Facing Your Practice’s Weaknesses

This post is the second in a 4 part series discussing the SWOT Analysis tool, which is utilized by The Green Leaf Group in our business consulting modules as well as in our 13 class online course How To Create Predictable Profit for Your Cash Practice. We created this course with you in mind; our goal is to help you create the practice of your dreams, so be sure to check it out!

I realize I may be stating the obvious here…

If you’re already familiar with what a SWOT analysis is, hopefully you realize why it’s such a powerful business development tool. We create a SWOT analysis with every one of our consulting clients and often find that they’re surprised by how helpful it can be to have this simple grid in front of you, really breaking down the state of your business.

For the uninitiated, SWOT is an acronym which stands for Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, & Threats. The SWOT format is a four-square grid where each category gets its own quadrant, and we write the respective attributes of your business in each. For this blog, we’re going to focus solely on the Weaknesses quadrant – which may contain within it some tough pills to swallow, but there’s a great quote by Japanese author, which says,

“Every weakness contains within itself a strength.” – Shūsaku Endō

Let’s start out with an objective definition of what we’re talking about here:

Weaknesses stop an organization from performing at its optimum level. They are areas where the business needs to improve to remain competitive: a weak brand, higher-than-average turnover, high levels of debt, an inadequate supply chain, or lack of capital.

To start, ask yourself the following questions about your business as it currently stands:

1. Where can we improve?
2. What products or treatments are underperforming?
3. Where are we lacking resources?

These questions are the springboard to understanding your practice’s weakest attributes. Often, we see with our consulting clients that they have some stand out weaknesses that fall into one of a couple categories: An issue which arose ages ago and was never fully addressed and has since been swept under the rug or be labeled as we’ll get to it someday, OR it’s an issue which seems insurmountable, so it has been deemed as such – which is the best way to arrive at missed opportunities.

Here’s the thing with the Weaknesses quadrant of the SWOT… though it may be the hardest to face, it’s possibly the section of the analysis with the most potential to change your practice for the better! You’ve heard the adage, “A chain is only as strong as your weakest link.” Well that certainly applies to your business, and it’s worth exposing the dirt under the rug if it means getting closer to the practice of your dreams.

If you got something from this blog, be sure to check out our free online course, Creating a Mindset that BOOSTS Success where we go into great detail about the importance of having a growth mindset when it comes to building a successful business or practice. Or, if you’re ready for the full course, check it out using the link at the top of this post!

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