We work with a LOT of business owners, and whenever someone new comes into one of our programs… we always ask them what their financial goals are.
Almost without fail, everyone wants to become more financially successful… faster, and with less time commitment in their business.
We take the leap into entrepreneurship because we hear the call of freedom. We want to be the master of our destiny and build a life where we can do what we want, when we want, with whomever we want.
Now, we have incredible business owners in our community. Really smart, successful people, many of whom have been able to build small businesses that take care of themselves and their families.
But that freedom that they’ve been seeking for so long has been elusive. They haven’t quite got there yet.
That’s completely normal, and in fact it’s what happens for many entrepreneurs… because it’s easier to build from 0 to $1 million in revenue than it is to go from $1 million to $5 million.
That’s the difference between starting up and scaling. However…
Scaling your business is the only way to create true freedom so that you can enjoy life outside your business. True economic independence can’t be created without it.
The good news, when you implement the right things, is that you can actually retire into your business in the next 3 – 7 years.
That’s what we help people do, and that’s what we’re going to discuss in this article. Let’s get started.
Investing In Your Business Is Your Highest Leverage Move
Sometimes, entrepreneurs come to us so burned out, tired, and frustrated that they’re looking for the “magic bullet” to get them to their end result.
They want to know what they should invest in…
Or what kind of financial instruments they need so that they can get their money working harder for them… so that they don’t have to work so hard in their business.
Now, there are certainly critical financial foundations, security, and growth strategies that you need as an entrepreneur to protect and grow your wealth – and we’ll share some of those in a bit.
However, quite often the single most impactful move is staring you right in the face.
And that move is to simply invest more in your business. Or rather, in systems and people that will help you scale your business, and remove YOU from the daily operations.
We get it, we’re business owners too.
If you’re already wearing 10 hats, it can feel like putting on the few more hats you think you need to get where you’re trying to go will topple you over like a big pile of Jenga blocks.
In reality, what you need to do is start taking off those hats – or removing those Jenga blocks from the pile.
How would you feel if 6 months from now you had stopped doing all the things you don’t really want to do in your business – and it was actually performing better without you?
This is a common story.
An entrepreneur sets a “stretch goal” of leaving on vacation for 2 weeks. Being completely off the grid and unreachable. So they put the systems in place and empower their people, and come back to find that things actually ran smoother without them!
Humbling, isn’t it?
The realization that the business doesn’t need you.
In a weird way, that can feel kinda scary, right? You’ve been so attached to this thing… this business… this child of yours for so long, and now it doesn’t need you!?
Yet that’s what you said you wanted, right? To be free to work on the things you want to work on?
Fortunately, we entrepreneurs tend to be able to adapt quickly, so that feeling doesn’t last long. In fact, it’s probably gone the minute you go pick up your kid from school and take them for ice cream – when you normally would have been at work.
So, to get where you really want to go… you’ve got to figure out scaling.
How? Let’s look at this from a few angles, starting with:
#1: Eliminate, Delegate, Automate
First things first, let’s revisit the fundamentals of “how to NOT do everything by yourself.”
Let’s be honest, if you’re wearing 10 hats as a small business owner, you’re the one who put them there. Maybe you have a bad case of perfectionism. Maybe you’re a glutton for punishment.
The reason doesn’t matter. But your dream does.
And to get there, all you have to do is “let go.”
Make a list of everything that needs to get done.
And start moving things around.
Eliminate tasks that don’t need to be done. Start with this so that you don’t pass on useless tasks to someone else on your team and give them a headache that can be avoided.
Next, what are the tasks you don’t enjoy doing. Or drain your energy. Or can simply be done for cheaper by someone else.
In order to scale your business, you need to be able to spend your time on what you do best, and you need to be able to work ON the business… not just in it.
Anything that doesn’t require your “magic” touch – and still needs to be done – should be delegated.
Lastly, which tasks – done by you and your team – can be automated? Software is cheaper than an employee, and if it’s repetitive and not overly complex, then odds are a one-time expense and setup can save you tenfold in time and money over the next year.
#2: Automate & Scale With AI
Regardless of how you feel about AI, (maybe you think it’s overhyped, expensive, or complicated), as a business owner AI is the future of helping you get more done… faster and cheaper. And that helps you get to your goals faster.
As a business owner, AI can help you:
- Gain an advantage over your competitors by providing better, more personalized customer experiences and service (with fewer human errors and 24/7 uptime)
- Become more efficient by empowering your teams to do more, faster, and potentially lowering costs as you scale
- Expand faster, easier, and cheaper (enter new markets, create new products and services, and innovate)
- Come up with better ideas and make better data-driven decisions
So don’t sleep at the wheel on this thing. We know when ChatGPT first came out, it was more “cool” than useful.
But now? It has some serious teeth.
We have a whole program on this if you really want to dive into using AI to scale your business… but for now, look into tools that can help you with the area of your business that can improve the most with great automation like:
- Canva (design)
- Heygen (video generation)
- ChatGPT (writing, planning, images and much more)
- Zapier (automation)
There are literally thousands of ways you can improve your business with AI. The question is, what do you need to automate most? What can you automate even more?
Then explore use cases for your business. A great way to get some ideas is to simply tell ChatGPT what your business is, explain your problem, and ask it to help you brainstorm some solutions.
If you’re in Ecommerce, you could easily cut your support tickets by half.
If you’re in B2B, the right AI tool could help you improve your follow-up and close more sales.
What are you missing out on – and what is it costing you in time, money, and energy by NOT automating more tasks?
#3: Find Extra Cash Flow Without Working Harder
Ok, let’s get into some financial tactics now…
Because our recent survey found that the average small business owner unknowingly lets $3,279* slip away EVERY MONTH… in duplicate insurance coverages, poorly structured loans, hidden fees and a host of other easily avoidable cash flow leaks and bottlenecks.
After a few years of heavy inflation… None of us want to be carrying extra weight financially. Whether it’s in your business or your personal life, you want to feel like your finances are tied up and tidy so that you can put your resources towards growth.
So here’s a short list you can work through – pulled from several of our programs – to identify cash flow leaks can be recovered quickly to pad your wallet a little (or a LOT) more:
- Augusta Rule – rent out your home to your business for up to 14 days per year. It’s a write-off for your business, and is tax-free on your personal return. That’s a win-win.
- Hire Your Kids – pay each child up to $13,850 a year, tax free.
- Classify Your Expenses – did you know that 3 out of 4 types of expenses are actually good? Business owners don’t get wealthy by cutting back – they do it by expanding productive expenses that grow wealth, managing lifestyle expenses that enhance your life, and making room for protective expenses like insurance. The only type of expense you want to cut? Destructive expenses… (like software you don’t use).
- Do a 3-Year Tax Review – another set of eyes may find something your previous accountant missed, and result in a big refund from the government. We’ve had clients like Dr. Gandolfi recover $102,000 from this one simple strategy.
- Maximize Tax Deductions – After working with business owners for more than a decade, we’ve found that there’s a 93% chance you are overpaying the government with your business taxes. Check with your accountant to make sure you’re applying every deductible available to you.
- Get Your Financials In Order – if you don’t have a bookkeeper (at a minimum), hire one. You need a “clean house,” and unless this is in your zone of genius, your time is probably better spent working on tasks that will grow the business.
If you need more support with the financial side… that’s our strong suit. Look around some more, and feel free to call our office if you have questions on how we might be able to support you with this (and definitely keep reading to the end of this article).
#4: Double Revenue Overnight with an Acquisition?
Acquisitions are the fastest way to grow your business. Period. End stop.
There is no other strategy available to you that can literally double the size of your business overnight. Because if you’re able to identify a competitor or complementary business that does the same amount of revenue or has the same amount of customers as you – and you negotiate a deal to buy them – then “poof”… you buy it, and you’ve doubled.
Now there’s obviously a lot more to this.
And there are many reasons a small business owner might want to look at acquiring another business – from traffic channels like social media assets to websites and blogs, to technology and other physical assets, or even to acquire a team of people… It depends on your business and what would make the biggest impact for you.
But many small business owners don’t even have an acquisition strategy on their radar. And we get it – when you’re hustling “in” the business you don’t have time to figure out what it would look like to acquire another one and figure out all the details from financing to integrating and running another company.
Whether you’re a new, aspiring, or seasoned entrepreneur – the right acquisition can be an absolute game-changer… and if you want to learn more about how it could work for you, make sure you keep reading to the bottom and claim your free gift.
#5: Connect With Other “Builders”
Entrepreneurship can be a lonely road.
When things are tough, you might feel like you don’t want to burden your loved ones with the weight of the challenges you’re carrying. And when things are going great, we tend not to really “take it in” and celebrate our progress – we keep our head down and continue building while we have momentum.
But the entrepreneurs in our community have found that having a group of like-minded people who “get it” is incredibly impactful… and important.
Because even when you take the road less traveled, it’s nice to have some company.
And a lot of synergy and power comes from sharing ideas, experiences, and solutions to problems with other people. The right idea – as you know – can change everything.
So whether it’s our community or a local meetup or some buddies at the golf course… How can you connect with other “builders” to not only accelerate your journey, but make it more enjoyable?
Here’s a Free Gift To Help You Scale Your Business
Scaling your business is a dynamic process – and often more of an art form than a science. But if something in this article resonated with you…
And you want to accelerate your journey to building not only more income and wealth, but a life you truly love…
Then we’ve got a free gift for you that will help you move forward on what we’ve covered in this article today. It’s called:
This kit includes 4 powerful guides pulled from our most popular programs to help you with some of the most impactful moves you can make to grow your business:
- SCALE: How to Hire A-Players
- Why Acquiring a Business Is Your Fastest Path to Economic Independence
- The AI ‘Gold Rush’: Breaking Down The Benefits of AI For Your Business
- Unlock Cash Now: 25 Power Moves to Surge Your Business’ Cash Flow
Claim your free kit here, and we look forward to supporting you as you grow your own personal “empire”… and more importantly, a life you love.
*Individual Results, Results Not Typical. See Our Testimonial Support Disclosure For Helpful Information.
