Dear Success Seeker,

Would you like to massively and rapidly increase your business results? If so, the fastest and easiest way is for you to use the mighty power of leverage.

Leverage is about getting more output with the same or less effort. It works in mechanical situations (ie. using a lever, pulleys, gears etc.) and it also works with any and all resources you have at your disposal. You can leverage your own resources - your time, money, expertise, contacts, reputation, services, etc - to get anything you want faster and more easily. Better still, if you can find mutually beneficial ways to gain access to other people's resources, you can leverage those as well.

Leverage is one of the key strategies big corporations use to expand and a powerful tool that you as a small business owner or investor can use as well.

Here's an example. The ride-sharing company, Uber, has been challenging the traditional taxi model in many cities by offering less expensive transportation to city dwellers seeking rides. Uber is leveraging in multiple. The primary resource they are leveraging is people who are willing to use their personal vehicles on a flexible basis to provide rides (an external resource). They use smart-phone technology (another external resource) for communication and payments. And they employ a cleverly developed business structure (their own resource). In addition they are leveraging the power of the media because they understand that bad press helps their cause just as much as good press.

Have you ever noticed that fast-food giant, McDonald's, repeatedly sets up synergistic promotional agreements with companies like Disney and Monopoly? Recently they did a joint-venture with Lego. By leveraging their massive customer bases, both were able to expand their market reach exponentially. McDonald's sold more Happy Meals, happy customers got free toys, and Lego® movies were a success before they even hit the theatres.

Here is the great news. You don't need to be a large corporation to employ the power of leverage to quickly boost your business. Applying leverage is simple but it is not easy. That's mostly because you don't look for it. You're too attached to the familiar way you've always done things and find it hard to see out-of-the-box opportunities.

Let's break leverage down into three easy steps. The first is to ask yourself this question:

What is my biggest goal?

Once you know what you want, you're well on your way to getting it. When I asked that question of a coaching client, a feng shui consultant for small businesses, she said that she wanted to reach more customers. I then asked her the second question:

What resources do you have or have access to that can help you achieve your goal faster or with less effort?

She identified her expertise in feng shui and her teaching, presentation and communication skills as resources. This led me to ask how she could leverage these to reach the largest possible audience. She came up with the idea of giving talks on "How Feng Shui Can Increase Your Profits" to small business organizations and then using the same content in articles for publications aimed at her target audience. Her third idea was to do low cost feng shui consultations for well-connected business owners who, in turn, would recommend her to others in their networks.

These three ideas - just a few of a many options for leverage - are all doable and if she implements them her business can't help but expand. This brings us to the third step - you MUST implement. There are dozens of ways you can use leverage to achieve your most important goals but if you don't take action on them you will stay right where you are.

So what are some ways that you can leverage your resources? How about outsourcing tasks like bookkeeping, data entry, delivery, cleaning, etc., so that your valuable time is freed up to build your business? Or duplicating your successful product, process or business model by establishing a franchise, operating out of multiple locations, or turning the content of your training seminar into a series of workbooks, audio and/or video recordings to be sold online? Or how about leveraging other people's resources by borrowing investment capital to expand your business, selling a third-party product to your existing clients or creating a joint-venture agreement with someone who has a database of people who need what you have to offer?

By being willing to step out of your comfort zone and take advantage of the many possibilities that leverage offers you, you are saying "Yes!" to creating breakthroughs in your business - and in your life!

Your Coach,

Andrew Barber-Starkey, Master Certified Coach
Founder and President, ProCoach Success System