Small Business Revolution

14Eyes Wide Open

FOR THOUSANDS OF years, people have pursued the dream of someday stumbling on a way to turn lead into gold. As a small-business owner, you've already done it.

You had this crazy idea for a business, and you couldn't get it out of your mind. You took materials that were available to anyone, but you put them together in a way that created enough value for customers to pay you to deliver your product or service. You are indeed an alchemist.

People who have never taken the leap to become small-business owners do not know how difficult it can be, even when things are going well. Like the performer who spins many plates on top of sticks, even when it's all working well, it requires your complete attention, or else things can come crashing down in an instant. Quite literally all can be lost in a minute.

In these pages we've talked a lot about how to keep all those plates spinning, and how to grow your paying audience. For this last chapter, I'd like to give you six more suggestions for making progress despite whatever challenges you face.

Small Hinges Swing Big Doors

Sometimes the difference between where you are now and where you want to be can be through smaller adjustments than you might think. We've seen in several SBR episodes how a minor price increase had the potential to keep an entire business from closing.

Although pricing is just one of the hinges in your business, it's worth your time to review your pricing regularly, and to get creative with it.

In ...