What Will You Do For Your Summer Break?

Yesterday was the official First Day of Summer.

For most Americans, that means it’s time to take a break, relax, recharge.

But what about small business owners?

Are most small business owners really in a position these days to take it easy for the next few months?
Here’s one simple question to ask yourself to see whether you are in a position to “take it easy”:

Do you have SYSTEMS in place so that your business runs – and grows – even without your everyday presence?

Unfortunately, most small business owners are more “slaves” than “masters” of their businesses. They insist on wearing multiple hats and taking a hands-on role in the “doing” of their day-to-day business. They have very few – if any – systems in place for the business to run and prosper even without them there.

But a relative few business owners make the transition to becoming true entrepreneurs – concentrating on starting and growing businesses, and not just running one.

For these sharp entrepreneurs, “summer” can be experienced all year-round. They can take time away from their businesses whenever they want, and can “put the pedal to the metal” whenever they choose, as well. In fact, many serial entrepreneurs enjoy the thrill of building businesses so much that they take little or no “time off” at all, mixing pleasure with several “working vacations” a year.

This is the main focus of all the work I do with my clients: Putting systems into place to free up the business owner’s time and energy, thereby creating the security of consistent (and growing) revenue and profits regardless of how much time the business owner actually spends “working.”

So if you do choose to “take a break” over the summer and not spend so much of your time and energy working IN your business, I strongly encourage you to take this time to work ON your business.

That means while you’re taking a step back from the day-to-day “doing” of your business, you are taking advantage of your summer break to (a) concentrate more of your time and effort on furthering your business and marketing education, (b) do some forecasting and planning and (c) work on putting systems into place.

So… How do you put systems into place?

First, make a list of everything you and your employees do, and all the steps it takes for each. Then, come up with a predictable, repeatable system for anything you can.

Every repetitive task should be systematized, so that you yourself are not needed to do them every time they need to be done.

For the aspects of your business that require the most skill, developing a system will make it easier for you to teach someone else how to perform them so that you aren’t always the only one who can.

The more you can systematize your business, the less stress you’ll have and the more your business will become a sellable asset.

And that means less work for you, with more consistent income and more long-term equity as well. Not to mention that the less likely it will be for your business to fail.

And in these uncertain economic times, those are some pretty good things to have.

As is an enjoyable, well-deserved summer break.

So… What do you plan to do this summer to improve your business?