Oops!: Three of the most common leadership mistakes among business owners
Feb
15
Written by:
2/15/2012 12:31 AM
Running your own business is far from easy, and one of the most difficult things about being a business owner is that it's very hard to anticipate where your company will end up. Mistakes are natural, and you'll certainly learn from every one of them, but by learning from other's not-so-wise decisions, hopefully you and your business will create a business model that works great for everyone. Here are three of the most common leadership mistakes that business owners make - and that you need to avoid:
1. Hiring employees that are just like you. While you as the owner might be more of a spontaneous, big-picture type individual, hiring a staff that is exactly the same way means that you are missing out on a detail-oriented, more organized person. The important thing to keep in mind is that you want your employees to complement your skill sets, not mimic them.
2. Putting off your mobile and online presence. Sure, the internet can be intimidating, but that is no excuse for any business owner. If you think that the internet is just a minor supplement to your storefront, you are wrong - in fact, doing so can allow you to reach a clientele that you might never even known you had. Just set up an e-commerce website, and hire a local or nationwide courier service for scheduled delivery on shipments to support your back-end operations.
3. Failing to have an organized plan for growth. As Kelly Spors writes in a recent article for Entrepreneur, "Many first-time leaders struggle with maintaining the culture of their firms as they grow." But, if you are cautious about growth, and have a set strategy for planning ahead, you can avoid affecting the dynamic environment that worked so well in the first place.
