After Office Hours Recap // 5 Proven Ways To Grow Your Business

After Office Hours Recap // 5 Proven Ways To Grow Your Business

In our daily lives, we constantly find areas where improvements could be made. For example, you might ask, “What if we didn’t have to commute to work?” “What if we didn’t have to own a vehicle but still had access to one?” “What if we could relax while driving to work instead of being stressed out by traffic?”

These types of questions inspired are what have inspired entrepreneurial ventures such as ride-sharing services like Uber. In short, being aware of your surroundings and the encounters in your life can reveal multiple opportunities for entrepreneurship.

Once an entrepreneur identifies the venture another nightmare begins, that’s running your business! This can be quite tasking, especially for a new business owner. The top of mind can be getting it right 

This might lead you into spending a few sleepless nights, building a brand that people will be loyal to over time, way even after you have left the company.

Building a brand is actually why most people get into business in the first place & getting it right is quite important! 

People don’t buy goods and services, they buy relations, stories, and magic. Your brand is your superpower, hence building a strong brand that your customer identifies with will make them choose you over similar products and services every time

However, while all this is important, Waceke Nduati, Director and Founder at Centonomy Ltd, also built emphasis on the need for people building businesses so as to express their gift and not suppress it this will enable your business to run on an operational level without you as the founder!

To achieve this one needs a shift in their entrepreneurial mindset and do things slightly differently from what the competition is doing. To some, it could a change in the obvious and to others this could mean going back to the drawing board.

During the session, Waceke Nduati also highlighted the things that keep us from financial independence and what we can do to remedy that.

She emphasized the need to understand the power of little money. This took us back to a famous quote by Warren Buffer, “Someone’s sitting in the shade today because someone planted a tree a long time ago.”

Falling back on Buffet’s words it can be said that small is powerful and this statement is particularly applicable in terms of financial planning. 

Experts are always of the opinion that even if you start small, start investing. It is a crucial step towards accumulating a huge corpus going forward.

Starting is important. Even if it means taking baby steps. Financial success not only depends on how much we save but early we start and of course how meticulous we are with it.

She also shared amazing business tips that could help change your mindset as an entrepreneur. Here are some key takeaways from us:

Creating Meaningful Connections

“The first rule of entrepreneurship is knowing & studying people in the room before you build meaningful connections,” said Waceke Nduati.

However, as an entrepreneur, you need to understand that long-lasting business relationships are built on something more than just a transaction. 

They’re rooted in partnerships, understanding what the other person needs, and developing mutually beneficial connections that move both parties closer to achieving their goals. And they take time.

Why ROTI especially while scaling a business in the service industry

According to Waceke, when it comes to scaling a business in the service industry, the concept of return on time invested is a great place to start.

Return on Time Invested is using your time and energy, so you get the most done with the least amount of effort needed.

The benefits of having an optimal ROTI are apparent: you can get more quality work done while utilizing quality energy in a way that moves you forward more quickly.

“ROTI  is a great place to start while in the service industry. One way to achieve this is by using the 80-20% rule; 80% of output is a result of 20% of your input,” she said.

She added, “Through this, you can always identify the high-impact tasks, work on them, and then you’re guaranteed of increasing your productivity and your profits.” 

Your team is your greatest investment, choose wisely.

If you have spent any time in leadership, you have heard this phrase at least once. It is much more than a saying on a T-shirt. 

They aren’t only people who matter to the company—they are your people.

During the #AfterOfficeHours session, Waceke emphasized the need of choosing wisely when it comes to putting your team together

“Your team is your greatest investment hence the need to choose wisely,” she said.

In this competitive market, companies are struggling to not only retain but also grow their talent pools as they expand.

Attractive salaries are important, but the most successful companies incorporate people-first practices into their mission and daily practice.

Keep the lights on & keep moving

For most people, the toughest part of launching a new business is arriving at a great idea. While that’s essential, more important is what’s done to execute and bring a product to market.

Owners of established businesses may also be stopped in their tracks in the face of challenges posed by regulations, advances in technology, or the overall economy. 

Running a business can be compared to a soccer match where the most successful teams are not those whose players run forward with the ball every time.

Instead, successful players advance the ball, but upon encountering an obstacle, retreat, seek a lateral position and continue the attack. 

Success is dependent upon movement and keeping possession of the ball. Teams that stall upon encountering an obstacle lose the ball and ultimately the match.

Sometimes you need to take a step back or sideways to keep moving forward. A successful entrepreneur is someone who, regardless of the challenge, keeps moving though not always forward.

According to Waceke Nduati, when your business does not work out as we expect it doesn’t mean that it has necessarily failed, it could be in the process of transitioning.”The show must go on!

Waceke added, “Even when it gets tough in business, in order to get on the other side of breaking even and scaling, you have to keep the lights on & keep moving.”

It is never about you, focus on what your customer needs

So many companies are focused on quick sales however, customer focus has never been more important.

Customer expectations are higher than ever before, and your customers are scrutinizing your business more intensely than ever. 

They’re comparing their experience with your brand to the easy, fast, and personalized experiences they’re having with the best of the best.

To stand out, play the long game with your customers, build trust, provide value before they purchase, and build a relationship with them – this will pay off in the long run by creating trust and brand loyalty

And it’s these customer-focused businesses that get to reap the benefits of renewed loyalty and competitive advantage.

To achieve this, Waceke emphasized the need to always step outside of yourself to understand exactly what your customer’s problem is and try and address it.

Improving your customer focus starts by deepening your understanding of what customer focus means and building an effective customer focus strategy.