Do you ever want to be given a plan, a step-by step approach or a list of instructions, “Do this and your business will grow”?

Well this is pretty close…

In the ever-evolving world of business, achieving sustainable growth is a goal that's often easier said than done. It requires a well-thought-out strategy and the ability to adapt to changing market conditions.

To help you navigate this journey, I’d like to share the SVO Model of Sustainability and Growth TM – a simple yet effective framework that emphasizes simplicity, verification, and seizing opportunities. By following this model, you can create a robust foundation for your business's long-term success.

If you’re like many Business Owners and Founders, you’ve found a way to delegate to your team members.

What I hear, however, is sometimes you feel like you’re doing a great job and other times it feels like you and your team member are speaking two different languages.

If you feel your delegation is hit or miss, don’t worry, I’ve got a resource for you!

First, why is it important that we delegate in our businesses?

I suspect you know the answer to this already.

Ah the zen vacation, the year long sabbatical, the parental leave, the short mini-break where you immersed yourself in 4 days at the beach or hiking in the back woods somewhere.

And, now it’s time to head back to work.

Heading back to work can sometimes feel like a mixed bag of emotions no matter if you run your own business or are an employee.

There have been years where I’ve reluctantly gone back (almost in tears), some years when I’ve been indifferent and years where I genuinely looked forward to starting back on Monday morning. Luckily, the latter has been much more often.

Where ever you are…the feelings you have when you’re ’heading back in’ can be telling. We often want to push them aside and get on with it, but did you know that those emotions and feelings hold incredible amounts of information for you?

If you’re feeling reluctant, anxious, dread, uncertainty, sadness, joy, or excitement, there’s information in here not to be shoved aside, but to be experienced and listened to. And then, what to do about that information?

When I started my business, and I started writing my newsletters and blogs, I found myself signing off with the words “NOW is YOUR time.”

It just happened the first or second time I started to write. Those words came out on paper naturally (I often write on paper first and then transfer to my computer; my writing seems to flow better that way :)).

I was thinking about these words recently and thought about what I meant by them.

And, what I was reminded of came easily to the page (again). NOW is YOUR time, for me means that it’s time to cultivate the courage to take your next step now.

Your next step could be…

As you work to grow your business, do you find yourself ever saying, “I’m not sure anyone else can do this,” or “what I do is so unique.”

OR, “I wouldn’t even know how to train somebody on this, I do it differently every time!”?

If you’re interested in scaling your business and growing your results, one of the most frequently raised topics of concern is about consistency and getting the rest of your team members to deliver.

“If I don’t do it, it won’t be the same client experience” or “We won’t achieve the same results.”

Some of these perspectives may be factual and some may not.

Even if it’s factual now, it doesn’t mean that can’t change.

Maybe the reason your business is wearing you out isn’t necessarily because you’re burning the candle at both ends, or worried about making your bills, or because of another late order arriving.

While these are all worrisome and tiring, these could be symptoms of a deeper issue.

It could be due to a lack of capacity and diversity in one or all of three key areas: employees, suppliers, and/or customers.

How dependent you and your business is on any one employee, customer, or supplier can be a real indicator of business health, how high your business risk is, and how you, as the owner, are shouldering the effects of this directly. And, if that one employee is YOU, well that would be a signal of a lack of capacity or diversification of employees and skills sets.

I was recently speaking with a business owner who is dependent on one employee (themselves!) who tried to hire another employee recently.

They said ‘it didn’t work out’ and ‘it wasn’t a good fit’. And, they doubted that there would be a good employee out there that could do what they’re looking for.

I probed a little more and it became clear that they really didn’t believe another person could do what they could do and could serve the clients the same way they could.

I have heard variations on this theme from a number of business owners.

So what’s the answer?

Take a look at the three areas I mentioned and see how your business fares in these areas.

There are 8 drivers of company value that contribute to the valuation of whether your company will be easy to pass on or to sell in the future. Through my work supporting business owners to grow their businesses in a way that maximizes their future exit options, I have found that these 8 drivers aren’t always obvious.

And, through focusing on these 8 drivers, this is the process to grow your company, so if you’re not looking to sell anytime soon, these drivers will offer you a roadmap to enjoy growth in the meantime.

The first driver I would love to talk about first is Hub and Spoke. I wanted to start here because typically, almost every owner I’ve worked with has an opportunity in this area…

Everyone has their own way of navigating career twists and turns.

However, there are some common themes (and mistakes) I’ve noticed that, if avoided, could actually improve your opportunities or make career changes more successful (and easier) for you.

Connecting to your work is easy for some and can be difficult for others. There are many factors that can impact how much you connect with the work you do, such as your career stage, proper job fit, etc. etc., but regardless of where you are, there are things that you can do to enhance your enjoyment of your work.

It’s something you may…or may not have heard before.