The Hardest Part of Growing A Company
February 15, 2019
Source: Phillips Kaiser PLLC | Craig M. Kaiser
Every business owner (or founder) has a different take on the hardest part of growing a company. And those same business owners will have different takes on the easy part of growing the business. Talk to a talented sales professional who started the company, and you may find that managing, marketing, and recruiting are the most difficult hurdles that a person faces in growing their business. Talk to the marketer down the street who started a company, and you likely will hear just the opposite.
The truth is that those "hardest parts" and "easiest parts" say less about the challenges and more about the strengths and weaknesses of the business owners themselves.
We all believe the problems and hurdles we face are the most common ones, the ones every business owner must struggle against. However, our exposure dictates our perception. If you've ever tried convincing someone whose politics differ from your own about the reality of something they've experienced personally, you know the power of this principle.
My advice as a Houston business attorney and business owner is to be prescriptive and deliberate in examining your strengths and weaknesses. They will, almost always, map shockingly well to the strengths and weaknesses of your company.
6 Tips On Growing Your Company
1. In-Depth Knowledge & Understanding
Lacking in-depth knowledge and understanding in an area of your business means you are less likely to make the right assessment of what needs to be done. You might not realize which knowledge you lack because it's a blind spot. We all have blind spots, but how do you know you have a blind spot if you can't see it? You enlist a trusted advisor, a mentor, an expert in a given field (i.e., law) who can be truthful and help you see what you are unable to see yourself.
2. Business Owner's Weaknesses
A business owner's weaknesses are often baked into a company's DNA and result in flawed or less than ideal business practices or systems. This is usually what holds most companies back from the growth they desire.
For example, if you lack management skills, it's likely manifested into organizational damage that requires digging into team conflicts, letting some staff go, rehiring, and creating processes for engagement and teamwork that build trust.
Assuming you are like me and you have an area that needs improvement, your options are straightforward:
- Learn the skill and do it yourself.
- Find an expert who has this strength already. (If you haven't started the company yet consider getting a co-founder who possesses this strength.)
- Invest in the knowledge necessary to perform the requirements of the skill.
3. Skills & Energy
Multiply the energy and skills of those around you. Think of it as a formula when you build teams within your company:
People Quality + Job Fit + Collaboration = Team Performance
4. People
Work to develop your skills and judgment on the people side. People create strategy. People deliver the numbers. That means if you fall short on the people side, you fall short on business leadership. You must invest considerable time to know and grow people and integrate their work.