Latest / The Confident Entrepreneur With Jennifer Ann Johnson / How To Build A Company That Runs Without You
Transcript
- 0:38Jennifer Johnson: Today we're talking about the ultimate goal of an entrepreneur: creating a business that doesn't need you 24-7.
- 0:45Jennifer Johnson: A business that can run smoothly, serve customers well, and continue to grow even if you're not constantly monitoring every detail.
- 0:53Jennifer Johnson: I know some of you are thinking, but Jennifer, if my business doesn't need me, what's the point?
- 0:58Jennifer Johnson: Why did I work so hard to build something if I'm just going to remove myself from it?
- 1:03Jennifer Johnson: Here's the thing.
- 1:04Jennifer Johnson: Building a business that doesn't need you 24-7 doesn't mean building a business that doesn't need you at all.
- 1:10Jennifer Johnson: It means building a business where you can choose when, how, and where you're involved.
- 1:17Jennifer Johnson: When I started my journey as an entrepreneur, I thought being indispensable was the goal.
- 1:22Jennifer Johnson: I wore my 16-hour work days like a badge of honor.
- 1:26Jennifer Johnson: Answering emails at midnight, taking calls during family dinners, I convinced myself that that's what success looked like.
- 1:33Jennifer Johnson: Being so important to my business that it couldn't function without me.
- 1:38Jennifer Johnson: But here's what I learned.
- 1:40Jennifer Johnson: A business that can't run without you isn't an asset.
- 1:43Jennifer Johnson: It's a liability.
- 1:44Jennifer Johnson: It's not giving you freedom, it's trapping you.
- 1:48Jennifer Johnson: And ironically, businesses that are far too dependent on their founders often struggle to grow beyond a certain point because they're limited by that person's capacity.
- 1:58Jennifer Johnson: Today I want to share with you how to build what I call a freedom-based business, one that generates income, serves customers, and creates impact, whether you're in the office, on vacation, or taking a well-deserved break.
- 2:10Jennifer Johnson: It's not about abandoning your business, it's about designing it to give you choices about how you spend your time.
- 2:17Jennifer Johnson: One of the biggest mental hurdles in building a business that doesn't need you 24-7 is what I call freedom versus control.
- 2:24Jennifer Johnson: We want freedom, but we're afraid that creating systems that don't require our constant input means losing control.
- 2:31Jennifer Johnson: Here's the uncomfortable truth.
- 2:33Jennifer Johnson: When you're working in your business 24-7, you actually have less control and not more.
- 2:38Jennifer Johnson: You're busy handling the day-to-day operations that you can't step back and see the big picture.
- 2:43Jennifer Johnson: You're reacting to whatever is urgent rather than proactively working on what's important.
- 2:49Jennifer Johnson: I remember a period when I was answering emails at 11 p.m.
- 2:53Jennifer Johnson: because I thought it showed how dedicated I was.
- 2:56Jennifer Johnson: I was confusing being busy with being in control.
- 3:01Jennifer Johnson: Real control comes from building systems that consistently produce the results that you want without requiring your constant oversight.
- 3:08Jennifer Johnson: When you have documented processes and trained team members and clear standards, you have much more control over the outcomes than when everything depends on your involvement.
- 3:18Jennifer Johnson: Think about McDonald's, one of the most successful business systems in the world.
- 3:23Jennifer Johnson: You don't see the CEO of McDonald's in there flipping burgers every day.
- 3:28Jennifer Johnson: But the Big Mac still tastes the same whether it's made in New York or Tokyo.
- 3:33Jennifer Johnson: Creating more structure in your business actually creates more freedom for you personally.
- 3:38Jennifer Johnson: When you have clear processes and defined roles and systems, you're free to work on that strategy and take time off or pursue new opportunities.
- 3:48Jennifer Johnson: So, what does a business that doesn't need you 24-7 actually look like?
- 3:52Jennifer Johnson: Let me break down the key components that allow a business to operate independently while still achieving your goals.
- 3:59Jennifer Johnson: Documented systems and processes.
- 4:01Jennifer Johnson: The foundation of any self-running business is documentations of how to get things done.
- 4:07Jennifer Johnson: It's not just a list of tasks, it's a detailed process that includes the what, why, and how of every detail in your business.
- 4:17Jennifer Johnson: Your documentation of your system should be so thorough that someone with relevant skills but no experience with your specific business could follow them and achieve acceptable results.
- 4:28Jennifer Johnson: Clear roles and responsibilities are also very important.
- 4:31Jennifer Johnson: Everyone in the organization should know exactly what they're responsible for, what decisions they can make alone, and what they need to escalate.
- 4:39Jennifer Johnson: This clarity prevents the constant checking in with the boss dynamic that helps keep you tied to your day-to-day operations.
- 4:47Jennifer Johnson: And then quality control without personal oversight.
- 4:50Jennifer Johnson: Your business needs mechanisms for maintaining quality that don't require your personal review of everything.
- 4:56Jennifer Johnson: It may include a peer review process or customer feedback, but it's definitely not going to involve you day-to-day.
- 5:04Jennifer Johnson: Financial systems that run independent.
- 5:07Jennifer Johnson: Your business should be able to handle routine financial operations like invoicing, collections, those kinds of things.
- 5:13Jennifer Johnson: They just require good systems.
- 5:17Jennifer Johnson: Now building that framework, creating a business that doesn't need you 24-7 doesn't happen overnight.
- 5:23Jennifer Johnson: It requires a systematic approach to building what I call the freedom framework.
- 5:28Jennifer Johnson: Start with the owner dependency audit.
- 5:31Jennifer Johnson: By conducting an honest audit of everything that currently requires your personal involvement for two weeks, really can open your eyes.
- 5:40Jennifer Johnson: And you take these and put, you do four buckets.
- 5:43Jennifer Johnson: First is strategic work that should require your involvement, like vision setting, major partnerships, key clients, that kind of thing.
- 5:50Jennifer Johnson: Number two is important work that you could train other people to handle, like quality control, some client interactions.
- 5:57Jennifer Johnson: Third is the routine work that shouldn't require your involvement, like admin tasks and customer service.
- 6:04Jennifer Johnson: And then fourth is emergency work that interrupts your planned activities, like urgent issues, unexpected problems, that kind of thing.
- 6:10Jennifer Johnson: It shows exactly where you're spending your time.
- 6:14Jennifer Johnson: Choose one area that you're heavily involved with and completely document every step on how to handle it.
- 8:46Jennifer Johnson: Write it as if you're training someone who has relevant skills but no knowledge.
- 8:50Jennifer Johnson: Include not just the steps, but the decision-making criteria that you use and the quality standards that you apply and the common problems that arrive at arise and how to solve them.
- 9:01Jennifer Johnson: Then the progressive handoff strategy.
- 9:04Jennifer Johnson: Don't try to remove yourself from everything at once.
- 9:07Jennifer Johnson: Pick one area that you've created good documentation on and gradually hand that over to someone who's capable.
- 9:13Jennifer Johnson: You observe for a while, then you assist, and then it's oversight.
- 9:19Jennifer Johnson: And finally, independence.
- 9:22Jennifer Johnson: Then you do the exception management system.
- 9:26Jennifer Johnson: Create clear protocols for handling exceptions that don't fit the standard processes.
- 9:32Jennifer Johnson: It may include things like escalating issues when you're not really sure, or when that employee is not really sure that this might need your input.
- 9:44Jennifer Johnson: Then you can take it a step further and add in technology.
- 9:49Jennifer Johnson: The right technology can dramatically accelerate your ability to build a business that runs without you.
- 9:55Jennifer Johnson: Automating automatic automation for routine tasks, for invoice generations or appointment scheduling, those are all things that can be automated.
- 10:04Jennifer Johnson: Communication and collaboration tools.
- 10:06Jennifer Johnson: Implementing tools that enable your team to communicate and collaborate without having to go through you.
- 10:13Jennifer Johnson: There are so many platforms out there that allow for this.
- 10:17Jennifer Johnson: Monitoring and dashboard systems.
- 10:19Jennifer Johnson: Create systems that allow you to monitor performance without being involved in daily operations, like reporting and performance dashboards that alert you when a metric falls outside of what is acceptable for you.
- 10:31Jennifer Johnson: Customer service options.
- 10:34Jennifer Johnson: This is certainly something you can do, an FAQ section or online portals or chatbots.
- 10:40Jennifer Johnson: Those are all automated options for you to use and implement to allow technology to add to your Freedom Enabler.
- 10:48Jennifer Johnson: Then building the right team is also super important.
- 10:51Jennifer Johnson: What that looks like is hiring for initiative and judgment.
- 10:56Jennifer Johnson: When you hire someone, look for team members who can think critically and solve problems independently.
- 11:01Jennifer Johnson: They make good decisions.
- 11:03Jennifer Johnson: These qualities are more important for independent operation than specific technical skills.
- 11:10Jennifer Johnson: Invest time in developing your team's decision-making abilities.
- 11:15Jennifer Johnson: This includes teaching them your decision-making criteria and exposing them to thought processes when you make decisions, and then gradually giving them more authority to make decisions independently.
- 11:26Jennifer Johnson: Creating learning development systems for your team.
- 11:29Jennifer Johnson: This is really important because it allows them to continuously improve their skills and their knowledge.
- 11:35Jennifer Johnson: And it may include training programs or mentorships, programs, relationships, and programs.
- 11:41Jennifer Johnson: However, that looks for your company is well worth the time.
- 11:45Jennifer Johnson: And then establishing clear performance standards.
- 11:48Jennifer Johnson: Define what good performance looks like for each role in your organization.
- 11:52Jennifer Johnson: When people know what's expected of them, then they can operate more independently and still meet your needs.
- 12:00Jennifer Johnson: The component that is often less talked about is managing the emotional journey around building a business that doesn't need you 24-7.
- 12:09Jennifer Johnson: Because a lot of entrepreneurs struggle with this because it's stepping back.
- 12:13Jennifer Johnson: You have identity shifts where your identity is closely tied to your business, and stepping and stepping back can make you feel like you're losing part of who you are.
- 12:23Jennifer Johnson: Your role shifts from being the person who does the work to being the person who ensures that the work gets done well.
- 12:30Jennifer Johnson: I call it from operator to architect, from firefighter to fire prevention specialist.
- 12:38Jennifer Johnson: And then trust building.
- 12:40Jennifer Johnson: Learning to trust other people with your business is a gradual process.
- 12:44Jennifer Johnson: Start with things that are low risk and build trust over time.
- 12:48Jennifer Johnson: Don't expect to feel completely comfortable right away.
- 12:51Jennifer Johnson: It develops through repeated positive experiences that you have with your employees.
- 12:56Jennifer Johnson: And then redefine what control means in your business.
- 12:59Jennifer Johnson: Instead of controlling by being involved in everything, control by creating systems that are consistently producing the results that you want.
- 13:09Jennifer Johnson: When you successfully build a business that doesn't need you 24-7, the benefits, compound in ways that transform your business and your life.
- 13:17Jennifer Johnson: When you're not tied up in daily operations, you can focus on strategic activities that have higher impact, like marketing and partnerships and long-term planning.
- 13:27Jennifer Johnson: Then you have a scalability factor.
- 13:29Jennifer Johnson: Your business, if it can run without you, you are able to scale it.
- 13:33Jennifer Johnson: You're no longer limited by your capacity alone.
- 13:37Jennifer Johnson: And marketability, if you decide to sell your business, it's much easier to sell a business that's running without you.
- 13:44Jennifer Johnson: But perhaps the most important integration or the most important factor that comes from having a business that runs without you is the fact that you can integrate your work with your life rather than have your work consume your life.
- 13:58Jennifer Johnson: You can be present for all of the things that you want to be present for.
- 14:03Jennifer Johnson: As we wrap up today's episode, I want to remind you that building a business that doesn't need you 24-7 isn't about becoming disconnected from your business.
- 14:12Jennifer Johnson: It's about becoming connected and more intentional.
- 14:16Jennifer Johnson: You're not trying to eliminate your role, you're trying to evolve from your role.
- 14:20Jennifer Johnson: The transformation doesn't happen overnight and requires you to develop new skills.
- 14:25Jennifer Johnson: Remember, you didn't become an entrepreneur to create a job.
- 14:29Jennifer Johnson: The businesses that achieve the long-term success and create real wealth for their owners are the ones that can operate without the owner's involvement.
- 14:38Jennifer Johnson: Start small.
- 14:39Jennifer Johnson: Pick one area where you're currently indispensable and begin building systems that allow other people to handle your responsibility.
- 14:46Jennifer Johnson: Document your processes, train the team, and gradually hand off your responsibilities as you're able to.
- 14:54Jennifer Johnson: Your future self, the one that can take a real vacation, focus on strategic opportunities, and have time for the things that matter most to you, will thank you for every step that you take toward building a business that doesn't need you 24 7.