Lessons Learned As an Entrepreneur
Build a team that you trust and get out of their way.
Like many of you, I find it challenging to just let things go. To delegate. When I received my surgery date in June, I began thinking about how I could keep my business up and running and even moving forward during my time out of the office in July.
I started building my dream team to align with my 4th quarter goals. Yes, as an entrepreneur I have a team. A team of subcontractors with very specific roles and responsibilities.
The most important work I did in June was identifying and clearly communicating what I needed to be done and who could support me in my goals which were simple…
Communicate with my current clients through my social media channels
Rebrand my business
And move my website to a new platform
“I’ve delegated throughout my career as a leader, but this was different. I was committed to totally disengaging from the work.”
No sneaking emails when no one was looking. No scheduled calls. Not even providing feedback until the projects were 90% done.
Which meant fully letting go…and putting my trust in each team member.
If you have worked with me in any capacity over the past two years you will know that one of my favorite quotes is by Brenee Brown:
“Clear is kind. Unclear is unkind.”
The job of the leader is to get crystal clear. And so I did.
I identified the “players” who would become known as Team Special K…all of their names begin with a K!
Each individual brought a special talent to the team. Each of them knew what their role was in July because I had over-communicated my expectations in June.
I hired a project manager who knew my business. It was her job to keep everything in forward motion while I recovered.
Being disconnected from the team didn’t mean I wasn’t thinking about how things were going. It’s impossible not to.
I did the self-talk…I need this done perfectly. There is no room for error. What if I am the only one who can do this exactly right? What if I am the only one who gets the vision?
When doubt crept in…I reminded myself that I trusted each of these women. That each of them was impeccable with their word. That they knew what I needed and when in doubt, they utilized each other to come up with a solution to a problem.
What I learned this summer is that the only antidote for releasing a tight grip is to build an impeccable team around you that you trust. Really trust. And communicate, communicate, communicate.
Three weeks after my surgery, I started my very slow comeback. Working at most an hour a day. When I felt well enough, the team started sharing their magic. And it was nothing less than miraculous. I had a new brand, a new website, my clients still felt loved and my business moved forward.
Fully letting go and trusting my business to this team of women was a powerful lesson in leadership. One that I will continue to practice moving forward as I build the capacity of my business.
You can check out all of their beautiful work at www.thethinkgoodcompany.com.
