From Self-Employed to CEO: The Shift That Changes Everything

"Create time to work on your business, not just in your business."

We've heard this line before—maybe too many times. It's one of those pieces of wisdom that hits us over the head so often that it just slips through our consciousness unnoticed. This simple concept is a game-changer for any small business owner.

There's a long to-do list that needs to be done, and it probably keeps growing, but not all tasks are created equally. Setting aside time to work on your business is the leverage you need to create a competitive advantage. Prioritize it. Schedule it. Protect it.

Busyness vs. Productivity vs. Optimized Productivity

We're all operating our small businesses on this continuum - from spinning wheels to building a high value asset.

Basic tools like the Eisenhower Matrix make it very simple to organize the chaos of overwhelm:

● Important & urgent: tasks requiring immediate attention (pressing deadlines).

● Important & not urgent: strategic activities that contribute to long-term goals (relationship

building).

● Not important & urgent: tasks that can be delegated (routine emails).

● Not important & not urgent: activities that are distractions and can be eliminated

(excessive social media browsing).

Stop trying to do everything.

Solve The Problems In Your Small Business Machine

The same way we step over the mess in our homes to get out the front door and rationalize that "we'll do it later" when we have time -- we do the same in business. However, here are some common areas of opportunity for small business owners:

Operations

These are things we have put a temporary band-aid on for way too long that are now

inefficiencies in our processes. Duplication of efforts because we don't have a simple but clear process of: why? how? who? or what AI tool?

Marketing

We're doing a lot of different activities without a clear long-term plan at the core of our brand building. The immediate need for clients often leads us to do scrambled DIY marketing. However if we don't track our efforts and results we lose out on the opportunity to learn how the market is reacting to our messages.

Sales

We often don't have a proactive sales process. So we wait (and wait) for someone to book a call when we should actively seek out opportunities to sell our offer by pitching our services or products to new clients and old clients that we may serve another way.

The list could go on, but we only need to tackle one thing at a time.

Visionary Leadership

Entrepreneurs are dreamers by nature. We see the potential of things before they exist. This

creativity that sparks innovative actions has to be guarded from the extinguishing winds of

overwhelm, frustration, lack of rest, and burnout.

Create white space. Step outside of business mode

Draw ideas and inspiration from different places: taking a walk, travelling, speaking to strangers, reading books, and studying new technologies at leisure. Fuel your interests and curiosities. Believe it or not, the most powerful breakthroughs come from non-business moments.

Lead your business into the future

What changes are happening in your niche? Study the actions of the leaders in your space.

Rather than being disrupted, how can you elevate your business?For the coaches in our

community, what does the "rise of the guide" mean for your business? What does the creation of personal coaching AI bots mean? How can you get ahead of change and provide the outcomes these changes create for your current clients? What matters to your ideal client TODAY? Not last year or 6 months ago.

This is the work that will move your business forward more than any other thing you can

do. Test each idea on a small segment of your business before doing a complete overhaul.

Take smaller calculated risks

Does this add value my client can feel? Am I capturing the real worth of my offer? Is what I’m

doing still relevant?

As solo-business owners, we can be tempted to settle into routine. We've put so much time,

effort, and money into doing things this way. Adaptability is the #1 skill of an entrepreneur. Move with change.

“By wisdom a house is built, and through understanding it is established; through knowledge its rooms are filled with rare and beautiful treasures." Proverbs 24: 3-4

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About the Author: Priscilla Shumba, MBA, is a business communications strategist, author, and podcaster. Check out her free training: Elevate & Leverage Small Business Media

Learn more and connect with her on LinkedIn. 

P.S. If you’re drowning in those business nuggets, I’d suggest you listen to this interview with tech & innovation expert on The Lessons of Entrepreneurship Podcast, West Stringfellow on the process of collecting ideas to ignite innovation.