Growth Through Personal Leverage

Written by Jeff Reid, Incubator Director of the WT Enterprise Center. For more information about the WT Enterprise Center visit www.IncubationWorks.com.

A couple of weeks ago my wife sent me an article from the Gallup Business Journal entitled What Drives Entrepreneurs to Win?.  The article concludes by identifying ten functional demands that seem to be universal with successful entrepreneurs.  They are:  1) knowing your personal brand, 2) a willingness to take on challenges 3) thinking outside of the box, 4) ability to promote the business, 5) a focus on business outcomes, 6) actively seeking knowledge to grow the business, 7) self-reliance, 8) strong initiative, 9) creation of  leverage by delegating authority and 10) the ability to build relationships.

As I read the article and reviewed the list it seems apparent to me all but one of the characteristics involves action and/or hands on participation by the entrepreneur.  The characteristic which does not is the ability to create leverage by delegating authority and responsibility.  Interesting enough this seems to be an area most entrepreneurs struggle with.  This may stem from a fear that an employee can’t do the job as good as the entrepreneur thinks he or she can.  The fallacy with this attitude is the business will never be able to grow beyond the abilities and time constraints of the individual entrepreneur.  If the entrepreneur is satisfied with a lifestyle business and is not concerned about growth then delegation is not so important.  However; if the entrepreneur wants to grow beyond what he or she can do by themselves, they will need to be able to leverage their time and talents by delegating responsibilities to employees and/or other service providers.

Categories: Business Insight In the Know