Are you and your business ready for growth? I see a lot of small business owners growing quickly, only to realise they weren’t ready for growth. They were getting a little complacent with their own business organisation. That sudden influx of extra work puts them under pressure. Overwhelm sets in, and they end up playing catch-up to sustain this new level of normal.
I know the past year has been another challenging one for many business owners. However, for many, it’s also been a surprisingly productive one. I know I’ve seen my workload increase, and I’ve updated my website and even started growing my own team. But there have also been times when I’ve felt completely overwhelmed when faced with the increased workload and new challenges. However, I have kept moving forward, step by step, faced my fears and am very excited for the year to come.
So how did I turn it around, and what advice can I give you to help get you ready for growth?
Make future-focused decisions
Start by making the right decisions for where you want to be, not where you’re currently at. What does that look like? It’s about setting up the right foundations in your business, so it can accommodate the growth you want to achieve. You may only have 2 clients at the moment, but if you’re looking for 20 in the future, do you have the right systems in place to cope with those numbers?
It’s not just about your systems; it’s also about your mindset too. Do you need to step up and get consistent with your marketing and visibility? Are you saying no to opportunities you really need to be saying yes to? And are you scheduling your time and putting in the work required to instil those good habits now, before you hit that ideal level of growth?
Get your business organised and ready for growth
You need to have the right systems, processes, and tools to streamline your business and be ready for the growth you want. Document everything so it’s easy to hand the task to someone else. When choosing tools, opt for ones that can cope with your future capacity. Far too many business owners look for the cheaper option, only to find it then costs them time and money, moving to a more robust system later on.
I confess I wasn’t as prepared as I should have been for the growth of my business. I thought my systems and processes were fairly well organised until I started to bring in my first team members. I soon realised that there was work to be done if we were all to collaborate efficiently together. I’d been so busy looking after my clients I’d neglected my own business in some areas. For example, lots of information was in my head or in handwritten notes. Not very conducive to efficient collaboration!
Get ready for growth by scheduling weekly CEO time
It’s easy to get into the habit of spending all your time looking after your clients but neglecting to devote enough time to yourself and your business. That’s why you need to schedule CEO time now. Build in the habit of checking in with your numbers, assessing your goal progress and planning your next steps.
It’s a bit like the painter decorator, whose walls never get a fresh coat of paint, or the gardener whose back garden resembles a jungle. Take care of your own business and yourself first. Be the example, not the cautionary tale.
It’s never too early to hire help
This is why I so strongly recommend starting early by bringing in help and delegating tasks. If you need help with getting started, you can read my previous blog on this topic here. You will have much more time and energy to find the right people when you’re not under pressure. The advantage of working with freelancers is you can start on a small basis and build up as your business grows. It’s a great way to find out if you are a good fit for each other and if you can trust this person to be an asset to you when you do grow more.
And, if you’re now kicking yourself for leaving it a bit late and are slowly drowning in too much work and don’t know where to turn, don’t hesitate to reach out. Even delegating a few tasks to a VA can quickly take the pressure off and give you back some time and breathing space.
You can keep struggling, but it’s not an ideal future-focused decision. It will start to become too much for you, and exhaustion or overwhelm will set in. Finding help and getting organised enough to delegate may feel like too much pressure, but you don’t need to keep struggling. Feel free to contact us and talk openly about your options – let’s get you and your business ready for growth this year.
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