Small Business Owner, Have You Lost Your Enthusiasm For Your Business?
Without a doubt enthusiasm and passion are the driving force for all successful small business owners. This is especially true of small business owners because the CEO of large business firms have someone to fill the gap they leave if they "drop the ball".
In a small business the driving force is the owner. What happens if his interest begins to wane? The drive lessens and the business begins to slow down.
Yet as the business grows out of the start-up stage, inevitably enthusiasm will begin to be overtaken by the mundane tasks of running a business. How do you avoid this and how do you pump it up if it does happen?
Frank, a client who had built a successful building business gave me a call. Frank had started his business from scratch when as a young carpenter he "went out on his own". Now his firm was a household name in the area he marketed to, and he employed almost 100 men.
He had every reason to be happy but he said that he was getting far less satisfaction and enjoyment from his business than he did when he first started.
"I am losing the taste for it," Frank said, "I am wondering if it's time to give it away!"
We had worked with Frank from the start in helping him to grow his business. It has always been our contention that building a business was like building a house. Sooner or later it would be finished and the decision would have to made whether you should keep the business or sell it and start another. But I did not think Frank's business had reached that stage yet and told him so.
"Frank, what task was there in the early stages that fed your enthusiasm which you are not doing now?"
"Being on the job is a biggy, but I have solved that by taking on some of the smaller jobs, which is enough for me!"
"Think hard, Frank."
Frank thought hard and a sheepish grin appeared on his face, "You'll think it's a bit silly", he said.
In the early days when money was tight it was an important event to open the mail and find a large check which sometimes came just in time. Frank got a kick out of that and looked forward to it every morning.
Now his personal assistant opens the mail and Frank never even sees the checks. He sees a total of what has been deposited but it is not the same.
There is no "rule' that says that the CEO of a firm cannot open the mail. Now Frank's PA separates the letters that might hold checks and Frank opens them. Frank says that he still feels like a kid opening a lucky dip.
We have found other things to do that Frank gets a "kick" doing and Frank is happy again. When it is time for him to retire and sell he will get heaps more money than he would than if he sold now, and Frank will have the time and money to do whatever he likes.
Is that the position you want to be in?