Mindset Shifts Required to Move into Growth
Episode 544: Show Notes
If you have been listening to us for a minute, you will have heard us alluding to the fact that we are headed toward a growth phase of our business and our lives. We were having a conversation the other day about why we are ready for this now versus when we weren't, what's different, and what we think we need to shift in order to do it. One of the things that came up is that we realized that we had perfected delegating tasks in our business that stabilize it, make it do the thing that it's meant to be doing, and not let it slip back and fall.
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On the flip side, what we haven't done and what we don't know how to do yet is delegate, hire for, plan and help other people grow the business. So, we talked about this the other day, when just a couple of years ago, if one of us was out of the office, there would be a direct impact on our sales because there would be less posting on social media and less content creation, which means we would have to plan and account for that. We grew out of that phase, so now one of us can head off for a week, and it does not impact our sales at all! This is fantastic, but the next phase for us is about more than just being able to go on vacation and see the business grow; it's about not having to be one of the two brains that contribute to the growth.
You Don't Have to Do Everything in Your Business
This is not to discount what our current team has done and is doing. They are doing exactly what we hired them to do: bring in a higher return. So, while we have grown with the team, there has not been the exponential growth we ultimately want. Even now, we are still involved in brainstorming growth ideas, but we would like to know what it would look like if we weren't doing this all the time. Is there a possibility for us to step back more and still see things flourish? We know that our zone of genius is impacting our students, not growing a multi-million-dollar business, so we want to eventually focus solely on that. When we started our business, we had to be experts in all aspects of it, which can be quite draining because we are not naturally good at everything. This is a common thing we see in so many businesses; owners believe they are not being authentic when they delegate certain things. But you know what? This mindset is standing in the way of your growth. For a long time, we thought we had to be the brains behind the whole operation, but this just isn't true.
Hiring for Growth is Not a Failure
Up until quite recently, we did not really understand the fact that someone who did not create our product and our brand could actually come into our business and help us scale. Only now has Emylee fully detached herself from the brand and can look at things from a high-level view to see that someone else, with a whole fresh set of ideas, could own a part of the company's growth. We put so much pressure on ourselves to take our company through all of its growth phases, but this is actually just ridiculous. Stepping back and letting someone else take over is not a failure! It is you showing how much you love and care for what you have created. We want to help other women create their own empires, just like we have been able to. Of course, everyone needs different mentors for whatever stage of your life you are in, but we hope that we can be there for you. Even though we have achieved so much, we want you to know that we still face blocks and things that slow us down. You don't have to wait till you have grown a business our size to hire someone to help you grow. It is not always beneficial for you to know every single thing in the business, and when this time comes, maybe it is time for you to look outside for some help.
Where in The Business Our Next Hire Will Go
So now, moving forward, we want to see which segments of the business we need to hire for to ensure growth. Our business does not need someone with a macro growth lens because this is already what we do. We want someone to come in and look at specific areas to scale. So, who have we already hired? We brought on a copywriter, editor, VA, and shop creative director, for instance. All of these people are doers, which means we give them a task and they execute it like total bosses. We don't necessarily need a super high-level operations manager at this point, but we know we need someone who has more autonomy and can make more decisions.
Growth is All Relative
In We Should All Be Millionaires, there are some pretty wild stats about women-owned businesses and how much they make. There are very, very few women-owned businesses that are pulling in high multi-million-dollar figures. The majority of women-owned enterprises we know do not have employees. Maybe they have contractors, but often these women are the only employees. We have realized that revenue is very context and industry-dependent, so defining what a small, medium or large business is, is complex. If you are a realtor, for instance, maybe you have a multi-million-dollar business, but it does not necessarily mean that much in the industry. On the other hand, if you are a coach, maybe you have a few big clients, and you actually make a boatload of money. Of course, our business does not exist in isolation, and there are trends that we have to be aware of as we head into growth, but this does not mean we will not listen to our intuition and what we know is best for us. We feel like, at this point, we need a program director, which is not something we have heard being talked about all that much.
A Program Director: Our New Hire?
What is a program director? In our industry, it would be the equivalent of someone taking ownership of a product and being in charge of growing it. This is a complex role and maybe can even be divided into two positions. There are so many things we have steered clear of because we just didn't want to do it. Maybe, if there is someone out there who has the drive to implement these strategies, then we will totally let them do it. This does not mean that we should just let them run wild. Making a new hire is a balancing act of giving the person freedom, while still ensuring that they understand they're supported. It is important to be clear about the company culture upfront so that someone coming in knows what will fly and what won't. There will always be things that we will say no to, and we are ok with this. We have seen other people do things we would never even consider doing, and it is not that we look down on them; these strategies are just not for us. Making this new hire is nerve-racking, don't get us wrong. But for Abagail, especially, she has learned to let go. Her nerves came from a place of knowing how much work went into building everything, and she felt so afraid of taking steps back. However, we are now in a place where we can make decisions for the good of the company. We are headed into a place of purpose, profit, and growth, and we are so excited for you to join us on the journey.
Quote This
The fact that we think that it's our brains and only our brains that are going to get us through all those phases is ridiculous!
Highlights
You Don't Have to Do Everything in Your Business. [0:04:07.1]
Hiring for Growth is Not a Failure. [0:10:20.1]
Where in The Business Our Next Hire Will Go. [0:18:49.1]
Growth is All Relative. [0:29:24.1]
A Program Director: Our New Hire? [0:35:28.1]
ON TODAY’S SHOW
Abagail & Emylee
The Strategy Hour Podcast
We help overwhelmed and creative entrepreneurs break down their Oprah-sized dreams to create a functioning command center to tame the chaos of their business. Basically, we think you’re totally bomb diggity, we’re about to uplevel the shiz out of your business.
KEY TOPICS
Scaling, Mindset, Growth, New Hires, Strategy, Shifts, Culture, Decision-Making
