The theme of this week’s FocalPoint has centered on the concept of working on your business and not in your business, a philosophy that stemmed from the FocalPoint Power Principle of the 3-Eyes of a business owner.
The philosophy is rooted in the premises that for your business to grow you need to be looking in at your business from the outside in order to identify areas or processes which require improvement. You need to be in a position where you can analyze the external environment in which your business operates as well as the internal. You need to be in a position of leadership.
In order to get a clearer understanding of this philosophy let’s examine the 3-Eyes in more detail. Think of the eyes as a set of lenses through which you view your business. They are:
- The Technician
- The Manager
- The Entrepreneur
The technician is generally looking down, not because he or she is depressed or sad, hell no; they love their job. The technician is simply focused on the task at hand; they work with the goal of completing a particular project within set parameters.
The manager tends to be looking backwards at the past, that which has happened already. As a manager you tend to be very problem-solving orientated. As a manager you have a certain amount of control, but your decision making tends to be reactive as there is a strong external influence, as many of the variables which impact your outcomes fall outside of your control.
The entrepreneur looks forward into the future. As an entrepreneur you are always on the lookout for new opportunities and ways to improve. You have a large amount of control as you decide on the way forward. Stepping into the shoes of the entrepreneur you take on the role of the company visionary and leader. It is your responsibility to set the vision and lead the ship in that direction. This does not mean that it is plain sailing to the end, however because of your vantage point you are in the best position to make the necessary coarse corrections with limited damage.
Now this is where things may get interesting. Usually at this point most business owners are thinking, leadership; the last time I lead was when I captained my under 14 football team and we lost every game that season. Many may argue that they don’t have the skills to lead or even the passion to lead. Are we telling these business owners that if they don’t move into the entrepreneurial role they won’t be successful? Absolutely not; however, the facts above cannot be ignored!
Fortunately, we have a solution for this dilemma. Firstly, as a business owner you need to decide where in the business you want to be. If you want to take on the role of the entrepreneur but feel you lack the experience and knowledge to drive your vision, hire a business coach to support and guide you.
If you are most comfortable in the role of technician and feel that is where you are best suited, stay in that role, but hire a General Manager to lead your business for you. It remains your responsibility to set the vision and the associated goals; however, your general manager will drive the process. Should this be your route of choice ensure you put efficient reporting and feedback systems in place to track the progress of your business.
At the end of the day, the success of your business is not determined by what role you have within the business but rather ensuring that right people are fulfilling the right roles within your business, including yourself. Donald Trump said, ‘Watch, listen, and learn. You can’t know it all yourself. Anyone who thinks they do is destined for mediocrity.’
