Find strength in your weakness

Peter Switzer

Are you brave enough to face up to your business weaknesses? Don’t stick your head in the sand and miss the opportunities that come with analysing your operation, warts and all.

A surprising revelation from surveys of small business owners' worries is that they never identify the one thing they should be concerned about: their own inadequacies. This is one of the differences between a small business owner and an entrepreneur.

When organisations conduct surveys of small business complaints, the usual things like red tape and Business Activity Statements (BAS) turn up as the biggest headaches. Other things such as interest rates, business costs and government policies are also major concerns, although the negative ratings on these fluctuate. Business owners are also concerned about the inability to find quality staff, lack of work, big business competition, cash flow, drought, consumer confidence, taxes, time and state regulations.

Clearly, small business owners have many issues to keep them busy, but nowhere do you ever see these people say, “I am worried about what I don't know”.

Sometime ago I interviewed a large group of entrepreneurs about their main business issues, including Mark Bouris, founder of Wizard Home Loans; Paul Cave, founder of BridgeClimb; and Robert Maple-Brown from funds management group Maple-Brown Abbott. So what do entrepreneurs worry about? It's simple: how they manage risk.

The high-flyers know they will be grounded if they don't eliminate obstructions to growth. Sure, they have guts and they do brave things such as borrowing to make a dream come true, but courage is used in other productive ways.

SWOT analysis
One such way is performing a SWOT analysis, not only on their business but also on themselves. SWOT refers to the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats that need to be understood to grow a business. It is brave to analyse yourself or to pay someone to do it for you and then face up to a need for change.

Some entrepreneurs even have to face the fact that their strengths are in building up a business, working the marketing angles and creating a fantastic brand. They then put in systems and administrative experts to make the business hum along successfully. In this case, some entrepreneurs can be forcibly replaced by venture-capital partners who know someone else with a more appropriate skill set needed to take the business to the next level. Other entrepreneurs choose to step back to become chairperson.

Paul Cave no longer runs the day to day operations of BridgeClimb, as he has appointed others he knows will do a great job. He says his chief job is to review complaints, though he complains he doesn't get many. Cave says he knows he can only make his business better by reacting positively to customer feedback. That's a sensible concern that only the brave and wise are willing to take on.

Where to find out more

• Do you have what it takes to be an entrepreneur?
• From self-employed to entrepreneur

More advice

• Read more practical advice on starting a business.

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• Important information
  As this advice has been prepared without considering your objectives, financial situation or needs, you should, before acting on the advice, consider its appropriateness to your circumstances. All products mentioned on this web page are issued by the Commonwealth Bank of Australia; view our Financial Services Guide (PDF 59kb) .