How To Identify The Core Problem In Your Business

Written by Daniel Contreras on September 6th, 2020

About this video:

Problems in business are inevitable. They will always occur no matter if you are just starting out or a seasoned vet.

It would make sense then, if we cant avoid problems in business, to be able to correctly identify, dissect, and find a solution to our problems quickly, efficiently, and for the best optimal output on business.

Otherwise, we waste time, money, and energy doing random things thinking they make the boat go faster when in reality they slow us down to a snail pace (or even make the problem worse).

Here's what we must do first:

1) Identify problem

Many people (not just barbers) are too emotionally tied to their business, as well as the problems in that business.

To effectively identify the problems, we must separate emotions from the process. Otherwise, we are prone to making irrational decisions or even identifying the wrong "problem", which is what most do.

To identify these problems, it's best to look at it like a doctor would look at a patient.

Yes, there might be an issue on your skin, but is the deriving from a gut issue from what you are inputting into your system?

Don't just look at the surface level for the problem in plain sight, as the root problem might be lying underneath undetected.

To understand problems better, just like a doctor knowing what the body is made up of and what has a direct effect on what, we must understand what our business is made up of in order to get a correct diagnosis.

There are four core parts to a service-based business as a barber.

- Service (actual service that comes with the product)
- Product (our skillset)
- Client Flow (marketing)
- Client conversion (giving the client a satisfactory service)

From these four core parts, there can be a plethora of issues happening if and when these are not in alignment with each other.

Once you can correctly identify what part of your business is suffering and at the core problem, then we turn to our solution and how to find it.

2) Identifying solutions

After we can identify what our problem is in our business, now we have to find a solution unless we want it to stay this way or get worse.

This process also has multiple layers to it and must be attacked accordingly unless you don't want results to happen.
The first is just to address the issue. What's your current situation, what is the desired result you are looking to achieve, and what solution is optimal to get you to that point.

For example: A + B = C

A is our current state.

B is our solution.

C Is the result we are looking for.

Simply put, this can be done as an accurate hypothesis and go out to test to see if the solution you chose is correct or not.

If it is, great! If not, you must change B.

NOT DO THE SAME THING OVER AND OVER AGAIN.

Now once you have B identified, you must also break that down to its foundational parts as we never can achieve lofty goals by trying to attack everything at once.

Think about it, you never learned how to cut hair by just all of a sudden working on fading, lining, shear work, styling, and beard work all at once. All of these things can one at a time, and off of that the foundational skills to learn how to fade properly came one at a time (set guidelines properly on the head for best structure, take guidelines out properly, understand what clippers take out bald lines, et cetera).

For example, if your solution to a problem is marketing, well you probably shouldn't just do everything and anything to solve the issue. More chaos leads to more chaos. We want order and a dialed-in solution.

Breakdown the correct avenue in which you will attack marketing, let's say you decide social media.

Again, too broad of an issue to tackle, so we go a layer further.

Select the optimal platform.

Again still too broad to attack.

Next, select how you will attack that platform.

Again, still too broad to attack.

Next, select the foundation parts of how to attack that platform.

We could stop here, but for best results, we once more want to break it down.

Select the foundation skills needed for that foundational parts.

That's where we attack.

A tedious process, but necessary for optimal results. We can't skip steps in this, and this is why Elevated Mentorship students are deadly with their approach.

After this is done, you see results and get everything up and running effectual like a war machine, you have to keep improving the machine.

In an ever-changing and adapting world, we must adapt to it.

Always test, always come up with new ideas to put against your winning ideas, and see if they beat them.

Complete natural selection of what is the best way to achieve that goal.

Once that is set in place, market dominance is secured.

Ready to join the Elevated Mentorship program?

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Daniel Contreras


Daniel Contreras is spearheading the industry with his New Era model that helps overworked and undervalued barbers to work less and make more.  His students are some of the fastest-growing barbers in the industry and he has helped them gain market dominance in their respected areas of business and online. If you're interested in getting out of the old traditional model of barbering and start your New Era journey, click the "FREE Demo Breakdown" button above to request a strategy session.