1. What are the three things you could improve?
   The quest to improve must be endless. Constantly ask what needs fixing, what needs improving, what you can afford and what you can’t afford not to change.
2. How do you measure up?
   Put yourself in a ‘critical’ customer’s place and compare yourself with your competitors – the people most likely to take business from you. Are you making the most of your strengths?
3. What’s your current business like?
   How are sales, repeat sales and conquest sales? What’s the mood amongst your customers? How can you work with this and make your offering more relevant for now?
4. What do your stakeholders think?
   Your suppliers, investors, distributors, staff and friends … what do they think? Listen to their observations.
5. Who are your customers, current and potential?
   Are you looking after them brilliantly, do they feel valued? Where are the next customers? How are you going to reach them?
6. What are your current marketing initiatives?
   I’m presuming there’s only going be a good, short, focused list. Are you happy they are as impactful as they should be? What haven’t you tried that you should have?
7. What are you planning to do next to make a difference?
   Sneaky question, but if it forces you to think ahead about what will make the real difference, that’s good. In small businesses it’s hard to stand back. Try it. What would it take to be twice the size or twice as profitable?
8. What are the people who talk about you and your market saying?
   Talk to a journalist who knows about your sector and get their perspective. What could change your market? What factors exist that could transform or destroy it?
9. What’s new that you’ve seen recently and want to emulate?
   This may not necessarily be in your own market. Some of the best ideas come from people taking a good idea from one place and putting it in another.
10. If you could start again what would you do differently?
    This is the test of whether you are learning enough. You need to be creative, self-confident, proud of what you do and energetic. You also have to be smart enough to learn from failure and the things that aren’t working out quite right.

Running your own business, making a product you are proud of and turning this into a brand that you love are a great way to spend your life. Learning how to be a non-stop marketer of it is what will make the biggest difference of all. And be the most fun.