Running your own business requires a totally different level of thinking. When you work for someone else, other people are generally making decisions for you and you don’t need to think – or at least not as much. I am always amazed at how few people in an employee situation seem to be incapable of making a decision (thinking for themselves) about certain situations for fear of repercussions.
Being a small business owner means moving from employee to employer mentality really quickly, and there is a massive difference between the 2 levels of thinking. I appreciate that it takes a time to transition and that shift needs to be quick or it will massively impact the success of that business.
I always expect different reactions from business owners, and yet I am amazed at how many seem to be happy to let others make decisions for them especially when those people have no connection to your business and have no right to make decisions on anything that affects your income and the health and welfare of your family. As the quote says, “If you don’t think for yourself, others will think for you without thinking of you”. They do not care about the impact on you, your business and your family, so why listen to them?
If you allow someone else to do you thinking, they then totally control you – think about the statement
They do not put food on your table or look after your family. That is your responsibility so be very careful about following decisions of others that have a detrimental effect on your life
As you can probably tell, I am so angry about the impact to the small business community of the decisions our poor government has made over the last 21 months, and by running a small business we are “leaders” in our industry and we need to start acting that way. Do your own thinking. Think about the impact on yourself and your family. Make decisions that affect you. DO NOT just follow government guidelines if they are not right for you. If you have to start bringing in restrictions to your business, think about the impact this could cause – and it won’t be for a few days or weeks, it could be years. Be strong. Be a LION, not a SHEEP. Leaders lead, leaders do not follow. Surround yourself with people who will support you and your business. Pull resources together, create a long plan think tank, and help each other through this mess. I am happy to be part of any think tank.
The impact that the small business community creates for the economy of our country is massive and if we are not in business, this has a far reaching impact. Make sure you stay in business, think about long term plans. Don’t just put plans in place for this week or this month. Be creative with your thinking.
Finally we should never take what is told to us as a truth without checking for ourselves. If it is something that can affect our health, welfare and our incomes then we owe it to ourselves to check information out thoroughly.
Ask questions all the time. The most powerful question in the English language is WHY. We ask this all the time as kids and yet as adults we never ask it – WHY?
This article was first published on LinkedIn by Richard Knight on 10/12/2021