Six whole years as a business owner, and I\u2019m tired, that\u2019s the honest truth. I really need a holiday and to make more time for myself, that\u2019s my top tips for the year ahead. And if I thought last year was hard, well hold on to your hats this one was even harder! Growth is a huge challenge, plus I\u2019ve expanded my event experience \u2013 speaking, exhibiting, attending as an influencer! So, I\u2019ve needed to rely on and trust my team more. \u00a0Unfortunately, more people can risk more problems, both financially and personally.<\/p>\n
I did not anticipate the extra costs and stresses that having a larger team would bring. Taxes, salaries, bills\u2026 it just never seems to end. But guess what? We\u2019re still here. Still in business and still paying the bills. And while it\u2019s been really tough, I\u2019ve also had a lot of fun so it\u2019s not all doom and gloom. But when you\u2019re tired you tend to focus on the negative, cue need for a holiday as mentioned above\u2026<\/p>\n
So, have I been learning from my own advice all these years? Sometimes it doesn\u2019t feel like it, but when I speak to other business owners, they\u2019re experiencing the same thing so I know it\u2019s not just me, and there\u2019s some things I just can\u2019t change. Sharing with others has been one of the most helpful things I\u2019ve done this year, but what else did I learn?<\/p>\n
I am so much better at this now, but I also think it\u2019s because I have the right team in place as well, they make it so easy for me to leave work in their capable hands, and that frees up my time to go off to speak and attend events all over the world without having to worry.<\/p>\n
Which moves nicely on to\u2026<\/p>\n
This is possibly THE most important piece of advice I can give you, and if you don\u2019t find the right people the first time around, don\u2019t give up \u2013 keep trying! Understanding what you need and the role that you need to fill is really important. Having self-awareness is also super helpful, I know I can be hard work, chaotic and impulsive but finding the right people to work with me will be key to my success down the line.<\/p>\n
I\u2019ve also learned that what I thought I needed from one person was actually two different roles altogether! Every day is a learning process to help you refine and define your requirements. And when you have those people in place, it makes delegation so much easier, and trust comes naturally.<\/p>\n
Once you have this in place, it becomes easier to follow the next piece of advice\u2026<\/p>\n
I\u2019m better at this over the last year but I\u2019d say I still have a way to go, I\u2019m still the face of the business but I now have people who know more than me that can do the job better than I ever could, so I\u2019m slowly eeking away from this, I now realise I don\u2019t have to do everything.<\/p>\n
This is a tricky one, because with some people you can be friends and work together, and with others you can\u2019t. Or maybe that\u2019s just me\u2026I think it depends on the relationship you have with the person, as well as your own personality.<\/p>\n
Having tough discussions with some people is a lot easier than others, but I do believe that if you look after your team, and make them feel valued, most of them will be loyal, work hard, and support you.<\/p>\n
While I\u2019m pretty good at communication (we chat in Teams and have a weekly team meeting), I\u2019ve realised that I assume people understand what I have meant without confirming. Now it falls on both of us to do this but communicating your expectations clearly will ultimately lead to fewer issues down the road.<\/p>\n
This is the same with clients. I\u2019ve learned over the years to be as specific as possible when it comes to what I will and won\u2019t be delivering on projects. This means the client has less room to take advantage of an open and unclear scope of work which results in scope creep on my side. If you are ever unsure, always clarify. It will save you time and money in the long run.<\/p>\n
I\u2019m also improving in this area but could do much better. I often forget to look at the value we bring to the client with the services that we provide. We could save them months of time, if not years in some cases, plus drive profitability, and that\u2019s not including the cost savings. But we work to give our clients value and benefits, and as long as we can pay our bills and the clients are happy, I\u2019ll be happy.<\/p>\n
At the end of the day, we can quote the same piece of work to two different clients, one would accept and the other would reject it, you just have to come to terms with that and move on to the next project, I used to dwell far too long on these things.<\/p>\n
This was even worse this year, having to pay six people and not getting paid for three months is an absolute killer, and if truth be told it almost sunk us this year. The trouble with the type of work we do is that overall, we can\u2019t invoice until the project is complete, and if it goes on longer than expected it drains your reserves. There are some clients who will accept 50% payment upfront but on the whole, we are dealing with large global companies who don\u2019t negotiate. And no amount of mansplaining from LinkedIn will change that!<\/p>\n
And then there\u2019s supplier onboarding. It\u2019s taken almost two months and I\u2019m still not set up on a suppliers system, which means I can\u2019t invoice for work completed back in April! There are so many things you just can\u2019t plan for but learn along the way.<\/p>\n
Fortunately, this year most invoices have been paid on time or early, so I haven\u2019t had to use the threat of publicly posting about a client to get paid.<\/p>\n
You can put as many plans and buffers in place as you like but if several invoices are all late at the same time or projects are delayed, you\u2019re in a pickle. Having a couple of months of money in the bank is a great idea and I\u2019m working towards it but every time I put something away, I need to use it to cover something else.<\/p>\n
This never changes. Your timeline is not your client\u2019s timeline.\u202fIt may be important for you to get that project, but it might be low on the list of priorities of your client \u2013 always keep working to build up your pipeline while balancing the fine line of not overloading yourself with too much work.<\/p>\n
Most of our projects take months, rather than weeks to materialise. This is tough when you have a small workload or cash flow issues. Quite often there will be an unexpected project that pops up which always helps. Being aware of this is the best preparation you can have.<\/p>\n
This never goes away, regardless of what stage you\u2019re at, it\u2019s perfectly normal to question absolutely everything you are doing, feel overwhelmed, and both a success and a failure at the same time.\u202fMany times, I have questioned if I was doing the right thing, should I just give it all up\u2026 but I would be miserable if I had to go and work for someone else.<\/p>\n
I say this every year and as each year goes by, I am more thankful for having my coach. She has helped me navigate new and tricky waters this year and has been invaluable.<\/p>\n
I never believed in coaches until I met\u00a0Vicki Connor<\/a>\u00a0(connorcoaching.co.uk<\/a>) \u2013 a straight-talking no-nonsense coach. She\u2019s developed my tone, language, thought process, helped me curb my limiting beliefs, and manage those meltdowns I just told you about.<\/p>\n She has undoubtedly helped me progress forward at a rate faster than I could have achieved alone. I highly recommend you look into getting a coach of your own, but make sure it\u2019s the right person for you.<\/p>\n More than that, having friends, people you trust, who are business owners and talking to them helps a LOT. Way more than you\u2019d think. To be able to speak to people who get what you\u2019re going through without having to explain is such a comfort. Go out and seek those people and speak to them regularly, they might even have a solution for you.<\/p>\n No matter what you do, whether it be with clients, your team, or suppliers, you can\u2019t please them all. Sometimes no matter what you do it will never be enough. You must learn to know when to walk away. Arguing just makes it worse and is an energy suck. Let it go and move on.<\/p>\n Aim higher than you think you could ever achieve and just go for it. Say yes to as many opportunities as you can, and if you\u2019ve never done something before, well just figure it out. \u00a0Because of this, I\u2019m now a published author of\u00a0Between the Spreadsheets<\/a>, a TEDx speaker, listed as a DataIQ100 thought leader twice, won DataIQ Data Champion of the year 2022, now an international speaker, content creator and I\u2019ve created my first course\u00a0Fixing Dirty Data<\/a>.<\/p>\n I\u2019m growing my business in ways I never thought possible, travelling the globe and getting to meet so many of my online connections.<\/p>\n Never in my wildest dreams\u2026<\/p>\n So, until next year\u2026 will I get a holiday? Will I still be in business? I very much hope so on both points, keep following me to track my progress\u2026<\/p>\n What has your experience been?\u202fWhy not get in touch and let me know\u00a0susan@theclassificationguru.com<\/a><\/p>\n Track the TCG journey:<\/p>\n Year 1<\/a><\/p>\nYou can\u2019t please everyone<\/strong><\/h4>\n
Aim high<\/strong><\/h4>\n