What emphasis will you place on your role as a small business operator?
Do you see yourself as a general manager, or are you more inclined to pursue a particular technical or functional specialty?
Some individuals want a business in which their overall managerial effort is what matters. They want to exercise their capacity to identify and solve problems, to influence other people, and to be stimulated by crises.
Other individuals have strong talents in a particular functional or technical specialty. They build their sense of identity around the content of their work and they see themselves as specialists. These individuals find the work itself intrinsically meaningful and satisfying. They look forward to their own business in terms of that specialty. They tend to shun management responsibilities and usually prefer a smaller operation that outsources or hires others for those tasks.
To grow into a larger business, most people understand that they will have to start to delegate responsibility to others, so they can build a business that is leveraged. A leveraged business is one that does not rely on them to do the actual core work.
However most small business people love to do certain work and so build a business around themselves. These sorts of businesses, only make money if you do the work. Without you nothing happens. Katrena calls this a “personalitycentric” business.
Refresh Your Business: Are you an introvert or extrovert?
Without you, there is no business.
Other people love to manage the business and the business can make money even if they weren’t there. Ideally most business coaches will work on this model, mainly so the business can grow beyond the hours one person can spend working in it.
I work with women who want to be their brand and to build a business around themselves and their talent. There are ways to leverage this business down the track, by implementing online programs around their books, key note, training and coaching capability. I understand that if you were to take away my opportunity to speak, train and coach that I would be fundamentally unhappy and that these activities give me great joy and fulfilment. It is about understanding where you get your joy from and build a business model that is right for you.
Managing people and your business may or may not give you the fulfilment, so best you understand that from the beginning. I have worked with a lot of clients who love the art and science of running a business and have long given up the need to deliver the actual service and are happy doing that. Others who pick the wrong path for them, end up unhappy and miserable because everyone else is having the fun doing delivery and they have to the bookkeeping, marketing, HR and various other administrative tasks.
So know thyself and understand the longer term picture of where you want to go in the future, so that you are happy and fulfilled every day and avoid unnecessary misery.
You can request a free analysis to determine your ratings in each category of Refresh Your Business.
