The Pursuit Small Business Roundtable
On Friday October 16 we’ll be kicking off our monthly roundtable for our firm’s small business clients. I believe that all small business leaders and entrepreneurs should be part of at least one regular roundtable group.
The key benefit of a roundtable is ability to share knowledge and support with other similarly situated business leaders.
I recently read a book called Influencer that was written by the folks who wrote the book Crucial Conversations. In that book they gave an illustration that I think perfectly sums up the power of groups. The point to a study by British scientist Francis Galton who asked 787 residents to guess the weight of an ox at a regional live stock fair. Well when Galton averaged the estimates given by the residents it turned out to be 1,197 pounds.
The actual weight of the ox? 1198 pounds. Not bad huh?
They key to me, from standpoint of a small business roundtable, is the fact that your colleagues can help to identify blind spots in your thinking that you might miss. A good roundtable maintains a provides a sustained assault on common business problem, and as Voltaire is quoted as saying, “no problem can withstand the assault of sustained thinking.”
Here are some things to look for in a small business roundtable group:
1. Regular meetings – Whether the roundtable meets semi-monthly or monthly, the roundtable should have a regular schedule and the schedule should be consistent.
2. Committed members – If possible, speak with the members of the group and gauge their commitment to the group. If a significant number of the group’s members consistently miss meetings that’s a pretty big red flag.
3. Group size – My ideal roundtable group would have between 5 and 10 members and there should be a facilitator. The facilitator may be a member of the group or as in the case of our roundtable – I serve as the facilitator and the members are clients of our firm.
I’m happy to answer any of your questions.
