Before You Plan for the Business, look in a Mirror…Know Yourself

Every year, business owners –Should- sit down to plan the future.

  • They review revenue
  • They establish budgets
  • They set growth goals
  • They identify……Equipment purchases Hiring needs Sales targets Training Needs Operational improvements

But there is one part of the business that frequently escapes the planning process: The owner.

Before you decide what the business needs to do differently next year, there is a more personal question worth answering:

What do YOU need to do differently?

For many owners of lawn care, landscape and tree care companies, the biggest obstacle to growth isn’t a lack of opportunity. It is that too much of the business still depends on them.

  • Every important decision comes through the owner
  • Every unusual customer problem lands on the owner’s desk
  • Managers wait for approval.
  • Employees bring problems instead of solutions.
  • The owner jumps from estimating to operations to personnel issues to customer complaints

And because the owner is incredibly busy, it feels productive…

            …But busy and productive aren’t necessarily the same thing

Has Your Role Changed as the Business Has Grown?

Most owners started their businesses because they were good at something.

  • They knew landscaping
  • They understood turf
  • They were talented arborists
  • They could sell
  • They could build relationships with customers

Then the company grew… …The problem is that the owner’s role often doesn’t grow with it                               

The behaviors that helped build a $1 million company can become limitations in a $3 million company.

The management style that worked at $3 million may create chaos at $5 million.

Eventually, the owner has to make a transition:

From doing the work to building the organization that does the work…                …That requires intentionally redesigning your role.

Four Questions Every Owner Should Ask

Before beginning annual business planning, conduct a Personal Role Self-Assessment.

Look at everything currently consuming your time and ask four questions:

What should I STOP doing? What activities no longer deserve the owner’s time? What decisions are you making simply because you have always made them?

    What should I START doing? Perhaps you need more time devoted to strategy, leadership development, financial review, recruiting or coaching your management team.

    What should I DELEGATE? Which responsibilities should belong to a manager or team member—even if you can currently perform them better? Delegation isn’t simply giving away tasks. It is transferring responsibility and developing capability.

    What should I KEEP doing? Identify the small number of activities where your involvement creates disproportionate value. Those are the responsibilities that belong in your future role.

    The Owner Shouldn’t Be the Operating System

    One of the most dangerous signs in a growing company is hearing:

    “I need to ask the owner.”

    Occasionally, that’s appropriate.

    When it becomes the standard answer, you have created owner dependency.

    Your business needs systems, defined responsibilities, measurable expectations and managers capable of making decisions without constantly coming back to you.

    The goal isn’t to make the owner unnecessary…                                                                       …The goal is to make the owner’s involvement strategic rather than operationally mandatory.

    Start Your Planning With the Mirror

    Your annual plan shouldn’t simply identify what your employees, managers and company need to change.

    It should identify what you need to change.

    Before reviewing the numbers, setting next year’s goals or creating another list of initiatives, take a hard look at your own role.

    • Where are you creating value?
    • Where are you creating dependency?
    • What are you still doing that someone else should own?
    • And what aren’t you doing?
      • Because you’re too busy handling work that no longer belongs to you?

    The strongest annual business plan begins with an honest assessment of the person leading it… …Know yourself. Then create the business plan

    Be well, do good work, and keep in touch.

    Fred

    To Learn More About:  

    TrueWinds Business Planning System 2027 Edition

    Contact Fred

    [email protected]

    (619) 665-7854

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