While time and money may be the indicators of a successful business owner, that doesn’t exactly tell you very much about how you can get there.
The thing about becoming a better business owner is that there’s no magical formula – what works for your business might flop at the one next door, and vice versa.
That being said, there are a couple of things that are just great suggestions regardless of your situation. One of those is accountability.
At the risk of coming across as cliche, trite and “life coach-y”, you need someone to keep you in line and look at your decisions with an outsider’s perspective.
That’s what I mean when I say accountability – while you might have started your business, you’re only human – you’re prone to making the occasional mistake or bad decision.
So, where can you start?
Encourage feedback
When it comes to accountability, there’s nobody more important than getting feedback.
I’m not talking about customer reviews (though those are certainly important!) Rather, I’m talking about feedback from the rest of your team.
A lot of your success as a business owner (personal or professional) comes down to you. In particular your:
- Decisions
- Style
- Hang-ups
- Leadership
- Vision
Your team is without a doubt the best source of feedback you have for each of these traits. Thanks to their position inside working with you every day, they can offer valuable feedback.
If you can, arrange periodic meetings with your staff to discuss their workload and your style. For example, you might discover that your team is perfectly capable of working without needing you to be on-site.
The result? You’ve suddenly found the freedom to spend on other parts of your business, or chasing your dream life!
Set clear personal goals
You have goals for your business… but do you have goals for yourself?
Sometimes, the best person to keep you accountable is yourself. While your staff can give pointers, the fact of the matter is that only you know what it is you want from your life.
As a business mentor in Melbourne, I see far too many business owners who are essentially drifting. They don’t have a plan, either for their business or themselves.
In my experience, this is the main driving force behind burnout.
When making goals, I advise a top-down approach. While a bottom-up approach where you focus on the day-to-day works, it often leads to your long-term vision getting lost in the routine. Instead, start with your ultimate goal: where you want to be in life and your dream lifestyle. From there, work backwards.
These goals serve as a roadmap in determining short-term and long-term direction.
And plans are just as important – if goals are the “where”, then plans are the how.
Both help you evaluate your own performance and figure out whether you’re on-track to becoming a better business owner.
It’s important that your goals are S.M.A.R.T (Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant, and Timely).
If you need help setting goals, a business coach in Melbourne can help.
My specialty is planning. For example, let’s say your end-goal is to retire early and travel the world. Together, we’ll:
- Figuring out how much time you’ll need to travel
- Calculating how much money you’ll need to fund that
- Determining how much passive income your business needs to reach that point
- Asking whether your business is capable of of that currently
- If not, creating action plans to get you there
I could go on, but you get the general idea!
Want to learn more? Here are a couple examples of my mentoring in action.
Manage your expectations
Accountability is all about expectations, and keeping yourself to them. Of course, you can’t hold yourself to a standard that’s just plain unrealistic!
During my time as a business mentor in Melbourne, I’ve seen far too many business owners fall into the trap of setting expectations for themselves far, far too high.
The result? When they inevitably fail to meet the high expectations they’ve set for themselves, they end up feeling lethargic and unmotivated – the polar opposite of a good business owner!
Just like your goals, expectations need to be realistic; they need to be S.M.A.R.T.
While it’s always great to push yourself, pushing yourself too far is a recipe for disaster. If you ask me, the best business owners know their limitations – while they strive to exceed these expectations, they don’t set the goalposts ridiculously far back!
Seek help from a business mentor
A business coach or mentor does more than help you succeed in your business…
… Your business coach in Melbourne also plays a role in turning you into a better business owner overall!
It’s not just in the way a business coach offers a valuable second opinion.
Nor is it the way we help you set goals and plan to achieve those goals.
It isn’t even in how we manage expectations, set expectations and help you best optimise your systems and processes either!
Unlike other business coaches, I believe that improving your business isn’t the only way to get more time and money – I also look at how to improve you as a business owner.
That means holding you accountable and taking you to task over your:
- Willingness to delegate (or otherwise)
- Your leadership qualities
- Vision you’ve set for yourself
- Free time and work-life balance
When it comes to increasing your accountability, you can’t go past the advice of a Melbourne business coach.
And when the time comes to find a Melbourne business coach, you can’t go past Bruce Frame!
Become a better business owner – contact a Melbourne business coach today!
Accountability starts with YOU, the business owner.
If you need someone to keep you accountable and help you reach new heights as a business owner, Bruce Frame (that’s me!) is the man to call.
With more than ten years experience as a Melbourne business coach, I’ve helped countless businesses make tangible steps towards their dream lifestyles.
It isn’t just accountability either – I offer a whole range of business coaching services from hands-on work to more passive mentoring.
Get in touch with me today. Ring 0419 352 540 to improve all aspects of your business or work-life balance.
