The importance of looking forward.

When you think about your role in your company, do you work in or on your business?

What does this question mean and why is it important?

The way you answer this question will tell us whether you’re working long game and thinking about the future of your business (on the business) or whether you’re so mired in the day-to-day operations of the company that you have no time to work on the bigger picture (in the business).

Think about this honestly. If the answer is that you’re working in the business, you need to take a step back and think about what your role as leader is.

Your main job is to set a clear direction for your business to take and to ensure that your team makes that happen. If you spend all day labouring on the coal front, the business will flounder and stop growing. If this happens, not only will you never see the rewards you deserve, but your team will grow less and less motivated because they will be working in a stagnating company.

If you’re not sure where you fall on the in/on spectrum, think about what it is that you spend most of your time on. If you spend most of your time doing simple tasks and working on people’s everyday requests, chances are you’re not on the lookout for the next big opportunity or area to expand into. This is a dangerous trap to fall into.

What can you do if you’re stuck working in your business?

Ask yourself why you’re doing what you’re doing and is there anyone else who can do it? Simply working out your daily tasks, conscious of this question will help you to prioritize better.

The overall aim is freeing yourself up enough time to be able to think about the bigger picture for your business. Once you’ve released some time and you’re ready to start working on the business, you need to ask yourself these questions:

1. What is the company’s vision?
2. Where are you now in relation to that vision?
3. What steps do you need to take to achieve the vision?

And once you’ve done all of this, you’re well on the way to business success.

This may seem straightforward, even obvious, but you’d be amazed at the amount of small business owners who get so wrapped up in the day-to-day, they’re unable to think on a larger scale. To learn more about successful business strategy, click here.