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Monday, April 4, 2011

Are you working "ON" your business?

As a business owner myself, I am more than aware of how precious time is, but there are certain things that you simply MUST make time for.

The obvious are yourself and your family. This is a point that is driven into everyone day in and day out. We see it on TV, in magazines, in newspapers, hear it on radios…. “If you don’t take care of yourself, you’re not going to be in any position to take care of ANYTHING else!” “Your family is the central core of your existence – whether you’re in the midst of good times or bad times – family will massively impact the productivity of your day one way or another.” “Take time to smell the roses!” For this article, I’m going to assume that you’ve gotten that particular message loud and clear because it is extremely important to understand, believe and take action on this advice. But once you at least understand the importance and concept of balance between personal and business duties, you need to turn your attention to the balance within each of these realms. For this article I am focusing on the really important stuff in your business realm.

You may (or may not) have heard reference to the concept of “working ON your business rather than IN your business”. Either way it is a concept that is well worth visiting and revisiting over and over again. If you’ve ever been to a business building or motivational seminar of any kind you know the feeling you get from all the great ideas and advice you are exposed to. You are pumped, excited and energized to take your business to the next level or even to just get a new business started. In the days that follow your brain is teaming with ideas. But as time goes on and the reality of daily business, schedules, responsibilities and priorities constantly interrupt your creative mind that energy and excitement starts to dissipate, stress and worry start to kick in again and before you know it you’ve got a drawer full of great ideas partially thought through, partially researched, partially planned and partially forgotten. Know that you are not the only one that goes through this cycle – it is one of the most common characteristics of business owners / entrepreneurs around the globe. The trick is that you need to find a way to constantly revitalize that energy and excitement. You need to find a way to get yourself on a schedule, to get organized, to make a plan and then stick to it!

Trust me, I KNOW how much easier that is to say and even think than it is to actually DO – but if you want to keep your business moving forward, to keep it growing and to really turn it into a BUSINESS rather than just a JOB, then this is critical. With entrepreneurial blood running through my veins from every possible ancestor, I have been reading about and researching business in general since I was in my teens. One particular book that has always stuck with me (and that I do in fact re-read regularly) is The E-Myth Revisited – if you haven’t read this book, I highly recommend it. This book does a phenomenal job of expressing the difference between working “ON” your business rather than “IN” your business. It also very clearly explains how many “business owners” aren’t in fact running a “business” – really what they have done is little more than create a “job” for themselves. If you’re not spending regular, consistent time working “ON” your business, then you are not running a “business”. Sorry, that may sound harsh, but it’s reality. Just because you are capable of doing the necessary work “IN” your business does not necessarily mean that being a “business owner” is the right choice for you. In fact, if you are not willing to learn what needs to be learned and take the necessary action to work “ON” your business, chances are you are going to cause much more grief in your life by trying to “own your own business” than if you were to just suck it up and deal with bosses you may not particularly like.

Many small businesses that are launched are done so because Mr. (or Mrs.) Technician have a talent or skill in a particular area, they become tired and frustrated of working “for someone else”, of making money “for someone else”, they may not agree with the way a particular boss runs their business, so one day they get a brilliant idea….. “I don’t need this company, I can do this on my own!” Perhaps in theory this is true…. when it comes to their “JOB” absolutely, they may be the best of the best in their industry. So off they go. But as time goes by some key realities start to kick in – they start having difficulties in different areas, areas that they were never trained in, areas where they are NOT the “best of the best”. This will be different for every individual, but it could be in bookkeeping / account; or advertising and marketing; or sales; or customer relations; or worse it could be in several of these areas all at once. This is also a large turning point for many small businesses and becomes a major contributing factor to the failure of many small businesses.

At this point, I’m going to assume that you are not Mr. (or Mrs.) Technician simply trying to create a “job” for yourself. I am going to assume that you really do WANT to own your own BUSINESS and that you want it to succeed. Defining “success” is often different for each individual, but overall, a pretty good indicator is the less and less you are NEEDED to work IN your business the more successful it likely is. That doesn’t mean that you AREN’T working IN your business – because frankly, you may simply enjoy doing so, but the difference is that you don’t NEED to. The only way to get to that stage is to put the hours in – when you have the least amount of time available to do so – to work ON your business. It’s frustrating, but it seems to be the pattern of life from every angle: you need money to make money; you need time to make time; you need experience to gain experience…. it’s all quite backwards if you ask me – but it’s also life, so rather than fight it, work with it. So take the time you need to take to work ON your business and I guarantee that in the long run it WILL pay off.

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