What is it you want from your company? How do you want to shape your business and grow?
These questions should be on the lips of every entrepreneur who is chasing success. Growth is tricky to achieve but is the ultimate goal for an ambitious business owner.
But how do you grow? There are many skills and tricks you will need to run a business, and you will need many more to push your company further.
Learning to improve yourself first is a surefire way to improve your company and see growth. Here are four things every CEO needs to focus on daily to grow.
1. Get educated
When was the last time you read a book? We live in a society with a short attention span and a high demand. Services like Netflix allow people to binge shows and consume media quickly, without actually taking anything in and it has become harder and harder to find time to actually educate yourself.
When you research the world’s richest people, you find that they read all the time. They are constantly learning new things.
The CEO of Berkshire Hathaway, Warren Buffet, when asked once about the key to success, pointed to a stack of books and said, “Read 500 pages like this every day. That’s how knowledge works. It builds up, like compound interest. All of you can do it, but I guarantee not many of you will do it.”
“I read and think. So I do more reading and thinking, and make less impulse decisions than most people in business. I do it because I like this kind of life.”
Technology has given us an opportunity to share ideas easier than ever before and the responsibility is on you to keep up with what is happening.
Actively focus on seeking out coaching and education that will help you break through your current stage of business can help you reach the next level of success. I would be doing myself — and my team — a disservice if I let this focus slip. I cannot expect growth if I am not constantly working on being the leader my company needs next year, or even 10 years, down the road.
Educating yourself as the leader is even more important the faster you want to scale.
2. Set your goals
As the CEO, it is your job to set the vision for the company. Where do you want the company to be in three years, five years and ten years? What new products or strategies will you develop? How will the culture be at your company 12 months from now?
The biggest task that sits before you is to set the vision for the future of the business. Having one person who is the controlling focus of the company will push you forward as the years roll.
3. Strategise
You also have to help develop the strategy to achieve your vision. You don’t have to be an expert in all areas that require strategy, but you need to be involved in the planning or approval process for any areas that affect the overall long-term vision of the company. This can include items like goal setting, culture, sales and marketing, etc.
Surround yourself with logical and strategical people who will help guide you. Focus on finding the best path for your business and push for that goal.
Whatever stage of business you’re in, it is imperative you find someone who is at a stage or two above you and is willing to coach and advise you through common challenges you face at that level. Their experience will prove invaluable.
4. Manage your money
Your job as CEO is to make sure you never run out of money. This may seem like a no-brainer, but so few people truly have a handle on the financials of their business.
Even if you have a CFO, it is still your job to make sure you never run out of cash. Check in on your records thoroughly and often. If you want to be successful in the long run, you have to be aware of your cash flow now.
The remaining 20 percent of your month can be spent in the day-to-day work of the business or being the celebrity. It can be spent hanging with the team or creating content. But, the more you can live and manage the above four areas, the faster you will grow and, in most cases, the happier you’ll be.
