There are 2 types of people in the world…

Well at the time of writing, more like 6,864,340,000 types of people.  But let’s just consider 2 alternatives for now and talk about people who “do” and people who “plan”.

I love to hear that opening phrase, “2 types of people in the world…” as it normally means someone has found a profound perspective on life and people.  In this case, it is not that profound, just an introduction to a dilemma that many business owners face.

We talk about the work / life balance, but as an entrepreneur, there has to be another balance.  That between “working in” the business and “working on” it.  I call it “doing” or “planning” although the word planning represents a lot more than just writing a business plan.

As business owners, we are probably doing what we do because we love it (if not, see separate article about your passion…).  That is the delivery of our products or services, the execution.  It is this execution of the “technical work” as Michael Gerber calls it in the E-Myth, that pays the bills.  It is what the customer is paying for.

But in order to grow a successful business, we do of course have to work “on” the business.  Plan, strategise, prepare and organise as well as refine and revisit the things we have done in the past to improve and scale the business.

Add to this marketing and the selling that follows in order to have the business to deliver.  Doing the marketing and selling is more “doing” work, but once this flow starts, refining and improving falls into “planning”

If you can earn £5,000 by working a full week, delivering your product?  How much would it cost to take a day out to think about improvements and efficiencies?

Do you remember the days when lawnmowers were pushed by hand, no motor?  In order to mow through over-grown grass it was necessary to take one step backward in order to take two steps forward.  This is the same when working on your business.

So if you put aside a £1,000 day to rethink, you had better come up with a plan that will make every day worth at least £1,100.

I work with and talk to a lot of young businesses.  It seems to me that solo-preneurs really do fall into one of the two camps.  In one camp they get busy quickly and spend so much time doing that they don’t make time to plan ahead and work out ways to become more efficient, or earn more for less input.  This leads in time to frustration that they are not making real progress, that they are earning the same in their third or fourth year of trading as they did in their first year.  Eventually this often leads to overall disappointment and disillusionment with their business.  We lose a lot of good businesses that way.

The other camp of course is made up of the ones who plan and prepare for so long, nothing actually starts to happen.  Again the enthusiasm will wane, but more quickly.  We lose a lot of potential businesses this way.

About 8 months ago I was involved with a series of government sponsored workshops to help people start their own business.  A major emphasis, in fact I believed far too much emphasis, of the workshops was writing the business plan.  At the time some participants admitted they had been writing their business plans for some months.  I recently discovered that many of the attendees are still working on their business plan (prior to launching).

So how does someone setting out in his or her own business strike the right balance?

It takes a very rare breed to be able to focus and achieve effective and detailed initial planning and then change direction and pace in a heartbeat to create business momentum.  It is not surprising as the skills and inclinations are almost diametrically opposed.

The answer, more often than not, is “don’t try”.  Well don’t try to strike the balance on your own.  This is a where a partner, mentor, coach, mastermind group, board of directors, business group or family and friends support group is needed.  Who did you choose?

Another way to express all of this in one person is an “accountability partner”.

David Woods, a coaches’ coach extraordinaire, calls it a “Freedom buddy” as he is all about his work helping people towards the freedom in the life they desire, whether it be financial, spiritual, geographic or any other.

Having read this far, I am thinking you probably recognise the problem, perhaps in yourself or someone you know.  Perhaps you are setting out to be that person for others, but who do you turn to yourself?  If you do not have an accountability partner and do not have the rare ability to balance “doing” and “planning”, you are not getting the best out of yourself.

Would you employ someone for long if you thought you were not getting the most out of them?  You either train them or replace them, but one way or another you need the most you can reasonably get from an employee.  The same goes for you if you are the boss.

So the next question is how do you choose your accountability partner?  Do you need “Attila the Hun” or “Mary Poppins”, a colour sergeant or a favourite aunt?  Which style gets the best result from you?  Think back to when you worked for “the man”.  Which bosses (or colleagues) were most effective at getting the best out of you?  That is the type of person you are looking for.  In fact I know someone who left employment to start her own business.  She called her previous manager who had also become a very supportive friend and recruited her to be her accountability partner.

I would venture to suggest finding the right accountability partner is so important, it is a bit like courting.  You may date several before you find the relationship that you would like to become long term.  Don’t be afraid to move on from one to another, not too readily, but if the need really arises.  It is too important for the teaming not to work.

To test someone out, you can always ask them to be your accountability partner for a specific period, while you work through one particular aspect of your business.

In business you can pay someone to be your accountability partner, such as a business coach.  Of course in the analogy with courting, this is illegal in most countries.

So go and find your perfect match and move forward in a balanced way.



Comments

[Jackie]

I have seen many posts similar to this one on internet but all other have filler content and are not up-to-the mark. This post especially made me to post my comments as its credible,discount Hugo Boss watches it’s very good!

[swiss replica watches]

I really like your style top grade omega constilation replica
and taste. I shall read your blog more often in the future.most of your fashion picks perpetuel watches
will also be on my wish list, for sure. I don’t know whether you like (this), either.flying tourbillion +china