Vision into Action
“Chase the vision, not the money; the money will end up following you.” – Tony Hsieh, Zappos CEO. An entrepreneur’s drive is to make money based on their dreams of a new product or service. There is nothing wrong with this ideal but Tony was correct, when you put making money before the vision, neither will manifest. The secret lies in breaking your vision into actionable pieces. All new business owners, at some time, will encounter the dreaded wall named, ‘overwhelmed.’ While you remain excited working towards your dream, you feel confused as to which step comes next, where you should be spending your energy, and who can or should be helping you. I know, because as a young entrepreneur, I experienced all of these feelings, and more, when I opened my first restaurant.
One Person’s History
Like many aspiring small business owners, I had worked in the field in which I wanted to begin my business. I had management experience, I had a good pulse on the local restaurant market, I was sure I was better than other operators, I knew it all! Well, not really, I was nowhere close. Starting your business takes much more than vision or even experience, it takes skilled organization, relentless communication, goal upon goal upon goal setting, well defined expectations, and leadership, both for your team and yourself.
Since I opened the doors of my first restaurant in 2001, I have felt anxiety, fear, confusion, and even hopelessness at times. There is nothing wrong with those feelings, they come with the territory. However, all of those negative feelings were replaced with accomplishment, growth, and eventually, best of all, a quiet self-confidence. I won’t lie, the first year will be hard, very hard. You will learn things about yourself you didn’t know existed – intentionally or not. This, though, is the magic, the sweet spot, and what matters the most.
Skilled Organization
Knowing who, what, and how each part of your business is managed lays the foundation for all areas of an organization to move forward. This can be done through flow charts, department names, or titles, but most importantly, reasonable expectations need to be assigned to each department. Too many times, I have heard, “I didn’t know I was supposed to do that,” or “I thought so-and-so was in charge of that.” If expectations are not clear, the blame lies at the top, with you as the leader. Good businesses evolve over time and how an organization’s new activities are mapped will change to meet these transitions. The process of change can be either ‘clunky’ or seamless. Smooth transitions happen when there is a firm commitment to communication.
Communication
Has anyone ever been accused of over-communicating? If they have, then kudos to them. Most businesses struggle because of either poor or an absence of communication. Intentional communication is the best avenue to success. As the leader, this means not only saying what is on your mind, but how it is said, to whom, and with forethought. Equally powerful and even more important is the discipline of listening. True, deep, and engaged listening; not to what you want to hear, not just to show someone you are listening, but being aware, present, and reflective. Your personal business success is only as good as the people around you. Once you turn off listening you turn off your team.
Goal Setting
Yes, goal setting. An idea really only has value or worth if it is written down. Otherwise, it may just float away. When starting your own business, you can’t begin to imagine how many different directions in which you’re about to be pulled. You may think you are the master of multitasking (a fallacy for a later post), but even the greatest minds will quickly forget ‘brilliant’ ideas if they aren’t written down. Transforming these ideas into actions begins with goal setting. Remember, goals must be specific, measurable, attainable, relevant, and time-bound (SMART). As a young business owner, I constantly compared my ideas to goals. If the ideas met, or came close, to the characteristics listed above, that meant they had earned enough merit to run by key members of the team. From there, we would decide who would be responsible for making the idea into an actionable goal.
Define Expectations
Today, accountability is a word too often and casually thrown around. Right from the start, it generates fear for many. Accountability should be viewed more as taking responsibility for the successes and failures of actions. As a new business owner, you’d better get used to failing. If you aren’t failing, it means you aren’t taking risk. It’s like the skiing parable, “If you aren’t falling, you’re not trying hard enough.” It is paramount that you relay this message to your team. As a team, define your expectations and learn to be comfortable with the outcomes. With clear expectations, it is easy to hold someone (including yourself) accountable for the outcomes, but be careful with how you judge. There may have been a huge gain in personal growth. If you want your business to thrive, you have to link expectations with goals and accountability. When evaluating your steps, using these three lenses, you produce both the potential of learning and enable yourself, and your team, to move forward both smarter and less fearful of taking on risk.
Leadership
You may be a great manager already, but are you a leader? If you plan on being a small business owner, know that leadership is what glues everything together and keeps things moving forward. There are countless essays, books, papers, and blogs written about leadership. Some may be familiar with a tightly bound military style of leadership, while some may be used to a more laissez-faire approach. What becomes vital is knowing that there is no one acceptable style of leadership and we all have inherent personality traits that pull us in one direction over others. How you progress as a leader, both individually and for your team, will determine and establish how great the company can become.
Jump in When Ready
There is nothing comparable to the feeling of making a vision become reality. It takes work, lots and lots of work. Entrepreneurs recognize and appreciate this, but hard work, combined with the components listed above, makes it much, much less stressful. As said earlier, the first year will rip you apart multiple times. If you’re scared, it’s all right and it is expected. Owning your own business may not be for you, but if you don’t take this journey, you’ll never have the chance at looking in the mirror and realizing a fundamental change.