Sweat the Small Stuff

We’ve all heard the phrase don’t sweat the small stuff… and while I agree on a personal level, you should never let little things change your long term vision in the business world.

The little things are what makes a company unique or different.

From a high level, many companies look identical or competitive with each other. But once you zoom in, what makes an entrepreneur, startup, or business owner stand out are the little things they are doing differently in the day-to-day operations. This could be in the delivery of their service, their product, innovation, or something else.

Consider a house. From far away it looks like any other house, identical to its neighbors. What makes this house unique is what happens inside — not only with the people but also within the space. This is why it is important for entrepreneurs and small business owners to sweat the small stuff.

Pay attention to all the details that make you different from others, and implement little processes or steps that make your products or services different from the rest.

When I say sweat the small stuff, I mean make sure the small things that make you stand out are in place and happen consistently, whether you are present or not.

Consider, for example, your customer service. Do you pay attention to your customers, make sure the customer is always right? Do you take a stand for being fair and good to your employees?

Whatever you stand for, just make sure those little things make a big difference when you are in or out of the business.

BEFORE YOU GO

We see our blogs as opportunities for dialogue. Please share your thoughts as comments.

1. Think about what makes your business unique.
2. What little things are you doing every day that makes you different?
3. What are you doing to ensure those things are happening day in and day out?

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Faris Alami is Founder and CEO of International Strategic Management, Inc. (ISM). He works internationally, presenting Exploring Entrepreneurship Workshops and other entrepreneurial ecosystem — related ventures.