As a business grows, entrepreneurs must often reinvent themselves as a rite of passage. It’s often the very work habits that help you achieve a level of success that hold you back from getting to the next level. Being involved in all areas of the business, making every decision, and managing every outcome in the company becomes unsustainable as your business grows. I’ve gone through several reinventions as my own business grew and changed.
I started my company in 1989 at the age of 21. I was involved in every area of the business including strategy, sales, management, and administration. I always put the business first and grew it with stubborn single-mindedness. The company was structured in a hub-and-spoke model and I made every key decision. As we grew, I began to feel overwhelmed by the increasing complexity of the business. There was never enough time in the day. It seemed there was no end in sight and I began to resent my business. In fact, the more we grew, the worse I felt.
In 1995 I was invited to join a Young Entrepreneurs Organization event (then YEO, now EO). My first EO educational experience featured Michael Gerber, author of The E-Myth. Gerber yelled at the roomful of entrepreneurs driving home this point: “If you’re trapped working in your business then you’re not an entrepreneur! You just have a job working for the most unreasonable boss in the world… yourself!” (more…)