Thread by @joshuamschultz

“It doesn’t have to be this way”

This is the line that drives me and excited me. It’s the one that at one point haunted me... but now it’s my fuel.

Small business owners who just figure business is a constant grind for survival...

... employees who are weighted under greater and greater workloads, being penny pinched by suppliers and bullied by customers. No time time to enjoy the success you’ve achieved, and never enough cash to do what you really want to do.

I saw it with my father, I walked it myself

It doesn’t have to be this way.

Someone told owners that it’s tough, to outwork every problem, and to do it yourself.

The entrepreneurial attitude that forged your company, may also be the independence that is weighing you down.

Some times outwork, but sometimes outthink

This problem is my passion, my excitement.

Operations, automation, strategy, problem solving, no code, machine learning, and data... all just tools to realize change.

Owners didn’t have to be tied to their business, the only one who can do things right, afraid to take a day off, and stressed by the weight of a business relying on them and a family crying for them.

There are times to outwork, stay late, and do it yourself... but these are the exceptions, the extraordinary circumstances... not the daily.

Here some lies

1 You are the only one who can do it.

There millions of people smarter than you, doing harder things, running larger operations, and having a better go at it.

You are unique, but not that unique.

You need to set up others to be able, and not rob their development

2. I don’t have the resources

SMB is all about allocation, not acquisition. I have never seen a small biz not have the resources to start the flywheel in a positive direction.

Too many free abs amazing resources out there to help nowadays

3. I’m almost there

I have seen individuals tell themselves this for years. You aren’t, you won’t be. Painful to hear: but the decisions you are making, keeping yourself at the center, will perpetuate the situation, not solve it.

4. I don’t have time

The king of all excuses. Parkinson’s law states that you never will unless you start to really prioritize changes. If you care, let’s talk next week and we’ll start working on some real projects ASAP, no charge, just ideas and help.

5. Too many problems right now, maybe later.

A company built around an owner will always have problems. The owner can only do so much, with an improperly trained, developed team, things will be going wrong, and a reactive culture will be created.

6. I can’t find good help.

I understand this one. Stop looking for someone who can do in 2 weeks what took you 30 years to learn.

Find good people And turn them into good help. There’s lot of good people!

Start being proactive,
purposely building your company,
Developing your people,
Create a goal,
head forward towards something instead of just protecting your current state,
Be the one the creates the culture you always wished for - not another to be escapes from.

Your business should serve you, your employees, and your customer.

I am excited about this because I breathed since a boy. My family was at all of these stages.

I’ve also seen low wage workers get raises that change their life and make them cry when cash flow grows.

I’ve seen business owners rediscover their zest for life after they can lower their work time and stress. They remember why they first stated business in the first place.

I’ve seen both sides, and I am telling you:

“It doesn’t have to be this way.”