Are You a Pacesetter?

Creating momentum for growth is a balancing act. When businesses get stuck, it’s usually because one area or another is out of whack. Too much focus or too little in a critical area can sap your velocity and send your organization spinning or worse – backsliding – when you want and need to grow.

To avoid this unhealthy imbalance, executives need to invest corporate energies in areas that not only drive momentum, but propel a business forward on the proper path.

How do you know you’re on the right track? The visual below should help.

As I’ve worked with organizations to accelerate business growth, four different types of companies have emerged:

momentum for growth

Wanderers are popular, but lacking clear direction. Because they don’t have a sold or consistent strategy to guide them, are easily swayed by the whims of the market.

Does a big customer want something you would normally provide? Are you constantly chasing competitors? Do you find that you business seems to run in circles, not matter how much you aim to please your customers and promote your brand? You might be a wanderer.

Wallflowers are smart but quiet. They know where they’re going and how to get there. Customers quietly love them because they deliver consistently. But growth suffers because no one knows about how great they are.

Being a “best kept secret” is not a growth strategy. In fact, it’s a major liability if your prime customers exist the market. If this is you, it’s time to start blowing your own horn.

Stuffed Shirts are smooth operators. They’re savvy and slick, knowing where they want to go and doing everything right to be visible in the process.

Unfortunately, they forget to listen to customer needs, charging ahead with their own vision. As a result, their customer experience is less than satisfying, holding them back from reaching their goals.

Pacesetters have it all. They balance strategic direction with customer focus and an appropriate level of investment in the brand. They promote their business, but not at the expense of positive relationships.

Strategic clarity helps Pacesetters stay on course, even as their momentum accelerates and business takes off. Competitors see them as the ones to watch and customers will do what it takes to choose them first.

Which one are you? If you’re not sure or you need some help becoming a Pacesetter, let me know.

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