Right before Touchstone was incorporated, a very wise man, my grandfather, sat down with me and told me, “Every business cycle similar to every relationship in life, has to go through a period of 1000 days to know if the relationship or the business would actually work the way you want it to. Give your company a 1000 days and you will know what works for you and what does not.” It is essential to review a business model you make, but when is the right time to review it? There are loads of philosophies available online on this topic which could help you understand when to review your model, one of the most famous one would be “The 1000 Day Rule”. The first 1000 days are the most critical days of a new venture and it also holds good for a new launch or a new long term strategy.

After a 1000 days of running a venture, you would realise what is it that drives it and what is it that needs to be reviewed. Below are some questions which you could spend your time on after you cross the 1000 day mark. The intention of asking questions is that every venture works differently and hence every question gives a different answer:

1. If you offer diversified products or services, what is it that gives you the maximum outcome?
2. The product/service which gives you the maximum outcome, does it have the potential to become your core business?
3. Of the various strategies you run, which ones should you choose?
4. The chosen financial model, does it give you the maximum ROI?
5. Of the huge number of vendors you work with, whom can you trust to build a long term relationship?
6. The quality you maybe stressing on, is that the best?
7. The accounting process of your organisation, is that the most efficient?
8. The inventory system of the business, can it be improved?
9. The employee tracking system, does it deliver?
10. The motivation you need to offer, is that the finest?
11. The expansion model you intend to work on, do you need to re-think?
12. Of the geographies you work on, are they confined or too large?
13. Employee number in the company, are they enough?
14. Marketing strategies, do they make the right noise at the right places to the right people?
15. Investment you made or investors made, are they rewarding?
16. Fun created at the work place, does it need a check?
17. The payment cycles you follow, is it a win-win?
18. Long term, medium term and short term plans, do you need to review them?

Each of the questions above, need to be answered in detail. Once you have succeeded in doing so, you would be prepared to face the future in a more systematic way. The disclaimer here is, this have been learnt from running my small organisation, these may or may not hold good for your requirements. Please forgive me if I have not been successful in covering all the important points.