Fix This Next in Your Small Business with Mike Michalowicz.
How to identify and Fix This Next in your Small Business with Mike Michalowicz. What to focus on next, and why we need to focus on Profit First.
Mike Michalowicz is an entrepreneur, speaker, author and podcaster (The Entrepreneurship Elevated Podcast).
He is the author of top-selling and influential books including, “Surge”, “Profit First”, and “The Pumpkin Plan”, and his latest book, “Fix This Next”.
He is the founder of Profit First Professionals. The Profit First Professional organization is designed to support accountants, bookkeepers and other financial professionals to substantially differentiate themselves in the market by introducing a significant service differentiator – the tools and techniques to maximize the profitability of their clients.
He previously founded, built and sold two technology service-based companies. His second company, PG Lewis & Associates, was sold in a public transaction in 2006. His first company was acquired by a private equity group.
Topics and questions covered in this episode The How of Business podcast, include:
- After university, you worked for a couple of years in technology sales and then launched your first business. Please share the story of what led to launching this first business.
- When did you know you wanted to be your own boss? Who were early entrepreneurial influences?
- What are two personal characteristics you believe has been instrumental to your success in business?
- You have connected with over a million entrepreneurs so far, and have identified the biggest challenge business owners face is knowing what their biggest challenge is. (Subject of “Fix This First”). Why does this happen? Please introduce how the book helps small business owners determine what they need to fix next?
- Please introduce the crisis exercise, and the Business Hierarchy of Needs for a business.
- Let’s discuss the Profit First Formula (From the “Profit First: Transform Your Business from a Cash-Eating Monster to a Money-Making Machine”). Would you please introduce this approach to managing a business? (Sales – Profit = Expenses)
- Why is this approach so seemingly counter-intuitive to most small business owners?
- Why is it important to calculate Real Revenue (Total revenue minus materials and subcontractors. Period. You do not subtract any labor of full or part time employees or other costs.) Is this in part so can then manage expenses relative to this number instead of total income?
- What initial steps can a small business owner take to begin moving away from “Bank Balance Accounting”?
- Are there common themes that emerge when you think back to your business ventures that were not successful? Common mistakes, assumptions, etc.?
Episode Host: Henry Lopez is a serial entrepreneur, small business coach, and the host of this episode of The How of Business podcast show – dedicated to helping you start, run and grow your small business.
Resources:
Books mentioned in this episode:
[We receive commissions for purchases made through these links (more info)].
- Profit First: Transform Your Business from a Cash-Eating Monster to a Money by Mike Michalowicz
- Fix This Next: Make the Vital Change That Will Level Up Your Business by Mike Michalowicz
- Rejection Proof: How I Beat Fear and Became Invincible Through 100 Days of Rejection by Jia Jiang
More about the book “Fix This Next”:
From Mike Michalowicz, the author of PROFIT FIRST, CLOCKWORK, and THE PUMPKIN PLAN, comes the ultimate diagnostic tool for every entrepreneur.
The biggest problem entrepreneurs have is that they don’t know what their biggest problem is. If you find yourself trapped between stagnating sales, staff turnover, and unhappy customers, what do you fix first? Every issue seems urgent — but there’s no way to address all of them at once. The result? A business that continues to go in endless circles putting out urgent fires and prioritizing the wrong things.
Fortunately, Mike Michalowicz has a simple system to help you eradicate these frustrations and get your business moving forward, fast. Mike himself has lived through the struggles and countless distractions of entrepreneurship, and devoted years to finding a simple way to pinpoint exactly where to direct attention for rapid growth. He figured out that every business has a hierarchy of needs, and if you can understand where you are in that hierarchy, you can identify what needs immediate attention. Simply fix that one thing next, and your business will naturally and effortlessly level-up.
Over the past decade, Mike has developed an ardent following for his funny, honest, and actionable insights told through the stories of real entrepreneurs. Now, Fix This Next offers a simple, unique, and wildly powerful business compass that has already helped hundreds of companies get to the next level, and will do the same for you. Immediately.
[Source: Amazon]
Other Podcast Episodes:
You can find other episodes of The How of Business podcast, the best small business podcast, on our Archives page.