Give yourself a day out!

There is one trait that links most successful entrepreneurs - they are naturally glass half full people. There's always a better way, a solution, a brighter future. They claim responsibility for their lives and wouldn't dream of blaming others or external factors. This makes them proactive people, basing actions on carefully though out values and plans rather than the conditions they find themselves in.

However, given the day to day pressure of building a business, it's too easy to fall into the trap of becoming reactive - acting according to circumstances:

• "Sales are down; change the product"
• "Cash is running low, so sell anything"
• "The team is unhappy, pay more money"

We need to guard against this short term thinking and the best way I know is to have a clear idea of where the business is heading, then take regular time out to look at the business from a distance. 'Are we on track or are we veering off course'.

It's easy to take corrective action at an early stage but the longer it's left, the further off track, the harder the change. Entrepreneurs are also people that take the initiative so do yourself a favour, book a day out of the office, and see what the road ahead looks like.