Business IS Personal

Have you ever heard somebody say, “It’s not personal, it’s business?”  The first time I heard that was from the movie, The Godfather.  There’s a great scene where Al Pacino’s character, Michael and James Caan’s character, Sonny are talking about knocking somebody off.  After going back and forth a few times about the unpleasant task, Michael says, “It’s not personal, Sonny.  It’s strictly business.”  Well, I’ve got news for you, I bet that was pretty personal to somebody.  It’s true in the movies and it’s true in real life.  Business is personal.

What’s funny is, I used to say it too.  For example, any time I had to let someone go, I would tell myself, “It’s not personal, it’s business.”  Maybe that helped me get through that unpleasant task in the moment, but as I’ve experienced life and continued along my entrepreneurial journey, I’ve seen just how personal business really is.  If your life savings is on the line – Business is personal.  If you find yourself in debt or worse having to close your doors – you know Business is personal.

So, if business really is personal, which I believe it is, doesn’t it make sense that as you grow so will your business?

The challenge is, most of us start out with great plans and dreams and suddenly we stop growing.  We find ourselves trapped IN our business because we are the focal point of every system.  Our team depends on us being there, our customers depend on us being there and we worry that everything will fall apart without us.  And so we hit a growth ceiling - mainly because we know if we grow anymore everything’s just going to fall back on us anyway.

I’ve learned the three critical phases you need to go through to take the focus off you so you can focus on the things that need your attention most.  

First, install an Operating System.  You can do that by identifying and integrating systems and processes that spread the work around and allow you to take a step back.  Then, document everything and engage your team.  Once those systems and processes are well documented and followed by everybody, then turn your eyes to the future.  Take a long look back on the dreams that convinced you to go into business in the first place, then determine your exit strategy.  By taking these three steps, you’ll begin to free yourself up to focus more and more on the things you really need to be focusing on.

In the next video, I’m going to share with you the seven areas your business needs your attention most so you can enjoy true business freedom.

Remember, as you grow your company grows.  Keep Growing!