Execute

Consultants tend to be good consultants because they have the ability to analyze information and suggest solutions. Analysis is an important part of business but has nothing to do with how successful your company will be. The single determining factor in achieving your goals is the ability to implement. In other words, make things happen.

Let's back-up for a second. I am not saying that having the numbers and understanding your business won't pay dividends in the long run, I am simply saying that any good executive or entrepreneur has the the ability to 'Just do it'. The importance of this ability for entrepreneurs is made expertly by Mark Suster.

What does it mean to make things happen? It means to close the sale, convince suppliers to discount prices, hire qualified people, fire under performing employees, and constantly advance forward. In short, pay the bills and expand.

In my business, I am tasked everyday with delivering on near impossible tasks no matter how mundane without excuses. There is no room for being passive and you better have a good reason for not executing. It is part of our internal training. Our company is so successful because it is filled with self-starters and doers. This is not to say that everyone must operate at this level or that it's the only way commerce functions, but it could be the difference between your start up becoming a profitable business or your department meeting it's yearly targets.

Be aggressive, execute, and make things happen.