Working in your business? Let’s get working ON it.

If you haven’t read E-Myth by Michael Gerber, it’s worth picking up. The main idea is that many startups are very technically oriented in their business- whether that be cake baking or software development- but they are not so skilled on the other end of spectrum, entrepreneurship and management.

To be clear, being technically oriented is a good thing. An owner who is an expert at what they do or sell has a huge competitive advantage. However, there is a point when the technical processes should come secondary to the strategic thinking a work you do ON your business.

See where I am going? Business planning can be compared to building a house. No plan = mass chaos. Building the roof first? That won’t work so well. You don’t keep building without a plan alongside the process.

In other words, it won’t matter how great your software or muffins are if you don’t have a plan of who to sell it to and how, what your growth plan is and what your exit strategy is. You also need to develop processes that keep your business consistent- and write it down.

Another high point is to make your business run so efficiently that it could in fact run without you. What do I mean? Have processes so clear (and written down!) that someone could take the reins from you with minimal disruption to the business.

This is truly a new concept for many business owners who have gotten bogged down in the day to day of muffin-making and software-developing. Working in your business is not bad- in fact it’s necessary. What’s also necessary (and critical!) is stepping back and getting into the CEO mentality, rather than the employee mentality.

My recommendation is to pick up E-myth, grab a cup of coffee, and sit down for a good read… and get working on it.

Content contributed by Jessica Chaffee, SourceLink Tulsa
SourceLink Tulsa is a proud affiliate of U.S.SourceLink, America’s largest resource network for entrepreneurs.