Here’s the real question every small business owner needs to sit with: have you built a business that runs without you, or have you built yourself a job you can never actually leave?Â
You know everything there is to know about your business. As a business owner, you spend every moment with your baby. But your baby is now a toddler, and you are working hard to protect it. Everything about your business lives in your head, or it’s scribbled on a Post-it stuck to your computer.Â
Every day, you walk in, pull the information out of your head, do the work, tell your team what needs to be done, and they run with it.Â
So what if you left for a week’s vacation with your family? Now what?Â
Every decision still has to go through you. Why? Because all the data is in your head, and that sticky note on your computer… managed to get loaded in the car for your trip.Â
Some vacation, huh?Â
Well, Joan, how do you know this? Because I’ve taken lovely fishing vacations in Colorado, Idaho, and Montana… with my laptop and phone. My phone went with me on the water in case someone needed something or needed to know what to do in certain situations. There is nothing more stressful than landing a rainbow trout while you’re texting one of your team members. I returned from vacations stinky and still stressed out. Let me tell you, that is no way to vacation, or to run a business.Â
So I see you, business owner. I see you nailed into every corner of your business, running on coffee and adrenaline.Â
This Isn't a Hiring Problem
What would happen if you wrote a detailed process, got everything out of your head and off that sticky note, and turned it into something workable? What would happen if you gave your managers some real decision-making responsibility? Do you trust your managers to make decisions in your absence?Â
This isn’t a hiring problem. This is a documentation problem.Â
Will Your Business Survive Without You?
While you’re working on this, here’s something else to ponder. What if your key manager left your business tomorrow? Would your business fail?Â
Processes should be in place so that never happens… or has it already happened? Has a key team member moved on? Did their leaving cause your business to flounder?Â
The Operations Review
I offer operations reviews for small businesses. I find the gaps and inconsistencies. I find out how much you are still “in” the business, and I help you start changing that. I want to help. I’ve been there.
Why I Started Core Wise Strategies
I started this business because I remember what it was like to be in every corner, 365 days a year. Even time off wasn’t time off. It was the same thing, just without me being in the office. I missed so many things. So many important things. My health suffered, and my anxiety was off the charts. Being in all the corners was not worth the price I paid.Â
I don’t want you to miss out on the beautiful things in life. I want you to sit back and enjoy what you’ve built, and finally start running your business, instead of it running you.Â
Ready to find out If your business can run without you?
I don’t do one-size-fits-all reviews. I find the real gaps keeping you stuck in every corner of your business.