your Business Startup More Successful?

Running a business can be overwhelming. As the owner, you are responsible for every aspect, every detail, and every action taken. It is easy to get so bogged down in the rush to get launched or in the day-to-day operations that you lose sight of the bigger picture. The result is stagnant progress or worse, an underplanned startup that falls flat.

One way to remedy this common predicament is to hyperfocus your efforts on a particular area for a set period of time. Hyperfocused planning means that you are working toward just one single, measurable goal at a time. While it is true that successful entrepreneurs must master time and task management, there are certain cases when narrowing the focus can vastly improve performance.

Most first-time entrepreneurs struggle with the pre-launch planning of the business idea. They might use a "business plan" program or outline to guide their efforts, but doing so generally results in a lack of depth in actual planning. In other cases, these inexperienced founders skim over the details in their zeal to get selling as quickly as possible, failing to gain a thorough grasp of the options and alternatives along the way. A business startup without the foundation of thorough planning is destined to fail -- the learn as you go approach is expensive and risky, two things a startup in the current economy should never be.

A better option is to hyperfocus your business planning, one area at a time. This way, you can verify or strengthen your fundamental business knowledge, clarify your position in the market, and reduce risk by preparing for nearly every potential opportunity and threat. For example, spending a full scheduled week on marketing will provide the time to not only brush up on marketing basics but also focus on the comparative features of your product. You can take the time to scout your direct and indirect competitors, read up on the latest industry news, and the like without feeling guilty about all the things that are not getting done. Hyperfocusing one startup aspect at a time allows a first-time entrepreneur the breathing room to master each aspect of business.

The same concept can be carried over to business planning once your venture is off the ground. Normally, companies develop an annual strategy, a list of objectives to meet over the next year. The better managed businesses include milestones and accountability measures along with the goals, and sometimes even assign a specific person to monitor the progress. Generally a few targets are met, others are ignored because the company's needs change or there just isn't a concrete plan for getting them done. And those are the best cases.

More often, the excitement and motivation surrounding the annual strategy session wears off within the first month or two, and things operate business as usual until the next year's strategy meeting rolls around. A better option is to hyperfocus everyone in the company on a single objective over a shorter time span, say 90 days. Choose one improvement that needs to happen, and set everyone to work on achieving it. Develop incentive programs or a company-wide reward for reaching the target, and encourage everyone to do their part in reaching the goal as soon as possible.

Broad goals like "be open for business" or "double profits" won't work, but specific, strategic-planning-type goals will. For startups, block out a week for developing your financial projections (and learning how to read and use financial statements, etc.), a week for the marketing plan, a week for scoping out facilities options (if needed). Take one piece of the startup planning at a time and learn all you can about it. By hyperfocusing, you are more likely to get beneath the surface of each topic and retain the knowledge permanently.

For ongoing planning, choose one area to work on at a time, with a timeframe of no longer than 90 days (people can't sustain an excited focus much beyond three months). Set objectives like improving your Google ranking, reducing certain overhead expense categories, increasing tie-in sales, or improving customer service ratings. Set a measurable objective and be sure everyone in the company is aware of the goal and their own role in it. Celebrate success and debrief failures to figure out what went wrong, then establish ONE new objective and start again.

Hyperfocusing your work can be very effective in fixing or improving specific areas of your business. Of course, the rest of the day-to-day operations cannot be overlooked, but addressing a single objective on top of your regular work is far easier and more effective than trying to solve every issue at once!

About the Author

LaunchX.com is dedicated to training entrepreneurs to turn their good ideas into great companies. The LaunchX System provides step-by-step education in the mindset and skill set entrepreneurs need to succeed. Our program includes intensive seminar training, key business software, and specialized workbooks that teach you the fundamental skills you need to achieve your financial and worklife goals through entrepreneurship. Register today for our introductory course and see what LaunchX can do for you!