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Brand's avatar
Brand
Contributor 3
5 hours ago

How to spend more time ON the business

With my last employer, I was at the top during a 9 year scale from 8 people to 100+, so I have a blueprint for many things but accomplishing it is less easy. Muscling through the $1-3M stage has felt like stiff arming my own business just to get a few spare moments to work ON the business. I fee like I know what to do next but struggle to do it because of my capacity. I tested an employee for promotion last fall and it didn't take well until this year when he had a mind shift of his own. Now he is taking over 70% of my production so I can focus on growth/sales + recruiting/training. 

How do any of you continue to bolster your ability/time to work on the business?

Do you prioritize it and just deal with problems/costs of your absence?

The delicate balance between cash flow, margin and hiring new positions to scale is a leap of faith when projecting at this stage for me. I also flipped my model from 10 installers (in-house) last year to more of a subcontracted model with more management on-site, which has changed my business already. 

My approach is to continue to shift as much of the easier things off my plate to a position I can afford until it naturally progresses through growth and profitability  to where I can actually be an owner. but that could take a long time. 

business advice

1 Reply

  • crboyd07's avatar
    crboyd07
    Contributor 2
    2 hours ago

    I personally cannot attest to this situation! I am still growing; however, I do know the struggle!! I work full-time 7:30-5:30, and run the business from 5:30-when it's finished for the day, pulling 12-14-hour days. I cannot wait until the business can take over fully and I get to worry about this kind of stuff! From my own uneducated experience, you seem to have it right. Work on getting your staff trained to handle the items you don't necessarily have to! Obviously, everything is a priority for a business owner, but that doesn't make it necessary for you to handle it yourself if you have hard workers who want to learn and grow, take on more responsibility, and take advantage of it!