By Dan Monk A s an entrepreneur, it can be difficult to let go of tasks and allow others to perform them. Many business owners truly believe that they can do the job better than others. This is not always true and if they continue to do all the tasks themselves, they will run out of hours in the day, add to their stress, and limit your com- pany’s ability to grow and become independent. This may sound corny, but growing a company is a lot like raising a child, you do everything to give them the tools to be independent and if all goes as planned, they successfully strike out on their own. This is the life of a business owner: you grow your company, put all the processes in place, then, if you have done it well, the company will flourish without you. There are many things that I have done over the years to help me grow personally and succeed in my business. There is still much to be done and my company and I are still a work in progress and always will be. A few of the things I have learned
either from personal experience or from the wise council of other mentors are as follows: Read - Read every day, to learn and/or relax. So much helpful information is written by those who have gone before us. A wise man once told me “an education is no burden to carry” so, take the responsibility to educate yourself, be a life long student. This does not mean only formal educa- tion. Reading is the easiest way to educate yourself and it is free! Failures - Failing is not a bad thing, unless you fail to learn from the situation you went through. Some of my greatest lessons have been costly in time and/or money and I will not repeat or forget them any time soon. “The only people without scars are those who have never been in a battle,” own your mistakes, share them with others to help, it demonstrates that we are human and thus we make mistakes. Trust your gut - As we all grow and gain experi- ence our instincts become more reliable, use that knowledge to help make decisions. If a situation or person doesn’t “feel right” or something is “too good to be true” that is your gut telling you, based on past experiences or maybe just evolu- tion, that you should reconsider. Never underesti- mate your gut instincts. Honesty - Always tell the truth, because you will always remember the truth and it will be respected by everyone. The truth has details that remain the same regardless of the situation. People respect honesty and they want to trust you. The easiest
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SPOTLIGHT ON BUSINESS MAGAZINE • APRIL 2019
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