As a business owner, you have two primary ways to approach running your business: Solo Mode or CEO Mode.
- Solo Mode is when you view your business through the lens of “ME.”
Questions like, “What do I want or not want? What’s best for me?” guide your decisions. - CEO Mode is when you treat your business as a separate entity that stands on its own.
Here, the questions shift to, “What’s best for the business? What does the business need right now?”
These two mindsets can lead to very different decisions, even when faced with the same situation.
Now, you might assume that Solo Mode is for solopreneurs, while CEO Mode is for larger companies. But that’s not always the case. I’ve seen bigger businesses stuck in Solo Mode, where decisions are still based on what the owner personally wants. On the flip side, I know solopreneurs who operate in CEO Mode, making choices based on what’s best for their business as a whole.
The truth is, there are times when being a business owner means making decisions that you may not personally want to make. Let’s explore a couple of examples:
1. Expanding Your Team
Many business owners face the decision to hire more help but hesitate because they don’t want to spend the money.
“I know I should get more help, but I just don’t want to make that investment right now.”
I get it. You might not want to spend that money, but what does your business need?
Is your business at a stage where the workload is simply too much for one person to handle? Are you doing it all yourself, or are tasks being left undone because there aren’t enough hands on deck? Consider how much time and energy it’s costing you to stay stuck in Solo Mode.
Now, imagine what the right team could do for your business. How much more could you create and achieve if you had the right support? Freeing up your time allows you to focus on growth-driven activities that will move your business forward.
2. Documenting Processes
“Documenting processes feels like a waste of time. We don’t need that, do we?”
On the surface, documenting processes—creating Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs)—might seem tedious or unnecessary. But let’s look at why they matter.
Without documented processes, everything relies on what’s in your head. You know the tools, the steps, and how things need to get done. That means you always have to be involved. Even if you have a team, if you haven’t laid out the processes, chances are things won’t get done your way.
How often have you hired someone only to feel frustrated that they aren’t getting it right?
“I hired help, but they keep messing things up, so I might as well do it myself.”
The truth is, they can only do it right if they know how to do it. When the process lives solely in your mind, you’ll always be needed to guide them. By getting those processes out of your head and into a documented format, you give your team the roadmap to succeed.
Documented processes are the key to freedom. They allow your business to run smoothly without you, so you can take a break, step away, or even go on vacation without the fear of things falling apart in your absence. SOPs enable your business to replicate success over and over again.
How a Certified OBM® Can Help
You don’t have to navigate this journey alone. When you hire a Certified OBM®, they specialize in building teams and creating processes that allow your business to operate efficiently. With an OBM on your side, you’ll build a solid foundation for growth, shifting from Solo Mode to CEO Mode and building more of what you want in less time.
If you’re interested in exploring what it’s like to work with a Certified OBM®, I’d love to connect.
