Welcome to another Champion Success Tip newsletter

Having spent quite a bit of time over the last month recovering from glandular fever, there has been plenty of time to reflect on business (among other things).  One stand out issue for me was that business, while surviving OK without me for a short period of time, would not stand a chance if it were a longer period of time off.

For many of us in small business, the thought of leaving our business in the hands of others for any extended period of time (or even a few hours for some), makes them feel positively nauseous.  In reality, this is not a great place to be, because it means your business controls you, you don't control it.  It means you can't take a true break from the business.  It means if something happens to you, your business may not survive.

Well, to help me sort this issue out I've been doing some research and planning on how I can create businesses that are autonomous.  I know this won't happen overnight, but with some careful planning and execution, it is achievable.  There are several key reasons why I want this to happen:

• flexibility - to be able to move into new opportunities as they arise without limitations
• insurance - to know I can take an extended break if required in unforeseen circumstances
• rest & relaxation - to be able to take more than a two week holiday and know I won't come back to a mountain of work
• lifestyle - to be able to spend more time with my family and on leisure activities
  

Two great books I've found on this topic include:

"The 4-Hour Work Week", by Timothy Ferris - a blueprint for earning more while working (a lot) less

"The Invisible Entrepreneur", by Louise Woodbury & William De Ora - show entrepreneurs how to work themselves 'OUT' of the business.

Both of these will be available at any good bookshop.

So start by listing all the things you could do if your business was autonomous and hopefully this inspires you to take it a step further.  Start working 'ON' your business, so you can work yourself 'OUT' of it.

Samantha & Steve

P.S.  Keep reading below for more ideas from Brad Sugars and Louise Woodbury on how to make your business run without you.

P.S.S. If you any other tips you would like to share, email us at info@smallbusinesschampionsclub.com

Today's success tip comes from Brad Sugars.

Chairman of Action International, currently the 16th fastest growing franchise in the World and World #1 Business Coaching Company.

Why do you say that the key to business success is laziness?

Understand that business isn't about working hard, it's about employing people who work hard for you. Yes, you have to work hard to initially set it up, but the aim of business is to have the work done profitably by someone else and as the owner of the business your aim should be to do yourself out of a job. This is known as 'leverage'. Your job is to think - to search out new opportunities and add value to the company. Your team's job is to run the business and grow it.

My definition of a real business is a 'commercial, profitable enterprise that works without me.' It's funny how when I teach people this definition they are usually taken aback for a few seconds and then it's like, well yes, I guess you're right.

There are several elements within this definition. A 'commercial enterprise' comes first, that's one in which you can reliably and productively deliver what you sell. Most companies we coach have to go back and start at this level to remove customer complaints, bottlenecks and so on, so that the basics of the company are running right. It still amazes me how many companies don't even know what their break-even is on a day-to-day basis. We also put a very big focus on making sure that profit margins are solid right up front in coaching.

The next element to add is the 'profitable' part. That's where you learn to market and sell what you deliver. Here we find that most business owners use only two or three ways of getting new customers and even fewer of getting them back or having existing customers spend more money. Getting business owners to focus on their conversion rate from prospect to sale is a massive area for growth.

Then, it's about systems to make it all work, a system is simply a documented way of doing something. Systemising everything from employment to customer service is all about having it recorded and documented. You can write it down, film it, photograph it, or record it any way that you like, what's important is that you have a documented way of doing things.

The last stage is the team building to make it work without the owner. Team building and leadership go hand-in-hand, but teaching it to business owners is often a challenge. On the surface it's pretty simple, but as you get into it, you begin to realise the complexities.


This website contains even more great tips from Brad Sugars.

CLICK HERE TO READ MORE NOW.

If You’ve Got Just $1.00, Then You Can Get Instant Access To $250,000 Of Step-By-Step Coaching From The Worlds Most Successful People!

Access to over 380 authors...

Napoleon Hill, Brad Sugars, Chris Gray, Alex Mandossian, Seth Godin, Tony Robbins, Rudolph Giuliani, Richard Branson, Jamie McIntyre, Stephen Covey, Justin Herald, Allan Pease, Suzi Dafnis, Roy McDonald, Bill Clinton...to name a few.

Over 500 resources to read, listen and watch...

The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, Would You Like Attitude With That, Think and Grow Rich, Skroo The Rules, 100 Great Businesses, Marketing Without Money, Purple Cow, Winning, Focal Point, Blink, The 8th Habit...and much more.

Offering a fast way to learn from successful people.

Click here to order your $1 Test Drive now.

Louise Woodbury is author of "How to Grow Your Buiness by Taking 3 Months Off" and "The Invisible Entrepreneur".

After discovering how to grow her business by taking an extended holiday, Louise Woodbury and her husband William wrote a book about their discovery of how to grow your business by taking 3 months off. In this interview, you will be taken on a tour through Louise's business, the people within it and the mammoth efforts it took before they first took time off.

Members of Small Business Champions Club can access this interview.  Click here, click download button and login.

If you are not a member, you can access the interview by taking our 21 day trial for $1.