Are You the Reason Your Business Isn’t Growing?
The very skills that helped you start your business, Alan Pentz says, are now preventing you from growing it.
Good Morning!
Here are today’s highlights:
The SBA has introduced a portal to help businesses source U.S. manufacturing.
Josh Inglis, founder of a PR firm, expects AI to have a profound effect on PR firms.
Kevin O’Leary thinks a section in the “One Big Beautiful Bill” is “unfair” and “unAmerican” to small businesses.
Today’s question: Should the SBA focus on getting capital to entrepreneurs or on balancing its books?
MANAGEMENT
Alan Pentz says too many business owners are not really running a business: “You're being the human duct tape holding it together. And it's 100 percent your fault. ... I know because I've been there. My first company was stuck at $4 million for years because I didn’t hire the right people and put in a system of accountability. You know what happened when I finally got sick enough of being the bottleneck? We grew to $35 million.”
“Let's address the elephant in the room: You're not involved in everything because you have to be. You're involved because: It feeds your ego. Being needed feels good. Being the hero who swoops in to save the day feels even better. You're afraid. What if someone screws up? What if the business can function without you? What would that say about your value? You've built a business that requires you. This is the real kicker. You've accidentally created systems, hiring practices, and client expectations that put you at the center of everything.”
“Here's the sick joke of entrepreneurship: The very skills that helped you start your business are now preventing you from growing it. Your attention to detail? Now it's micromanagement. Your ability to wear many hats? Now it's inability to focus. Your hands-on approach? Now it's a bottleneck. The traits that got you to $1 million will strangle you at $5 million.”
“Find your time-sucks: For one week, track every time someone asks for your input or you jump in to handle something. Write it down. You'll see patterns emerge – the same questions, the same problems, the same ‘emergencies.’ These aren't random events. They're symptoms of missing systems.”
“Build the damn process: For each recurring issue, create a documented process: What decisions need to be made? What information is needed to make them? What standards must be met? Don't overcomplicate this. A simple checklist or one-page flowchart is better than nothing.” READ MORE
