Becoming a business owner is by far one of the most rewarding and one of the most taxing things you can do in life. And, each part of the entrepreneurial journey comes with its own unique characteristics, challenges, and lessons learned.
As you continue on your journey as a business owner, the goal is to quickly progress through the various phases and reach the pinnacle – ultimate freedom and opportunities.
Here are the five phases of entrepreneurship:
- The Solopreneur – you’re just starting out and have to master doing everything on your own. As the “jack of all trades”, you know what needs to be done and you’re the one to make sure it gets done. But with all of this responsibility, things often fall through the cracks, priorities have to continually shift, and if you’re not careful – burnout WILL set in!
Micromanaging: High
Business Flexibility: Low - The Pioneer – you’ve made great strides in your business and now have a small, but loyal staff to help with the day-to-day operations. They’re not completely autonomous (yet!), so between still working on the business, you also have to manage your small staff closely.
Micromanaging: High
Business Flexibility: Low - The Ring Leader – you might be a few steps removed from daily operations now, but you’re far from being “freed” of your business. You have a staff of 5-10 people, with a designated team leader who oversees and supervises the crew. But, you’re still in the middle of both strategy building and execution, that you don’t truly have the time you want to focus on growing your business.
Micromanaging: Moderate
Business Flexibility: Moderate - The Visionary – you’ve built a relatively self-sustaining business that can run well without you. Vacations, extended time off, even 3 or 4 day workweeks are part of your reality. You’ve freed up time to be able to explore other business partnerships and opportunities to keep scaling your business to new heights.
Micromanaging: Low
Business Flexibility: Moderate to High - The Conductor – this is the climax of entrepreneurship, the holy grail of what you want to achieve as a business owner. You’re virtually hands-off in your business and can focus 100% “what comes next” strategies. Whether you’re positioning your business for a cash exit, thinking about opening up new locations, or exploring franchising your brand – you have all the options in the world AND all the time to carefully consider each one!
Micromanaging: Low
Business Flexibility: High
Although we all, as entrepreneurs, aspire to reach The Conductor phase, the reality is we’re often still The Pioneer or The Ring Leader. What’s important is to identify where you are now in your business, where you want to be within the next year, and what plan you can put in place today to make it happen!
Remember, business ownership is not a sprint – it’s a marathon that’s worth sticking to see to the end!
