I was talking to one of my favorite humans, Tim Francis the other day and as two operational experts we were discussing how often operational health gets overlooked.
It is very sexy to have a million dollar business. But you know what is sexier? Having a highly profitable million dollar business with not only good cash flow, but a deep cushion of “free cash” in the bank.
Something that irks me to no end are the smoke and mirrors 7 figure businesses and launches that look good on the face, but when you peel back the curtain the behind the scenes is a different story.
Some might say I am on a mission to end this silly braggadocious way of thinking about business because, let’s face it… there is nothing sexy or fun about living on the edge with your business and going through the doldrums or worse revenue roller coaster fretting about how to make payroll.
Which brings me back to my question… what if we built businesses with the end in mind? The end being an exit…
What if we built, ran, and scaled our businesses asking this simple question “would I buy my business?”
It’s a good question, huh?
Personally I love the question because it forces us to take off the emotional glasses we normally view our businesses through and instead makes it objective, and dare I say vulnerable.
Apples to apples. When you look at the team you have, the businesses operational vitals, your profitability and balance sheet, and the kicker – YOU … if you were looking to buy a business, would you buy yours and pay a top multiple?
If the answer is no, then as Ricky said to Lucy, you got some ‘splaining to do!
And I suggest you do what I do with my clients during our diagnostic deep dive… get yourself crystal clear on what’s working, what’s not, and what is damming up the business in people, process, and profit.
Then prioritize, make a plan and get to work.
Make your business the sexiest business it can be by getting real about what’s really going on behind the scenes.
Oh and service providers, listen close … if you my friend are still the only one doing the delivering or don’t have something in your business that creates service to time leverage for you… here is your sign.
I’d love to hear what y’all think… and of course if you answered yes or no.
If you answered no, my door is open so feel free to drop me a line and we can chat about it.
Until next time.
Lauren
