When you are the leader of a small business, you become accustomed to constraints. Whether it’s having a small team, tight finances or restricted space, you don’t have endless resources to solve problems or reach the next level. It’s challenging. Running an organization, one striving to move beyond survival mode, requires a great deal of creativity and often depends on external resources.
This is a great time for that, as there seems to be a nearly endless number of services providing fractional CFOs, CMOs — fill in the blank. And of course, we are also spoiled with the abundance of virtual assistance options. Whether you prefer one on this continent or another, there are companies that can accommodate you. À la carte employment and hyper-specific solutions are a dream come true for smaller businesses that want next-level talent. And then of course there is AI, which is its own universe.
The help small business owners have been dreaming of is out there, somewhere. Unfortunately, finding the help you’ve been looking for can be like searching for a needle buried in a needle stack. Sorting and researching through all that is offered to find the right solution that fits your specific issue and work style, but also integrates seamlessly with everything else you are doing, is a tall order for which few of us have the time. It’s frustrating. The very constraints you need help with are the same ones preventing you from getting the help you need. This is the liminal space in which I occasionally find myself, but I’ve come to learn a few things that have made a difference in figuring out where to start.
While it’s tempting to tackle your biggest, most daunting and time-consuming project, try to resist the urge to start there. Yes, the solution exists. But if it’s your biggest and hairiest problem, it likely comes with complexity, meaning it will require more involvement and time to truly bring about the change you want. In other words, you don’t have time for this, right now. Pass.
Devlin Liles, from Improving, based in Dallas, spoke to an advisory group I belong to, and suggested starting with your biggest but least complex problem or task that is impeding your productivity, which is a fantastic approach. I relate to the desire for big moves, especially when your progress feels thwarted. But don’t discount a more incremental approach. Removing constraints, whether through technology or outside services, can increase productivity by increasing the hours available to you. Addressing what a past mentor of mine referred to as ‘minor daily frustrations’ removes another constraint we tend to not acknowledge: limited emotional energy. Eliminating the minor daily frustrations, those small inconveniences and irritations within your processes, spurs you on to tackle the bigger stuff. It silences the noise and allows focus.
Big or small, we know the issues holding us back. Choosing the solution to remove roadblocks can be its own roadblock. Experimenting takes resources you don’t have, which is why this started in the first place.
The secret escape from this chicken-egg situation is to think smaller. Make it less consequential and just pick one solution that would be an improvement. Don’t worry about the best, you want better. Take the incremental approach. Big ideas and big goals don’t require big solutions to achieve them.
Jennifer Ake-Marriott is President & CEO of Redmond Waltz – an industrial repair company in Cleveland’s St. Clair-Superior neighborhood.
