When the Business Doesn't Need You at 100%
One of my advisory clients was running his business for six months at about half his usual capacity.
Something was going on with his health that he hadn't fully figured out yet.
His morning routine stopped. His energy after work disappeared. He couldn't bring himself to set quarterly goals.
He kept brushing it off. "I'm just tired."
FYI - He's diagnosed now, getting treated, and the energy is back.
His health is in a good place, so I want to share some takeaways from his business that helped him navigate that 6-month period.
It took months for his issue to be diagnosed and treated.
But during all those months, his business never slipped.
Clients were served on time. Pipeline was built. Revenue was steady. In fact, he began promoting his new venture.
You wouldn't have known anything was off unless you knew him really well.
And the takeaway for your business is this:
A founder running at half capacity shouldn't be the thing that breaks the business.
His didn't, because the business wasn't relying entirely on his drive.
Instead, there were 3 things in place that kept the business moving:
1. He had an operating routine in place that kept him on rails. A regular cadence of commitments that kept him focused on the priorities. So when he couldn’t go all-out, everyone still got what they needed to keep the trains running on time.
2. He also had his systems of workflows and automations for client communications, internal handoffs, and the repeatable work that can't slip.
Systems that were set up to handle what needs to happen consistently, regardless of whether the founder is present.
3. And he had people in positions to make decisions without waiting on him.
Decisions happened when they needed to happen, rather than being held up until he was available to make them.
Not rocket science. But none of it happens by accident.
So why should you give a sh#t?
Unfortunately, your business is probably going to need you at less than 100% at some point.
Health, family, burnout, a transition. Something will come up.
I hope I’m wrong. I’d love to hear that you built the infrastructure to handle it and only had to rely on it when you went on vacation or chose to work less.
But you should probably prepare yourself and your business to operate without you - regardless of the reason.
Have you built enough structure for it to hold when it does?
If so, good on ya. What’s next?
If not, there’s no better time to start than right now. Your future self will thank you.
Not sure where to start? Let me help.
First step is starting a conversation (reply to this email).