So back again from the dentist. Thankfully, only a cavity and not a root canal. If only my dentist were so lucky. We, again, got to talking about her practice. Turns out she borrowed money from her family to build out her space, doesn't have a bookkeeper, marketing strategy or operating manual. She hasn't taken a dime from the business in 7 months and has yet to fully finish construction (for her pediatric practice downstairs). Her eyes are glazed over and, as she says, she feels like everyone is on her back.
How many of you have been there? How many of you are there? The parallel all businesses have, creative or not, is that they demand you run them as businesses. That means taking each piece, creating structure and putting a team in place that will guide you away from the abysses awaiting you if you try to do it on your own. The name of the game is to minimize the impact of your missteps and focus on the inherent value in your art.
In a perfect world, you would assemble your team from the ground up — marketing and sales, operations, accounting and customer service. However, in the real world, all of these people might be wrapped up in 1 or 2 people who are in it with you and who probably do not have near the skill set a professional in each of these areas does. And so begins trial (or baptism) by fire. Much energy wasted, a lot of painful mistakes and glazed eyes. Success in the end … maybe.
One of the fantastic side benefits of today's economy are the number of amazing people DYING to tell you what they know. Some might do it for free, others for a small fee, just to exercise their skills. A great place to find these folks is on social media and networking sites, but also at your local business school or college recruiting office. Be the case study and get the professor's insights. Form your own board of advisors if you will and let these advisors teach you about each area of your business. Make time for you and your employees to take a few hours each week to meet with one or more of your advisors. Create an action plan with each advisor and go down the road of implementing it. The effort (and expense) will more than pay for itself with the first sale you get or the major pitfall you able to avoid. You don't need a guru, you just need smart people who have done it before.
The easy part of any business is your passion for what you are doing. The hardest part is stepping out of yourself to know that you don't know. Realizing how much help can come your way when you ask — that's the best part.
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It’s 12:39am, I’m glazed over and again your blog offers amazing insight!