Managing away 16-hour days

There’s no time like the present to re-evaluate your workload, and look for a better way to manage your time.

Clay Mathile

Published May 05, 2014
Clay Mathile

The greatest myth of running your own business is that you have to do it by your lonesome. Coupled with the belief that all it takes to succeed is a fierce desire for independence and the willingness to work hard, this myth can motivate many of us to roll up our sleeves and do whatever it takes. We focus on the tasks at hand. We’re diligent, and we don’t give up until the work is done. Sometimes, it almost seems easy, taking on its own momentum. You start seeing results from all your effort and dedication. Suddenly, the business is growing.

Maybe it’s growing fast and you’re losing confidence that you can keep handling the pace. As it gets harder, you dig in, keep doing the same thing you’ve always done, muscle your way through. But, after a while that’s not enough. You are hitting a wall, or maybe you can see that wall coming. There’s indication that there’s a danger of losing key employees, customers, or vendors, and it feels like more problems are on the horizon. There’s a realization that what got your business to this level of growth won’t get you to the next level. Something has to shift.

In my book, “Run Your Business, Don’t Let It Run You,” I introduce Aileron’s Professional Management System for applying and maintaining professional management in your business, in a way that works for you. Aileron is a nonprofit organization, created to help privately held businesses grow. Professional management is a well-known, established approach of employing proven fundamentals to the running of your business.
 

busy boss


It is not hiring an outside company to run it. It is learning to incorporate proven fundamentals – principles and processes – into the everyday workings of your enterprise and applying them to achieve your goals.

Aileron’s Professional Management System is based on the principles of professional management as explained by many thought leaders. What distinguishes it is its Direction, Operation, Control (DOC) approach, which is at the heart of the system. DOC makes professional management practical for private businesses.

The first part of my book proposes a solution to the problem of running a business that depends on you in all matters critical to daily operation. It introduces DOC, its fundamentals, and the shift it requires in your role as leader – stepping back for perspective, looking at the bigger picture, and setting a long-term direction for the future.

The second part of the book, Learning Professional Management, goes into more depth on each of the fundamentals, focusing on how you can apply them so they make sense for you and your employees, and how they can help achieve your short-term and long-term goals. Part three: Living Professional Management is about the proactive consideration of your family, the impact of your business on your family, and the importance of a succession plan as part of the legacy and sustainability of your company.

As you read, I hope you will experience a shift in your thinking, gain a new understanding of how critical it is for you to spend the majority of your time working on your business instead of in it, and that you will begin to understand the potential impact of professional management. Then, I hope you will take a step further and pursue it.


 

The road to freedom

The following is an excerpt from Clay Mathile’s latest book, “Run Your Business, Don’t Let It Run You.”

Strategic planning has gotten a bad rap with some business owners. You value flexibility and freedom, and you’re concerned that a strategic plan will constrain you, clip your wings, strip away your entrepreneurial spirit, and ability to act. The notion of committing to a plan smacks of a bureaucracy you want to avoid.

But the truth is strategic planning sets you free. Plugging along in the daily grind of activity, micromanaging, and putting out fires will handcuff you and limits your business’s growth. It prevents everyone from taking initiative and contributing toward achieving success. With too close an eye on the short term, and no time or plan for the long term, you have little chance of success. You need a strategy, and here’s why: Strategy gets everyone going in the same direction and keeps everyone moving in that direction, making progress toward your goal.

Develop the habit of planning. The harsh truth is if you don’t have a plan, you plan to fail. Learn to see into the future; project and envision where your company might be. Plans shift and change in response to changes in the environment. That is why business leaders need to think of planning as ongoing, more of a habit or routine than a one-time activity. Business leaders need to pay attention and build a deep, broad platform of knowledge and questions for perspective, understanding, and discernment. The best plans are derived from a perpetual habit of learning and building a knowledge base.

Develop the art of asking questions. Questions are the keys to thinking strategically. You may begin with simple questions, such as:

  • What do customers buy from me today?
  • What will my customers want in 10 years?


Other questions will help you see into the future, chart a course, and help determine how you’ll get there:

  • What is the current reality of my business and marketplace?
  • What is the future reality?
  • Where do we want to be in the future?
  • What are the strengths and weaknesses in my organization?
  • What are potential opportunities?
  • What capacity do we have to explore opportunities?
  • What is our competitive advantage?
  • What holds our company back?


To do justice to these questions, you will also need to think about your personal vision, a statement that identifies what you want from your business. This will inspire you to think about your personal values. What is important to you? Thinking through your values will help you formulate a vision for your company. What do you want your company to stand for?

As the former owner of Iams, our vision was “to be the world leader in dog and cat nutrition.” It took us a while to articulate that succinctly, but over time and through the habit of planning, it became clearer. In addition to a vision statement and values, you will want to define your mission. Your mission is what you do every day. It summarizes your reason for existing. Our mission at Iams was “to enhance the well-being of dogs and cats by producing world-class, quality foods.” If you stick to your mission, the result will be the realization of your vision.

If you look at your vision, mission, current reality, and future reality, what are the issues that you must pursue in order to progress toward your vision? These are your make-or-break issues. Seek insight from people you respect, who can provide a different perspective, it’s best not to do this in a vacuum. What might be possible for your company, you, and your team if you step back and ask hard questions, think them through, and develop a strategic plan?


 

For more: www.aileron.org and bit.ly/marchgrunder.


Clay Mathile is the founder of Aileron, Tipp City, Ohio, and former owner of The Iams company. He believes strongly in free enterprise and has a high respect for business owners who risk their capital to employ others. Have a question? Call 937-669-6500 or email director@aileron.org.
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