At least sixty percent of my customers suffer from a common problem: growth. I deal mainly with small businesses; as the economy gets better so do their businesses. However, these same businesses react to the growth differently. One of my customers described his business growth as climbing a wall. When he gets close to the top, he has to decide to either go over the wall or climb back down.
Interestingly, many small businesses hang around the top of the wall trying to figure out what to do. This wall is made up of all the work you had to do to reach the top. That work can consist of eighty-hour work weeks or fifty regular clients. What happens at the top of the wall is that either the wall has to be extended to include more hours or clients, or you have to cross over to the other side.
There are several reasons that my customers site that keeps them from crossing over. The most common reason is fear. Fear can be of the unknown: Much of the fear can be related to trusting somebody else with the work. I’ve heard “I’m the only person who can do this” many times. The awful truth is that you are not the only person who can perform your job. It can be learned and duplicated. If you stopped working tomorrow, somebody else would have no choice but to take over your job or take on your clients.
My advice is this: there is safety in numbers. Bring on people you can trust to help balance your workload. The difference between an independent contractor and a company is that the company consists of many people who can do the work. Why do you think companies pay consulting firms their high rates? They do it because they want a level of service that individuals cannot provide. It may be difficult to find the right person you can work with and mentor, but the reward will be that suddenly you can take on projects you couldn’t do by yourself. When that happens you make more money.
Another reason is related to financial limitations. If you feel like going to the next step in your business is fiscally prohibitive, rethink how you’re doing business. You have to spend money to make money--that cliché is true. But learn how to spend money wisely. If you have to buy new technology, then buy it in phases. Work with your accountant to develop a plan for saving and spending your cash on the right things. There are excellent business consultants who can help you focus your spending on the right type of advertising, technology, and resources.
I once knew a CPA who hired a telemarketing firm to help her expand. This goes down as one of the best examples of how not to spend your money. Any experienced marketing consultant could have coached her on how telemarketing only works for certain types of industries, and accounting is not one of them.
When it comes to growth, don’t be afraid to bring in others to help you. When you are at the top of the wall and you have to decide on which side to go down, it’s better to cross over to the other side with help than to go back the way you came alone.
Popularity: 1% [?]
Wretched Human Mirror by Bloodbath