What Does a Business Consultant Do?

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Are you on track with your mission?

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I work with many clients who come to me because they are really struggling in their business. Sometimes it’s a matter of their sales numbers not being where they need to be. Other times they are dealing with workflow and/or product/service delivery issues. In some cases the business is doing well overall, but the business owner simply isn’t happy.

When a client engages me to advise in such a situation, I typically start with a simple question: Are you on track with your mission? Usually the answer is NO.

While the consequences often differ from situation to situation, more often than not the root cause is the same. Far too often business owners get sidetracked and lose sight of their mission. It’s never intentional, but without question the resulting effects can be catastrophic.

While you may think this topic is geared more for someone who has been in business for a while, I actually think there is equal benefit to those who may be just starting their business.

When starting a business, it is really important to know what your mission is. When I started out more than 15 years ago, my mission was pretty simple. I wanted to:

1. Live life by my own clock
2. Provide a good living for my family
3. Accomplish both of these things by helping as many people as I possibly could

I can honestly say that after 15+ years, I am on track with my mission. That does not mean that there haven’t been modifications in how I do what I do (adapt or die right?), but my mission has never changed. Because I have stayed focused on my mission, I am achieving it to the fullest.

HOW DID I GET OFF TRACK?

So how do we lose sight of our mission and get off track?

It isn’t ever just one thing, and it typically occurs over time. Sometimes it is a revenue generating opportunity that pulls us in a new direction or perhaps we are simply responding to alternative consumer demands. Whatever the cause, it’s usually disguised very well and seems like a really good idea at the time.

While there are times where this actually works out for the best, those instances are usually the exception and not the rule.

WHY?

So why is it a bad thing to get off track with our mission? Well, if we have gone through the process of determining what our values are and we’ve built our mission from those core values, then our mission is the essence of what we are all about as a person. It comes from deep within us and is a part of our character.

Spoiler Alert: I will be focusing on values in my next blog.

HOW DO I GET BACK ON TRACK WITH MY MISSION?

When I am working with a client and we have identified that the root cause of their struggles is related to them having gotten off track with their mission, they often feel defeated. While this is natural, it’s also unnecessary.

In my opinion, not being able to identify the problem is a much greater dilemma. Once you’ve identified the problem, you can move on to the problem solving stage and in this particular case I think the solution is simple.

STOP DOING WHAT YOU’VE BEEN DOING & START DOING WHAT YOU SHOULD BE DOING

If you read my recent blog post on HOW TO SAY NO, this is the perfect time to practice that concept in your business.

• If opportunity comes knocking at your door and that opportunity pulls you further away from your mission, JUST SAY NO.

• If a client asks you to offer a product or service that pulls you further away from your mission, JUST SAY NO.

• If you are engaging in certain business practices that pull you further away from your mission, STOP DOING IT.

I know this probably sounds a bit too simplistic, but it isn’t. When you learn to say NO to the things that separate you from your mission and choose to focus all of your time and attention on accomplishing your mission every single day, you will be amazed at how quickly some of the challenges you have been facing begin to fade away. More importantly, you will find that you are much happier and feel fulfilled in your business.

When we are on track with our mission, we function better. We are happier knowing we are on a clear path that we fully believe in, and our business becomes fun again rather than feel like we are working a job. We have passion and purpose and flows from our pores.

I trust you will find this helpful as you build your business. If you have questions or simply want to dig deeper, I’d love to speak with you. You can reach me at kent@kentgustafson.com.

ARE YOU ALIGNED WITH YOUR VALUES?

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Regardless of who we are, where we come from, or what we do, we all have values. Usually where we come from and how we were raised heavily influence those values.

I grew up on a farm in a small Midwestern town. My parents are conservative people from modest beginnings. Obviously, those factors played a huge role in shaping my own values.

When I started my entrepreneurial journey, I spent a lot of time examining my values and making sure that they were at the center of my business plan.

While I wanted to make certain that I would build my business on honesty and integrity, I knew there was more to it than that. I realized that if I was to be successful, it was essential that my core values were clearly evident in every aspect of my business.

SO HOW DO I DO THAT?

While the process may be a bit different for everyone, I believe it always starts with putting your values down on paper in a clear and concise manner. For example, my core values are:

CHARACTER: I want to be remembered as a man of integrity and strong character. Someone who is honest, trustworthy, and truly cares about other people.

FAITH: My faith in God is the most important thing in my life.

FAMILY: Only my Christian faith comes ahead of my wife and children. They are my everything.

FREEDOM: I value time and the freedom to have full control of it. I want to live life by my clock, not someone else’s.

WORK ETHIC: I believe there is no substitute for hard work and doing things the right way.

When you write them down, maybe even share them with others, there is real ownership and accountability to live them out in all you do.

BUT HOW DO I MAKE CERTAIN I AM ALIGNING WITH THEM?

I think this is a fair question. It’s one thing to write them down, but living them out is an entirely different animal. It requires effort, diligence, and accountability.

Putting your core values in writing is important, but if you are truly going to emulate them day in and day out you must reflect on them often and be honest when you look in the mirror.

Personally, I spend a lot of time reflecting on business meetings and interactions with clients and other business professionals. Typically, I ask myself these questions:

Did I engage in a manner that demonstrated I care about the client and their needs?

Did I model strong character, honesty, and integrity?

Did I demonstrate that my faith, my family, and my freedom of time are important?

Did I do anything that would compromise, or contradict my core values in the eyes of others?

Because often what we do speaks more loudly than what we say. So we must reflect on these things often and analyze our behavior so that we can grow as a person.

When we are honest with ourselves and willing to make changes based on our self-evaluation, the more we develop into the business owner we are all striving to be.

IS THAT IT?

It’s a big part of it, but I think it’s important to take it a step further.

There are other factors that indicate whether or not we are aligning with our values than just how we act or speak in our interactions with others.

What about our priorities? If my faith and my family are the highest of my core values, do my priorities reflect that in terms of how much time and attention they receive?

Honestly? Not all the time, which is why it is a constant area of focus for me and one I strive to improve upon every day.

What about the work that we do? Are we doing good work for others that we enjoy and are good at? Or are we just taking the opportunities that come?

I think one of the biggest areas of growth for me, and a true reflection of aligning with my core values, was when I started saying NO to things I didn’t really want to do or wasn’t particularly good at. If I truly believe in freedom of my time, then I should be focused on doing what I love and doing it well.

Life is too short to spend your time doing things that make you miserable. In the end, you will put it off too long and miss a deadline or the quality of your work will be poor, and you will fail your client.

There is certainly more to all of this, but I will leave that for another day. For now, I trust you will find this helpful as you build your business. If you have questions or simply want to dig deeper, I’d love to speak with you. You can reach me at kent@kentgustafson.com.

How To Avoid Burnout

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I’m often asked by other entrepreneurs what the secret is in avoiding burnout. I think it’s a fair question that every entrepreneur should ask because burnout leads to failure and the risk of losing everything you’ve worked for, both professionally and personally.

When burnout occurs the quality of your work will suffer and you will recognize a negative impact on your physical and mental health, which will naturally affect your personal life, your family, and your friends.

RECOGNIZE THE SIGNS

I think the key to avoiding burnout centers around recognizing the signs. It’s far too common for people to ignore the indicators because they have no idea which warning signals to look for. By the time they figure it out, burnout has already set in.

• Working Too Many Hours: If you are consistently working more than 50 hours a week, this is a huge red flag. Yes, there are times as a business owner, especially when first starting out, that it is necessary to work 50, 60, even 70 hours per week. However, if this becomes your standard practice then you are on a collision course with burnout.

I would also add that if your business requires more than 50 hours per week on a perpetual basis, you need to take a hard look at your operational structure because it’s likely that you have serious flaws in your process, but this is a topic for another day.

• Not Sleeping: If you aren’t sleeping enough, you are on a collision course with burnout. Not only will a shortage of sleep have a negative impact on your physical health, but it will lead to a lack of focus and attention to detail. The quality of your work could suffer and result in mistakes and sloppy output.

You could also miss things you can’t afford to miss, be short in your interactions with others, fall behind schedule, and disappoint your customers.

• Constantly Stressed: Most business owners who burn out are habitually stressed. This particular warning sign will be most visible to your family and close friends, and it will most likely have negative consequences (arguments, strained relationships, etc.).

If your spouse, kids, or close friends confront you about the level of stress in your life, take head because this is serious business. Not only will it have a negative impact on those closest to you, but it is also a significant risk to your physical and mental health. DO NOT ignore this warning sign.

• Lack Of Joy: Too many business owners walk through their day-to-day life with little or no joy. Of all the indicators this might be the hardest to recognize, yet the one that is the most disheartening of all.

Most entrepreneurs start businesses so they can pursue their passion and live life on their own clock. This should be both liberating and exhilarating for every one of us.

BUT if it becomes difficult to get out of bed and go off to work each morning, if you are regularly missing important family events, or consistently disappointing the people who care about you, the joy will vanish from your life and depression can set in quickly.

There are other indicators on the road to burnout, but those identified above are by far the most common.

DON’T IGNORE THEM… TAKE ACTION

Understanding the indicators is critical, but that in and of itself is not enough. In order to avoid burnout, it is vital that you take action when the warning signs pop up.

• If you are consistently working too many hours, STOP.

You might say it’s more complicated than that (I’ve said that myself), but for the most part it isn’t. I understand that there will always be things that need to get done, but you have to find a way to manage your workload so that you aren’t consistently working 50-60 hours per week.

Delegate some of your responsibilities to an employee who has the skill set and capacity to handle more. If you don’t have an employee to delegate to, or if you don’t have enough employees to handle current volume, then you need to take on less projects or find a more efficient way of operating.

• If you aren’t sleeping enough, make the decision to change that practice. Implement some clear boundaries in your personal life so that you can get to bed at a decent time most nights and get the necessary sleep your body requires.

If it’s normal for you to catch up on work while you are at home in the evening, make the decision to shut it down by 9:00 PM, or even 8:00 PM. Allow your body and mind to relax and give yourself a little time to wind down before bedtime.

• If you are stressed out constantly, you have to take a good hard look at those factors that are causing you the most stress AND be willing to do something about them. If you are constantly behind, or if certain customers or projects play a large role in your stress level then you have to be willing to let them go.

While eliminating stressors from your life may seem challenging, I can promise you that if you don’t you could face far greater consequences.

• Finally, if you lack joy you need to recognize that life is way too short to spend it being miserable. One of the tradeoffs of owning a business is having control of your time and managing work/life balance.

Make it a priority to get home in time for dinner with your family. Cancel a meeting if that’s what it takes in order to get to your kid’s game or concert. Take a long weekend to do some of the things you enjoy. Schedule a family vacation and recognize that the work will still be here when you return.

Trust me when I say that avoiding burnout is within your control so recognize the warning signs and take action when you see them.

I trust you will find this info helpful in avoiding burnout. If you have questions or simply want to dig deeper, I’d love to speak with you. You can reach me at kent@kentgustafson.com.