How To Double Your Business Without Doubling Your Work Load

A couple of weeks ago, a friend and I made a trek into Vancouver to attend the Vancouver Auto Show. We have been there before with our wives but it appears that for a woman, walking through a car show carries about as much excitement as walking through a mall does for a man.

No, this was a true male-bonding time, including going out after the Show for a massive plate of ribs, french fries, and something stout to wash it down. Both of us agreed it was a grand day!

During dinner, our conversation turned from cars some of which cost as much as my house to my company and even more specifically to me and my role within my company, Corpwell Consulting Ltd. We work with companies that are in transition and looking for private equity; we help to source that equity and do the planning for how they should use that equity to grow their businesses.

If I have learned anything in my career, it is that most businessowners don't know when to let go of the daily operational aspects of their company and start focusing on what they do best and need to do to take their business to the next level.

My friend's comment to me was, "Neal, you have only 24 hours in a day and 7 days in a week. What are your plans?"

It was a great question.

As we discussed it, it became clear that my strengths rest in my ability to network with people, help companies and individuals see the big picture of where they are going, help them identify the roadblocks, then help them source the necessary resources to move forward.

I can also sit down and do all the analyses, write the business and marketing plans, and do all the administrative followup but those are not my strengths.

If I truly want to grow my business, there a number of things that I need to start doing differently. Listed below are some of the lessons I have learned while working with other entrepreneurs desiring to grow their businesses. Not all points apply in every situation, but I know I definitely need to start applying some of the items on this list right away.

So we created the following.

1. My job will have to change and I'll need to delegate a lot more.
2. I'll need to invest more in staff training.
3. I'll probably force myself to realize I need to let go of some staff members now.
4. I'll probably need to transition-out some staff over the next year.
5. I'll need to recruit some better talent (and spend more time working on my virtual bench).
6. My business model may need to change.
7. My sales process will need to change.
8. I'll need to add some new product and service lines (while killing others).
9. I'll probably need to invest more in R&D (or acquisitions).
10. I'll need to open up some new markets (and bring in new people who can do that).
11. I'll probably need to store some cash or acquire new capital to expand faster.

Here's the thing. To double the size of your business, almost everything needs to change. Peter Drucker has said that any time an organization grows by 45%, it must restructure itself.

The rule of 72 states you can determine how long it will take something to double by dividing its growth rate into 72. For example, if your company is growing by 45% per year, that means your structure needs to be changing every 1.6 years. Are you still doing things the way you did in 2005 and wondering why you are having issues?

So back to my friend's question about what I am planning to do especially regarding my own role in the company.

The first thing I did was an analysis of the jobs I am doing and not delegating. I asked myself the following questions.

1. What results am I looking for in this particular role?
2. What are all the actual tasks that need to be done in the role not just the ones that will get me by?
3. What skills are required to make sure this work gets done and done in the right way?
4. What types of social skills are needed?
5. What behavioral styles are best suited to the role?
6. What is the level of difficulty of the role?
7. What type of training requirements are needed to grow in this role?

Working through two particular tools allowed me to gain insight by assessing the way I prefer to interact with people, time, tasks, and situations in my business.

I saw how well my own Personal Style fit the various roles I was trying to fill and in some cases, it wasn't good. The tools also showed me places where I need to develop flexibility in the role so I will become more effective.

What tools helped me gain this valuable insight? CRG's Entrepreneurial Style and Success Indicator (ESSI) and Job Style Indicator (JSI).

The ESSI is a 32-page scientifically developed self-administered and self-scored assessment that helps you determine your inherent entrepreneurial tendencies, motivations, and propensities. 

• In Part 1, you identify your specific ESSI style pattern(s). That assists you to instantly understand your strengths and potential challenges so you can be a more effective businessowner, partner, and entrepreneurial professional.
• In Part 2 of the ESSI, you rank yourself against the 28 top entrepreneurial success factors, based on CRG proprietary research conducted on 4000 successful entrepreneurs. Does your background and mindset reflect that of other successful entrepreneurs? The Foundations of Entrepreneurial Assessment within the ESSI will identify the extent to which you possess those success factors.

Using the ESSI will help you in the following ways.

• Determine your entrepreneurial strengths and preferences
• Create a sustainable business model by playing to your entrepreneurial strengths not your weaknesses
• Intentionally select the best entrepreneurial venture, role, and responsibilities for you
• Recognize the potential consequences of gaps in your entrepreneurial success factors
• Enhance the efficiency and effectiveness of your operations
• Build the right team and select the right partners

The JSI, while not determining what career you or another person should consider, does help you measure the work style requirements of a specific job, role, or responsibility.

Once you establish the exact work style requirements (pattern) of a position, you compare the Personal Style of the applicant or the current person in the role using one of CRG's 16 style assessments, which include the ESSI.

Using the JSI will help you in the following ways.

• Clarify responsibilites
• Confirm expectations
• Establish mutal understanding
• Confirm work style needs

Unless the Personal Style pattern of the person and the working style of the position match, the individual's motivation and level of engagement is simply not sustainable.

These are two great tools that I encourage you as a businessowner to work through first with yourself and the role you need to play to grow your business and then with the other positions you need to fill.

As for myself, I will be engaging my friend more in my business because he has the skills, experience, and passion to work on the analytical side of my company; I will focus on what I do best finding and growing the business.

The great thing is that since I made the decision to be more intentional about my role and responsibilites, I have discovered others whose skills are now being brought to the table to increase my effectiveness with my customers and give them even higher values for their invested dollar.

So what would your businss or organization look like if it were twice as large at the end of this year as it was at the beginning?

• What would be different about you and your role?
• What would be different about your staff?
• Your management?
• Your operations?
• Your marketing and sales?
• Your cash flow?
• And so on.

They sound like fun questions to ponder, don't they?

They are!

Your future awaits!

Go for it!

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