One of the most common pieces of entrepreneurship advice young founders get is to work on rather than in their business. “If your business depends on you, you don’t own a business - you have a job. And it’s the worst job in the world because you’re working for a lunatic!” - Michael E. Gerber The importance of realizing this is even greater for tech startups because most stakeholders expect that these businesses should be able to grow very quickly (and becomes nobody wants to buy and invest in a job). When you’re working on an IT product scaling up happens easier compared to e.g. physical product manufacturing. Yet, this shouldn’t give you a false sense of comfort if you are a tech startup founder. There are many aspects of your business that wouldn’t be easy to scale. Yes, you wouldn’t need new factories for manufacturing, but you would need to grow your team significantly in order to scale up your sales and marketing efforts, your development capacity, your capacity to support your customers, etc. If any of these aspects of the business rely on your skills alone, then you are in big trouble. If you drop the ball even in just one of these areas, you’d choke the growth capacity of your business. This is much easier said than done - in the early startup stages the success of your business is mostly driven by your own skills and work ethic. The problem is, however, that your personal experience and qualities are not scalable. In his book “The E Myth”, Michael Gerber proposes that the solution to this problem is to start applying a franchise mentality to your own project. To illustrate - McDonald’s is not just in the business of producing and selling burgers. They are in the business of producing a system for a successful burger restaurant. Because of this, the success of any single McDonald’s restaurant isn’t determined as much by the individual skills of the franchisee and staff working there, but more so by the robustness of the whole Mcdonald's system. In other words, as a founder, it’s your job not only to craft a great product but to create a great system for producing and delivering this product to customers that allows you to easily plug people into it and equally importantly - to plug yourself out of it.
Every founder has all three personalities in them. Yet, in the early startup stages the two that are most active are the entrepreneur and the technician - after all, you are the one defining and doing the work, so an explicit easily-repeatable system isn’t really required. However, once you go past the discovery and validation phases and enter the efficiency and growth startup phases, the managerial work becomes crucial. This is why it is relatively common for VCs to urge startups to onboard professional CEOs that have more experience managing and scaling a business than the original founders, who are often technicians turned entrepreneurs. Delegating work as a startup founder is the right choice on many occasions - after all, the whole point of hiring (or outsourcing) is to find people who are better at a specific job than you. However, abandoning managerial work as a founder is usually a bad choice. The importance of the case-specific domain knowledge of the founder for the process of getting the business ready to scale shouldn’t be underestimated. External hires could easily fail even if they are highly skilled if they are not intimately familiar with the intricacies of your project. This is why it’s crucial for the founder to participate in the job of building the systems that would work best for your case. In a few words, your goal should be to translate your technical work process in every area of the business into an algorithmic system that any person can take and apply to achieve similar results. The success of this process would define if you would have a scalable business, or “the worst job in the world”.One of the most common pieces of entrepreneurship advice young founders get is to work on rather than in their business. “If your business depends on you, you don’t own a business - you have a job. And it’s the worst job in the world because you’re working for a lunatic!” - Michael E. Gerber The importance of realizing this is even greater for tech startups because most stakeholders expect that these businesses should be able to grow very quickly (and becomes nobody wants to buy and invest in a job). When you’re working on an IT product scaling up happens easier compared to e.g. physical product manufacturing. Yet, this shouldn’t give you a false sense of comfort if you are a tech startup founder. There are many aspects of your business that wouldn’t be easy to scale. Yes, you wouldn’t need new factories for manufacturing, but you would need to grow your team significantly in order to scale up your sales and marketing efforts, your development capacity, your capacity to support your customers, etc. If any of these aspects of the business rely on your skills alone, then you are in big trouble. If you drop the ball even in just one of these areas, you’d choke the growth capacity of your business. This is much easier said than done - in the early startup stages the success of your business is mostly driven by your own skills and work ethic. The problem is, however, that your personal experience and qualities are not scalable. In his book “The E Myth”, Michael Gerber proposes that the solution to this problem is to start applying a franchise mentality to your own project. To illustrate - McDonald’s is not just in the business of producing and selling burgers. They are in the business of producing a system for a successful burger restaurant. Because of this, the success of any single McDonald’s restaurant isn’t determined as much by the individual skills of the franchisee and staff working there, but more so by the robustness of the whole Mcdonald's system. In other words, as a founder, it’s your job not only to craft a great product but to create a great system for producing and delivering this product to customers that allows you to easily plug people into it and equally importantly - to plug yourself out of it. Gerber defines three business inner personalities that each founder manifests:
Every founder has all three personalities in them. Yet, in the early startup stages the two that are most active are the entrepreneur and the technician - after all, you are the one defining and doing the work, so an explicit easily-repeatable system isn’t really required. However, once you go past the discovery and validation phases and enter the efficiency and growth startup phases, the managerial work becomes crucial. This is why it is relatively common for VCs to urge startups to onboard professional CEOs that have more experience managing and scaling a business than the original founders, who are often technicians turned entrepreneurs. Delegating work as a startup founder is the right choice on many occasions - after all, the whole point of hiring (or outsourcing) is to find people who are better at a specific job than you. However, abandoning managerial work as a founder is usually a bad choice. The importance of the case-specific domain knowledge of the founder for the process of getting the business ready to scale shouldn’t be underestimated. External hires could easily fail even if they are highly skilled if they are not intimately familiar with the intricacies of your project. This is why the founder should participate in the job of building the systems that would work best for your case. In a few words, your goal should be to translate your technical work process in every area of the business into an algorithmic system that any person can take and apply to achieve similar results. The success of this process would define if you would have a scalable business, or “the worst job in the world”. Source:https://www.forbes.com/ Image Credit:GETTY
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If you buy something through our links, we may earn money from our affiliate partners. As a mother of four, I’ve spent a lot of my life reading books to my kids. A family favorite was books by Dr. Seuss. My kids loved the funny stories; I loved the life lessons they taught. I’ve never forgotten this quote from the Seuss book, I Can Read With My Eyes Shut!: “The more that you read, the more things you will know. The more that you learn, the more places you’ll go.” I have learned a lot about myself and running a business from reading. Here are some books that have made a difference in my life. My Reading List Brené Brown has written several books I heartily, and heartfully recommend: The Gifts of Imperfection Brown herself recommends that if you’re new to her works, you should first read The Gifts of Imperfection. In this book, she shares 10 guideposts intended to help people change their lives, navigating through the “unattainable and sabotaging expectations that get in the way.” Brown says, “This book is an invitation to join a wholehearted revolution.” The movement, she writes, is “fueled by the freedom that comes when we stop pretending everything is okay when it isn’t.” The Gifts of Imperfection encourages readers to understand that they’re worthy of living their best lives and that while it may seem like “an act of resistance,” we must choose to be authentic. Brown writes, “Authenticity is the daily practice of letting go of whom we think we’re supposed to be and embracing who we are.” Dare to Lead: Brave Work. Tough Conversations. Whole Hearts. Too many business owners think being a leader is about having the power to do whatever they want. But Brown says, “Leadership is not about titles, status, and wielding power. A leader is anyone who takes responsibility for recognizing the potential in people and ideas and has the courage to develop that potential.” And she adds, “Daring leaders must care for and be connected to the people they lead.” As CorpNet has grown, I have applied that principle to my business, learning to delegate more to my staff. As Brown writes, daring to lead is seeing what our employees are capable of and trusting them to do their jobs. Of course, she adds, we need to “stay curious and ask the right questions.” Rising Strong: How the Ability to Reset Transforms the Way We Live, Love, Parent, and Lead A common theme in Brown’s books is encouraging people to show up and be seen—even though we don’t know what the outcome will be. In other words—to be brave. But she acknowledges that “living a brave life is not always easy…we are, inevitably, going to stumble and fall.” Brown is a social scientist, and Brown used her research background to examine the stories of those who rose after falling and concluded that the commonality they shared was “not being afraid to “lean in” to discomfort.” She believes it’s a test of courage “to regain our footing in the midst of struggle,” but doing so helps us forge our values. Brown writes, “Rising strong after a fall is how we cultivate wholeheartedness. It’s the process that teaches us the most about who we are.” Emotional Intelligence 2.0 By Travis Bradberry What exactly is emotional intelligence (EQ)? The author explains it as “the ability to recognize and understand emotions in yourself and others, and your ability to use this awareness to manage your behavior and relationships.” Being an emotionally intelligent leader gives you an edge today when it’s so challenging for businesses to attract and retain employees. This book not only explains what emotional intelligence is but shows you how to increase your EQ by following a step-by-step program focusing on self-awareness, self-management, social awareness, and relationship management and implementing it to reach your full potential. The Four Agreements By Don Miguel Ruiz This book, a bestseller for over a decade, explores the self-limiting beliefs most of us have that keep us from being happy and successful. The Toltecs were an indigenous tribe that ruled parts of what is now Mexico from around 950 to 1150. The Four Agreements is based on Toltec wisdom that the author says can “rapidly transform our lives.” The Four Agreements are:
The author believes that as children, our true nature is “to love and be happy, to explore and enjoy life; we are completely authentic.” But then, he says, society imposes a system of punishment and reward upon us, and we become “domesticated” and unhappy. We’re searching, he explains, to find what we’ve lost and need to make these Four Agreements with ourselves to “recover our authentic selves “and find freedom, happiness, and love. The Power of Habit Why We Do What We Do in Life and Business By Charles Duhigg Every one of us has habits or patterns of behavior. Some are good; others are bad. This book explains why habits exist—scientists say they emerge because our “brains are constantly looking for ways to save effort”—and how we can change them. All habits, says Duhigg, have a 3-step formulation: cue, routine, and reward. The “golden rule” of habit change is to substitute the routine when you get the cue. How? Willpower. Easy to say; harder to do. But I make an effort every day. Super Attractor: Methods for Manifesting a Life Beyond Your Wildest Dreams By Gabrielle Bernstein According to the book, being a super attractor means “you don’t have to work so hard to get the life you want.” The power, it says, to “tap into the infinite source of abundance, joy, and well-being that is our birthright” lies within us. To become a super attractor, the author says you need to connect your spiritual life with your day-to-day experiences, learn to let go of the past, and embrace the future without fear. The book explains the practical steps we need to follow to become “super attractors” and “co-create the life” we want. And it leaves you feeling joyful. Trillion Dollar Coach: The Leadership Playbook of Silicon Valley’s Bill Campbell By Eric Schmidt, Jonathan Rosenberg, and Alan Eagle Bill Campbell, a former college football coach, who died in 2016, was known as Silicon Valley’s preeminent executive business coach and mentor. He worked with some of the biggest and brightest “stars” and visionaries in the world of business, including the authors of this book, who all were leaders at Google. Eric Schmidt was the former CEO of Google and executive chairman of Alphabet, Google’s parent company. In addition to Google, Campbell helped build corporate juggernauts like Intuit and Apple, creating over a “trillion dollars in market value.” For the book, the authors interviewed many of Campbell’s clients to learn about the lessons Campbell taught them. Coach Bill, as he was known, was able to build trusting relationships, foster personal growth, and inspire courage. The book lays out how he did that, creating a blueprint for business owners to help them build higher-performing companies. Campbell believed in only coaching the coachable. So if you’re honest, humble, willing to work hard, and open to learning, there’s a lot to learn from this book. Source: https://smallbiztrends.com/ Image Credit: Depositphotos
Today, brands don’t just involve attractive logos and unique taglines. Businesses and entrepreneurs both create images that can impact buyer opinions and habits. So finding your purpose and creating both a business and personal brand are essential for finding success. Read tips on these subjects from members of the online small business community below. Drive Sales with a Purpose Driven Brand Today’s consumers don’t want to just choose businesses with lots of name recognition. They want brands that serve a larger purpose. This can range from businesses attached to social causes to those run by entrepreneurs who speak on important issues. To learn more about this concept, read this Ignite post by Poulomi Basu. Do Your Best to Be Your Best Every small business owner wants to achieve as much as possible with the time they have. But sometimes, high expectations set people up for disappointment and burnout. Rachel Strella of Strella Social Media shares thoughts and perspective on goals and hard work in this blog post. Take Personal Branding Seriously Branding isn’t just for businesses. It can also be a useful concept for business owners and executives on a personal level. If you’re ready to step up your personal branding, check out this Small Biz Viewpoints post by Harry and Sally Vaishnav for strategies. Become a Design Thinking Leader Design thinking is a mindset that excels at solving complex challenges through creative problem solving. It’s ideal for small business owners and leaders. If you want to strengthen your skills and reputation in this area, this Startup Professionals Musings post by Marty Zwilling may help. Find Your Ideal Working Environment Some businesses thrive with a traditional 9-5 office. Others prefer results-only operations. The choice can impact both your own personal productivity and that of your team. Oliver Peterson goes over the pros and cons of different options in this Process Street post. Use Online Tools to Improve the Running of Your Business Personal development can make you a more impactful business owner. But so can the tools you choose to run your business. They can make you more efficient and thus provide more time to hone skills. Ivan Widjaya lists several options in this SMB CEO post. And BizSugar members shared thoughts here. Build an Online Presence for Your Franchise Brand Whether you launch a startup or purchase an established franchise, an online presence is incredibly important for branding. This is a must not just for promoting a brand, but also for putting out a professional image. Read tips from Joel Libava of the Franchise King here. Consider Starting Your Own Blog Blogging can be an amazing way to grow your brand and share your expertise online. But first, you need something to blog about. In this Smart Blogger post, Stephen Connors offers several popular types of blogs to get you started. Leverage Instagram Saves to Drive Engagement When people think of Instagram engagement, they often focus on likes and comments. But saves also go a long way. And they can serve both business accounts and individual users. Read about their benefits and how to leverage them in this Inspire to Thrive post by Lisa Sicard. Learn to Keep Customers Happy Customer happiness is one of the main goals of most small business owners. If they’re happy, they’re more likely to continue coming back. And that leads to more success for your operations. Learn more about customer happiness and measuring it in this Crowdspring post by Mary Kyamko. Then visit the BizSugar community to see what members have to say. Source: https://smallbiztrends.com/ Image Credit: Pexels.com
Here are some insights and key learnings on how to react and position your brand to win during times of industry transformation. The market we work in today is rapidly changing across all industries. We're working against ultra-high inflation rates, an ongoing labor shortage and a nationwide supply chain crisis that backlogged operations for many companies. During turbulent times, strong and strategic leadership is a must to keep an organization afloat. To move in a forward-thinking direction during these moments of change, leaders must analyze their competitors, identify market disruptors and research industry trends to stay ahead of the curve. Over the last 20 years as the Founder and CEO of a national multi-million-dollar franchise in the healthcare industry, I have witnessed periods of extensive change in the market landscape. More notably, because of Covid, we're currently seeing a new wave of market shifts that companies must actively react and respond to. In this article, I will provide examples and a path forward to ensure your organization is set up for success amid a rapidly changing market. How to position your brand to win As markets evolve, determining the trends influencing your specific industry is the first step you should take to ensure your company is positioned to win. Based on these trends, analyze where the industry is heading and what this will mean for your organization's future. We're seeing businesses embrace technology like never before, digitize their processes and align with strategic partners to expand reach. These shifts often issue a new season of growth for companies that comply with consumer demands and align with the direction of where their specific industry is heading. Whatever the reason, to get ahead, be aware of these trends and create an action plan. Another factor to consider is the danger of the status quo. No matter how large and successful your organization may be, it's not immune to a changing environment. Adapting and adjusting to industry changes is a key indicator of a company's future success. A cautionary tale of a business that failed to keep up with a changing market is Netflix's displacement of the Blockbuster franchise. Entertainment moved away from in-store disc rentals to at-home streaming, yet Blockbuster did not promptly read and respond to those changes until it was too late. Watch the competition and recognize disruptors While monitoring industry changes, keep a keen eye on the competition. Analyze how your competitors respond to real-time market shifts and how your response differs. Another essential key is recognizing disruptors. Disruptors are new companies or technologies that innovate outside your industry and significantly impact the market. An organization that is notorious for disrupting the market is Amazon. We may think of Amazon as the big disruptor of ecommerce. However, when you take a closer look, Amazon is a highly sophisticated technology platform that adapts across industries — including healthcare, which is my specific industry. CVS is another excellent example. While it may be a retail giant, CVS also offers an array of integrated healthcare services via acquisitions and major corporate partnerships. After key trends have been determined, and you have your pulse on the competition and the industry's many disruptors, your organization will need to develop a road map to prepare for what's next. Embrace a shared vision Another crucial piece of the puzzle is ensuring all your key stakeholders are on board with your strategic plan for the company's future. The goal should be to adapt to market changes while staying true to your brand values and mission. This means having tough but necessary conversations with your network to establish alignment. My organization is currently implementing our strategic plan to adapt to advancements in the healthcare industry. Our brand's purpose is to enrich the lives of our clients and families, and our brand vision is to expand our reach and the accessibility of home care. As a national franchise brand, we must work with our network of franchisees to ensure we share the same vision for the future. When we initially presented the plan, it was met with hesitation from some franchisees. We continue to hold one-on-one meetings and host network-wide town hall meetings to ensure our franchisees' voices and ideas are heard. Despite the adversity and opposition from some players, I have remained steadfast in our vision to uphold the best interests of our network with whatever means necessary to ensure consistency in delivery and quality, expand the addressable market so more seniors can access quality care and deliver on the opportunities ahead. I have received feedback from franchisees that change takes time to process and operationalize. Ultimately, many recognized the value in refocusing efforts to align with the external forces impacting our industry. Many also recognized the opportunity this change presents. Our strategic plan will inevitably drive revenue growth and profitability for the entire network. A natural reaction to change is opposition. However, the saying goes, "there is strength in numbers," which stands true as you think about your company's future. There is the strength behind a network coming together to create change. But a clear path must be put in place so all partners and all parties involved can launch that shared vision to fruition. The state of the market and knowing exactly where your industry is heading will often be volatile. However, keeping a close eye on market trends, disruptors and competitors and positioning your brand to remain in front of these changes will set your brand apart. Adhere to your organization's brand mission during moments of change, and focus on areas of improvement to meet current and future industry demands. Be willing to be the leader who will take your organization where it needs to go, even if it may not be where stakeholders desire to go in the short term. Source: https://www.entrepreneur.com/ Image Credit: Pexels.com
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