The Business Wisdom Quotient

Running a small business is like a mental, emotional, and physical treadmill where you're constantly dealing with the competition, taxes, cash flow, employee issues, compliance - all while trying to keep your eye on the prize.

One wonders where is the time to enjoy the view or is it ever possible to get on top of everything. It is said that it is not only important to work in your business, but it is extremely important to work on your businesses.

We have heard this plenty of times, and if only the preachers could try to step into your shoes, as small business owners and show how it is done.

Honestly, I won’t say it is possible to be perfect, as I am a small business owner myself, there are times I think if working on the business is like living a fairy tale.

We have all heard of a well-known book called The E-Myth Revisited, by Michael Gerber, where he popularized the concept of working on the business as opposed to in the business.

For some, there may not even be enough of a business to work on it, but you get a general idea - that entrepreneurs often get caught up in the day-to-day running of the business and don’t spend enough time dreaming, planning big goals, and thinking about the future.

In my experience as your business grows, not only you as a business owner and your employees go through their own personal growth - but also your business identity changes along the way.

I have noticed that there are plenty of tools out there to make your life easier, also a tonne of consultants with plenty of free advice that can offer you tips, but the wisdom of working in or on the business is more a personal growth factor than a skill problem.

Just like anything in Life, business hurdles are there to reach out to your dormant wisdom self and wake it up to its full potential. How one approaches these challenges determines their wisdom quotient as their business evolves.

As you evolve in your business, whether to be in the business or on the business on a given day, is a matter of that wisdom in action.

Here are some questions or concepts to ponder along your journey.

Self Awareness or Self-indulgence: It is paramount for all entrepreneurs to understand if they are operating from a place of self-awareness or operating to fill a void within. It is always about the Why?. Operating from a place of self-awareness is about sharing gifts with the world using your businesses as vehicles to the greater good. Operating from a void is the shadow side that often results in manipulating others for self-indulgence. It is important to lighten our ego.

Service Mindset or Serve Me Mindset: In older traditions, the meaning of a king was to be a servant to his kingdom. Having a service mindset is realizing an entrepreneur is like a conductor of the orchestra, he/she has an idea bout the music but cannot play all the instruments himself or herself. Know your place in the puzzle.

Developing people & having the patience: It is easy for the conductor of the orchestra to weed out bad musicians and replace good ones by simply demanding a good resume. Unfortunately, that mantra will see you always hiring & firing people in your business. An entrepreneur’s need to control or impatience to achieve everything right now often comes in the way and repels good talent.

It is important to recognize that not only you as an entrepreneur but also the people you lead will go through a process of personal growth, and just because you got there first, does not mean everyone will.

Making the right decisions & not being right all the time: Being proud of how good you are or what you know best, hinders one's ability to learn and grow. This only affects your decision-making, but as a leader, you can over time derail a great team from the right track.

Man Proposes & God Disposes: Older traditions were aware of this wisdom that we recognize after all said & done we are only human, we can make plans, direct our energies towards a cause, expect it to bear a certain fruit but the universe delivers what we need and not what we want.

This does not mean that we don’t plan or aim, or focus energies. This simply means that we cannot play god. It is a reminder not to take life too seriously, everything will fall into place eventually.

It is about enjoying the journey.