There comes a point in every business owner and leaders professional journey where they feel inadequately prepared for what is ahead for them. Up until that point, you probably felt excited and ready to tackle the next challenge. Then something occurs that you just aren’t ready for.
-You may seek advice from others in the organization.
-You may turn inward, become more stressed and wonder what you are doing next.
-You may turn to google or worse, AI like Chat GPT (nothing wrong with AI as long as you know how to use it!)
-You feel stuck and don’t know what the next best step is.
You may have seen incredible growth for a period of time, and now, what worked before isn’t working now.
Growing a business takes time and hard work.
Everyone online says they are an expert. But often those “strategies” are just marketing gimmicks, not real solutions for sustainable business growth.
Scaling a growing company takes time, effort, and a roadmap. You need to have the right steps in the right order to see continued success.
Here are the steps to take if you are feeling stuck and not sure where to start:
1. Write Out Your Definition of Success
Sit down with a beverage of choice, in a location that brings you peace, and write down your definition of success. This definition should be for both you as a business owner/leader and personally. The reality is for most small business owners, the two are the same.
2. Review the organization’s Vision, Mission, and Values
Don’t have those in place? That’s your first roadblock. All of your decisions can easily be made when you have clarity on who you are as an organization.
If these are written out, then review them to remind yourself why the company exists, how you accomplish your mission, and how you expect those in the organization to behave.
3. Think about your priorities for the next 90 days
First, make a list of all of the things you want to accomplish. Now cross off most of those and only focus on the 3 that are necessary to do the other things later on. Those are the things you need to start working on.
4. Create a roadmap.
Take the 90 day plan, create a step by step roadmap with staffing, resources, and technology needed to get you there.
5. Go work that plan.
Many will take this information, apply it, and move past where they are stuck. But most need an outside perspective to help them make the next best move in their business.
One of my clients….
a partner and majority owner of a fast growing engineering firm in my town, reached out when they had hired staff, taken on more projects, and wanted to make sure that the business he was growing was done in a way that would last for many years. He wanted to make sure they had the pieces in place to grow the business sustainably.
We came up with a roadmap within our first two meetings (4 hours) and then worked on implementing it. Within a matter of 10 months, they had the structure in place to nearly double their staff. They were not overwhelmed because of the system, structure, and processes we had put in place. They have continued to take on more projects.
Not everyone is ready for one-on-one support and you may be thinking you’d love an outside perspective and roadmap, but you want to implement it on your own.
Business Scale Roadmap
Since we are nearing the end of Q2, I am offering a 4 hour “office day.” If you are in town, we will knock it out in one 4 hour chunk. If it is online, it will be 2- two hour sessions.
In the end…
We will get clear on where you are at.
Where you wanna be.
We will craft a plan.
You’ll leave here knowing the next step, what to ignore, and have a plan to get to where you want to be.
This is being offered at a beta price, the best it will ever be. Reply to this email if this may be a good fit for you.
If you find you are feeling overwhelmed in your role as a leader or business owner, and need to gain clarity and a path forward, scheduling a First Steps Consultation may be your next best step. Sign up here.
Stephanie German is a business strategist, adjunct professor, and speaker. She holds a master’s degree in organizational leadership and loves giving back to her community in a variety of ways. When she’s not coaching clients or writing about leadership, Stephanie is usually headed to the mountains or the beach with her family, drinking savory wine, or working on the latest project with her husband. Stephanie’s greatest desires are to raise up the next generation of leaders while raising her own children to be strong, independent, and brave. She lives in Fresno, California with her husband Blake and her three spunky daughters, Cara, Kinsey, and Peyton. She is the best-selling author of So Your Boss Can’t Lead?