So often we find business owners who aren't willing to hear the truth. Their business isn't doing as well as it should be or as they wished and yet they don't wish to make change. They take comments personally, think that they are to blame it that they should have done something different. This is also the case with boards and employees.
The funny thing is business isn't personal, it's business. Of course they are human and therefore make good decisions and bad. But, the business isn't them. It's a separate entity. As a high I (a la DISC Profiling) this is one thing I had to understand and it took me a long time. The sentence that made me sit up and listen was delivered by a mentor of mine who told me 'business is not about getting your emotional needs met, it's about going to the bank'.
Business is brutal. Look at the amount of companies that fail, that go out of business or into receivership. It isn't because the business owners didn't care (maybe they cared too much?), it isn't because they were all stupid or lazy. The reason is quite simple really. They had a product that either no-one wanted at the price they were offering, didn't think through the sales structure correctly or ran their business like it was their own.
It isn't. It is a separate entity and should be treated as such. The old adage 'treat it mean keep it keen' springs to mind. No one else out their cares if you are on your last penny, can't pay the mortgage or go on holiday, neither does the business.
So be brutal, be tough - not on your employees I hasten to add - by making decisions. Look at what IS working, what IS selling whilst more importantly looking at what isn’t. If it isn't do something else however much blood, sweat and tears you have shed getting the idea up and running. Have many times have you caught yourself saying the following phrases?
“But I have spent so much time and given so much to get this off the ground” “But this business is everything I have” “But it’s my baby”
…who cares? If it isn’t working, you know what? It isn’t working. It isn’t you - it’s the business.
So treat it as you would with anything broken, fix it or throw it away. Better that than continue flogging a dead horse. Throwing good money after bad and making yourself ill in the process.
Business is business. It is about going to the bank. That is all it is. Nothing more, nothing less. So don’t get emotional with it, don’t treat it as if it is all about you. Give it a good kicking every now and again and keep it fresh.
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