While some aspects of business success will always remain the same, there’s no doubt that running a business is more complicated in the Age of Information.
Building a business has always been a risky and difficult endeavor, but entrepreneurs have to juggle more now than ever before, because of the multi-faceted demands of the modern online marketplace.
Sunny Puri, a portfolio manager at the Toronto-based multi-strategy asset management firm Anson Funds, has learned the importance of consciously making changes to his management style in order to get the results that align with Anson’s investors.
While the mind in business today often involves a “work-harder-and-faster” mentality, simply motivating yourself to work another 2 hours with an extra cup of coffee is not always the best answer.
Here are a few business productivity tips from the experienced executive.
Wait Before Making Big Decisions
Instant communication has become one of the defining features of the 21st Century. We can make and implement decisions almost immediately after we think of them.
That is a tremendous power, which is why it’s important — and dangerous. On one hand, this technology allows us to keep pace with the fast-moving business world. On the other hand, it makes it easier to act on an impulse when what we really needed was more reflection.
“One of the biggest learnings for me was the importance of taking a bit of time to really think about a major decision before pulling the trigger,” Puri said. “And it doesn’t just have to be about finances.”
Leverage The Latest Technology
Another burgeoning reality of the times we live in is the constant presence of technological innovation. It’s becoming increasingly clear across all industries that learning to leverage technology will mean the difference between long-term growth and a slow slide into irrelevancy.
Business moves faster, and keeping up means staying on top of the latest developments, whether that’s using Artificial Intelligence in the search functions of your eCommerce store, embracing the Cloud for your company’s data management or simply, learning to use all of the different apps that allow you, the entrepreneur and business owner to have daily updates about your company and stay in constant communication with your employees and managers.
“Modern entrepreneurs can’t afford to ignore technology breakthroughs,” Sunny Puri said. “And it’s no longer a matter of using the best technology at the time. You have to keep up with emerging technologies and embrace them before your competitors.”
Learn to Delegate
It’s not surprising that so many business owners try to do everything themselves, at least initially. “There is a balance between making the important decisions and making every decision”, Puri said. Especially when your company grows from its humble origins and small staff, it will become increasingly necessary to find people you can trust to make decisions without you.
“At some point, you simply can’t do it all on your own,” Puri said. “This is a make-or-break moment for many entrepreneurs. Either you learn to delegate or you get overwhelmed and eventually end up short staffed.”
In the age of remote work we all now live in, it’s more important than ever to take charge of your own productivity and learn how to leverage the time available. Spend some time thinking about how to operationalize these ideas within your business, and you will quickly see results, Puri said.
“This is an incredible time to be an entrepreneur,” Sunny Puri added. “The tools and information are all there. You just have to find them.”
