One of the foundations we address with tech services business owners who want to achieve sustainable, high growth, is having the right mindset. Mindset is the key enabler and leading handbrake for success. If your mindset as an owner is not correct or is misaligned, the business will constantly feel like it is not building momentum. So, the first step toward scaling is to get your mind right.
The owner’s mindset plays a foundational role in the growth of a technology services business as it directly impacts:
Some of the key mindset challenges and opportunities that we often see are:
I am the Best at What We Do in the Company
For scale to occur, owners need to let go of the status that comes with being the best and find others who can take tasks away from you. What you will come to realise is that someone focused on a task will always end up doing a better job than you, as you simply cannot focus in the same way. To change this mindset, we apply the Triple A principle:
A = Aptitude; A = Affability; A = Availability
If you do high quality work for a client, you will score 10/10 for Aptitude, 10/10 for Affability (hopefully!), and 2/10 for Availability (as you are so busy on the business). This gives you a score of 22/30 for your work.
If you can delegate to someone who might not be as good as you but is good with people, they might score 7/10 for Aptitude, 10/10 for Affability, and 10/10 for Availability. Their work score is 27/30, thus your customers will be much happier with your business performance.
I Can Grow the Business Without Investment
For some owners, depending on factors such as upbringing or money attitudes, they do not view spending on business for growth as an investment. Not just direct money injection, investment can also be giving up certain revenue streams to focus on higher-value business activities. This will come at a short-term cost but in the long run, like any investment, will yield higher returns.
To Grow, We Need to Move Out of Our Niche and Diversify
This is a great temptation when you are smaller. According to SPI, research has shown that niche players outperform generalists. So, if you have assessed that your niche, as a market, is in fact large enough, stick to it and go hard.
If I am Not Busy, We are Not Productive
As you become a larger business, your busyness will not be on everyday work activities but rather on setting up strategies or hiring the correct key people and giving them the leadership that allows them to succeed. This means you will need to change how you view busyness as there might be stages where you are not “doing” much but rather you will focus on high-yielding activities that don’t necessarily take long. These might be making a critical phone call to close a deal or having a dinner with your next practice manager.
Growth is a Burden
There’s something better out there than simply surviving. Remember, you need novelty, growth, and hope to be your driving force. Growth should not become a burden. If it is, you are doing something wrong. A growing business challenges you to step out of your comfort zone and into the world of novelty and growth, and by setting aggressive growth targets you always have this hope of future achievement.
So, with these in mind, what are some of the mindsets you would like to change or create to achieve your goals this year?
