Big Enough? Balancing Growth and Satisfaction

How do you define 'success' for your business? Join us on 'The Water Trough' as we rethink growth and question the need to expand for the sake of expansion. Listen now for insights! #BusinessAdvice #HealthyBusiness #SmallBizTalk 

Transcript

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Welcome to the Water Trough where we can't make you drink, but we will make you think. My name is Ed Draws to the Small Business Doctor, and I'm really excited you chose to join me here as we discuss topics that are important for small business folks just like you. If you're looking for ideas, inspiration, and possibility, you've come to the right place. Join us as we take steps to help you create the healthy business that you've all. Always wanted. Hi, it said draws to the small business doctor. Welcome back to the water trough. Today, I'd like to talk about the notion of how big is big enough for your business. Or to say it another way. Keeping up with the Joneses. Those of us of a certain age are quite familiar with the saying, keeping up with the Joneses. That is to say, what are our neighbors doing? Do we have a house like they've got, do we drive cars? Like they do. To our kids go to the same kind of special schools that their kids go to. In other words, it's about keeping up. About maintaining appearances about being like the rest of them. And for those of us in business, let's face it. We're also engaged in the same thing. We're definitely looking at the others, the competition and the others in the similar business capacity and saying to ourselves, are we as good as them? Are we as big as them. Are we as able to achieve the things they achieve. Naturally, we have to be concerned about these things. If we're not, we are falling behind in a world that's rapidly and forever growing. let's face it. We look at competition and say, am I exceeding their productivity? Am I providing more for the same clientele that they are? Am I stagnant or am I growing And that is one of the big things that business people ask themselves. Am I big enough. Am I growing fast enough? So let's stop for a moment and look at this. Most of us start out in business with a small piece of a large pie. I'll take myself. For example, I'm a solo preneur. I am my only employee. I have no desire to have other employees and I have no need for other employees. I've made my own choice. And I've been in this business now for over 25 years. To do things on my terms. I know what my terms are. I'm content with my terms. And that's perfectly fine. In fact, that's one of the challenges that I think a lot of business people face. I've worked with a variety of people over the years. Who are eagerly ready to open up the next storefront? Even before. They have their first one open. I'll say that again. They're ready to open up the second storefront before the first one is operational. The idea of being bigger. Uh, Being better than the competitors. Of having the most. And the best. Drives. Business people. And there's nothing wrong with that. That drive is essential. That's the spirit that keeps things moving forward. I get that. But I do think sometimes we have to stop and take a look. At what our expectations are. Both for ourselves. And for our business. what do we. Look to gain. Each of us is entitled, of course, to our own opinion about how big we should be, how big we can be, but it's important to differentiate between what we want versus what we perceive as being the appropriate expectation. We're surrounded by others who are moving at their own pace, some faster than us, some slower than us. These folks have an influence upon the way we look at ourselves. It's no longer about keeping up with the Joneses. As I had alluded to before, It's about being better than the Joneses, making them somewhat irrelevant or so it seems. But if we look inside, I think that each of us will find that our own expectations are uniquely our own. It is not sufficient to try to base our expectations on those that surround us. The reality is we're not going to be someone. We're not, as I'd mentioned earlier, more than 25 years in my business, a solopreneur from day one, and I'll be that way until the day that I close the shop for the last time. That is my particular approach to things. Someone else may feel the need and the desire to grow, grow, grow. Each of us has our own set of expectations, and each of us is entitled to pursue those as we see fit. But it's important, I believe, for us not to let external factors influence our expectations. It's critical. It's critical. That big enough is what we determine to be appropriate enough for us. Not because the other guys got a bigger shop, not because the other folks have greater revenue than we do, but because it's appropriate for us. Once we have established that platform, once we've established that base, we can then create and apply the necessary resources to achieve that goal, rushing ahead to be something. That we're not prepared to be or to rushing ahead to be something that somebody else is, is, in my opinion, a recipe for disaster. This is when we lose sight of our own integrity, our own capabilities, and figure simply if they can do it, I can do it. End of story. And it's not always possible for us, to do what everyone else has done. And quite frankly, that's okay. We have to make choices, but it's really difficult sometimes for us to envision that we do have less than others. Others who are doing very similar things to what we're doing, why should they be better than us? why can't we possibly do as good if not better than them? Certainly the motivation is apropos, but being realistic about what that motivation can lead to being realistic about. The endpoint for our expectations is something that we need to give time and thought about. Certainly many of us have difficulty doing that. I suppose it's part of being human, and of course that's exactly what we are. I hope you'll give some thought to your own expectations. Are they based on your abilities, on your legitimate desires? Are they fashioned after somebody else to the point where you really don't see. Or have a sense if they belong to you or if they simply sound good. Take some time. Ask yourself those questions. Being able to retain that connection between your purpose and the origins of it is extremely important. Until next time, this is Ed Drows to the Small Business Doctor, and here at the Water Trough. I want to wish you. A healthy business.