A (not so) Serious Cause of Serious Consequences

Often, we look outside, searching for reasons for our business's lack of profitability in factors beyond our control. How can we change the market when we can't control its rules? When we lack ideas for change in our business, we often blame the fact that we couldn't predict how the market and customers would react. However, we often neglect what's happening in our own backyard, which has a significant impact on business results. We fail to see that the serious consequences of unprofitability result from a trivial cause.

When making changes in a company and diagnosing the situation, we must ensure that details and specifics are not causing negative effects that affect the company's performance and market position. The principle that only those who meet customer needs will survive in the market has driven entrepreneurs to continuously change their offerings to meet their customers' expectations. When facing profitability difficulties in his business, the entrepreneur primarily attributed it to not satisfying customers' tastes. He often changed his offer, but it brought him only dismal results.

However, the real cause of the situation turned out to be the length of order fulfillment, not the entrepreneur's offering itself. Instead of reflecting on this state of affairs and looking for reasons other than the principle, the entrepreneur focused on constantly changing the market. He was so absorbed in outsmarting the market's dynamics and finding the perfect offering that he lost sight of his own backyard. Perhaps someday his efforts in finding a unique offering would have been rewarded, and customers wouldn't pay attention to order fulfillment time, but unfortunately, it didn't happen.

In the case of our exemplary entrepreneur, it's crucial to emphasize the importance of seeking answers to the question: What can we change in our offering, and what can rebuild our company? The answer won't always be changing the offering itself, as in this case where the issue was the length of order fulfillment. Let's start the analysis and reflection from every part of our business, and let's not rush into overly ambitious tasks right away.

Recognizing the weaknesses of our company is essential because this awareness gives us a tremendous advantage and the opportunity for improvement. Often, we'll have to challenge our previous beliefs about running a business because what's relevant today may not be relevant tomorrow. Every day, we learn something new, and every day, we run our business anew.

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