Businesses are like babies. They grow, they demand your full attention and …they can be easily spoilt. That’s why it’s extremely important to be as responsive to them when they are fully mature as when they were only learning to walk.

Here are  some tips on how to avoid falling into three common traps which may ultimately lead to your business’s untimely demise.

Check out: 3 Silent Killers of Successful Businesses

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Glossary

• recur – occur again, periodically, or repeatedly
• complacency – a feeling of smug or uncritical satisfaction with oneself or one’s achievements
• hubris – excessive pride or self-confidence.
• scrap – discard or remove from service 
• flat-out – without hesitation or reservation; unequivocally
• inevitable – certain to happen; unavoidable
• in hot water – in a situation of difficulty, trouble, or disgrace 

Think about it

Answer the questions below.

• How do you understand the title of the book “What Got You Here Won’t Get You There?”
• What is the answer “So long ago I can’t remember” indicative of?
• What does the phrase “we start to operate on autopilot” refer to? What are some threats of such a mode of operation?
• Why is it difficult for “Joanne” to refuse to do many things?
• When are you NOT showing up?
• Why does the author keep referring to hot water?

Practice makes perfect

Fill in the blank spaces with the words in bold.

time   –   so   –   scrap   –   laurels   –   wrong   –   do   –   massive 

When was the last time you had a ________ change of mind about a fundamental way in which you ________ business? When was the last time a coach or a mentor ________ challenged you about your management and leadership skills that you lost sleep? When did you last ________ a much-loved process, or system, or meeting, or process because its ________ had passed? When was the last occasion when someone told you you were flat-out ________ about something important– and they were right?

If the answer to any of these is ‘So long ago I can’t remember‘, then chances are you’re resting on the ________ of past success. Can you hear the water simmer?

Check out the difference between these pairs of words:

• complacent vs. complaisant
• nurture vs. cherish
• pestle vs. mortar
• multiple vs. multifaceted

Explore it more

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