New Business Direction LLCThree Vital Business Roles for Success and Balance
A passionate visionary, a get-your-hands-dirty operator, and a responsible, finance-minded executive, are what author Chip Conley describes as what investors look for in a management team when they consider providing startup money to new businesses, in his book The Rebel Rules: Daring to Be Yourself in Business.
Even if you’re never going to seek venture capital money to fund your business, this tidbit of advice makes a great strategy question to consider for your business, especially if you are an entrepreneur. Do you have these three roles in your company?
If you’re not sure which leadership role you play or who plays what role on your team, consider reading Predictable Success by Les McKeown and taking the quiz at https://getpredictablesuccess.com/styles-quiz/
Passionate Visionary
The passionate visionary is a creative idea person. They have the technical knowledge that supports the service or product that will be created and offered. They see the market need, and just how to sell and position the product so that clients or consumers will want the offering.
The visionary often has more ideas than budget. The finance role can evaluate the profitability of the visionary’s ideas and prioritize the projects. The operator can execute the visionary’s ideas.
The visionary provides strategic direction for the company and keeps the market offerings fresh.
If your business is missing a visionary, you might also struggle to keep your practice full as often (but not always); the sales function could fall to the visionary. You might also find yourself getting stagnant with your service offerings and falling behind the marketplace.
The fix for a missing visionary is to develop a sales and marketing team and/or a research and development team that can serve these functions.
“Roll-up-your-sleeves” Operator
The operator is an action person who can execute. They get things done. They can find and hire the right team. They can develop the systems, job descriptions, procedures, and processes that makes the company unique.
The operator takes the visionary’s ideas and makes them happen. They need the visionary’s ideas because they would rather take someone else’s ideas and work with them than create their own. They also need the support of the finance executive to stay on budget and to focus on one project at a time or avoid hiring too many people.
A business without a good operator never gets the product to market and may also constantly be short of team members.
Responsible, Finance-minded Executive
The finance expert helps to make the dollars work for the company. They can tell us how much we need to sell and how much we can spend. They can also provide capital sources for the company via investors or loans.
The finance executive loves numbers and can help to make sure the company’s operations are profitable. They’ll work closely with the operator to make sure that the right number of people are hired at the right salary levels. They’ll work with the visionary to plan and budget for new sources of revenue and new product lines.
Without a finance executive, a company often spends more than they bring in and may not have a viable profit plan. They may also run out of cash which can cause problems with creditors and investors.
This is the role we can not only help you fill, but also help you build your financial literacy to the level that you need for the stage your company is in now and for the future.
Your Business Success Trinity
As you were reading, which role are you? Which role jumped out at you that might need shoring up in your business? You might be strong in one area and need to outsource another while keeping a strategic eye on things overall.
Look at each of these roles and objectively assess your business. How are all three roles being served in your company? Which ones need more development for your business to grow?
Getting clear on your company’s roles can very well take you to the next level of success.
Which trends impact your business the most? Which ones speak to you? Feel free to reach out to discuss any of these ideas with us.
Join Rhonda Rosand, CPA and Advanced Certified QuickBooks ProAdvisor of New Business Directions, LLC, and learn how to Record PPP or EID Loans in QuickBooks Desktop and QuickBooks Online:
Your Thoughts on Money
How do you feel about money? Does the word itself evoke a feeling abundance, or scarcity? Does your brain repeat common beliefs like “Money doesn’t buy happiness” or “All rich people are selfish?” Does money scare you? Excite you? Do you feel deserving of it?
The way you perceive money matters. What your inner thoughts are telling you about money can impact on a subconscious level your ability to earn more or keep what you have.
What are your current behaviors towards money? Are you a spender or a saver? Your behavior may be driven by your beliefs and emotions. If you’re not happy with your behavior toward money, 
there’s an opportunity for you to change the relationship you have with it.
Once you can bring your beliefs and behaviors into your awareness, ask yourself if they are serving you well or hindering you? You may want to find some sort of happy medium that fits your needs. Everyone has different circumstances, but if you can change your beliefs and then your behavior towards money, then you might see a change in your ability to meet your financial goals.
The ultimate goal is to be content with the relationship you have with money. If you’re not happy with the relationship you have with money, there is opportunity for you to do some work in that area. And if we can help, please feel free to reach out.
You’ve received them—probably more than once—and every single time, they’re painful, tedious, and unsolicited. Robocalls . . . Need we say more? You can experience a robocall, or an automated telephone call delivering a recorded message, on both a personal and business phone line. From scammers scamming to political parties politicizing, these calls can get in the way of your daily business activities, stop productivity, and simply annoy the life right out of you.
Here’s how you can fight them.
Don’t Let the Robocalls In
Unfortunately, robocalls can plague all types of calls, whether it’s a cell phone, analog, or VoIP call.
First, if or when you receive a robocall, hang up. Easy enough, except, you know you will eventually get another call, and then another, and more after that. These calls keep coming . . . like cockroaches.
Put your name on the National Do Not Call Registry; it’s free! Will it sufficiently work? No, not always. Yet, taking this step is proactive and it might keep one or two callers from connecting with you.
When an unwanted call does come in, there is often an option to “press a number” that is supposed to delete your number from the robocall registry. Viewpoints are split on this idea, as some say it works and others believe it does the complete opposite of what it’s intended to do. We recommend taking your chances and pressing that number. However, if you’re on the fence, don’t worry; we have more options for you!
Cell
Try downloading a call-blocking app, such as Nomorobo or Robokiller. These are subscription apps that don’t discriminate against carriers. You can also check with your particular provider to see if they offer any special blocking option. For example, Verizon has the Caller Name ID app. Both iPhones and Androids have built-in call-blocking features, while Samsung has a “Smart Call” feature to squash this issue.
You can limit your cell phone calls to “contacts only” by setting the “Do Not Disturb” feature on your smart phone, but is this a realistic option for business owners who often need to take calls from people not yet in their contacts?
Analog
Again, try contacting your service provider to see what options they offer. You may also consider purchasing a call-blocking device. Some of the call-blocking devices on the market can block up to 5000 numbers, such as the CPR V5000, which is available for less than $90.
VoIP
A little trickier to fight, contact your Internet provider to see if they have a service to stop robocalls coming in via VoIP. With some clever searching, you may find an innovative blocking option online. Though, if you find a compatible match, it could be costly. Always report the unwanted call to the Federal Trade Commission.
Stop the Robocall Madness Now
The truth: Robocalls are becoming more frequent each year thanks to the double-edged sword that is the Internet. These calls show no sign of stopping. If you want them to end, you need to take action—and right now!
Join Rhonda Rosand, CPA and Advanced Certified QuickBooks ProAdvisor of New Business Directions LLC, to set up your COVID-19 Expense account, payroll liabilities account, payroll items and tax credit in QuickBooks Desktop. See what it looks like when you process a payroll and where to go to find the remaining balance of your tax credit.
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