How would you rate your experience in business ownership?
Most leaders in business feel like 2020 has represented one of the toughest business environments they’ve ever faced. Leaders have faced not one major crisis, but multiple threats and opportunities all within the same calendar year.
We ought to give a special shout out to our brothers and sisters in business on the Gulf Coast and in the West due to hurricanes and wildfires respectively. (As if they needed another test of their resilience.)
This may sound crazy. I believe it’s the perfect time to consider where you are in your life’s work and make course corrections. I propose that you use this time to consider building out your ULTIMATE OWNER EXPERIENCE (O)X while so much is changing and in flux.
It’s the PERFECT time! Really! Over the next few months, I’ll lead you through a process. Let’s get started.
The first step to building out your ultimate (O)X is to conduct a self-audit.
I recommend conducting this type of audit regularly. It is a valuable tool in building your emotional intelligence which is essential to agile leadership.
If you don’t know where to begin, try this process. Let me know if you have any suggestions or feedback. I’m always working to improve my tools.
A SELF AUDIT:
Here’s what you do – kick back, get yourself something to drink and be comfortable. In this exercise the focus is on the leadership pillar of leading self.
Ask yourself a few questions:
- Are you still having fun? Learning a lot?
- If life ended for you tomorrow, would you be satisfied with what you’ve accomplished? If not, what more would you need to reach that level of satisfaction?
- What are the other things, places you’d like to take the business to or products you’d like to produce, before you’re done?
- What other financial goals do you have for yourself? For the business?
- What else needs to happen before your life feels complete?
- How do you need to evolve to thrive in the next ten years?
- What leadership skills, traits, attributes do you need to have to lead self and others through your evolution? How do you feel about that? Are you up for the challenge?
I recommend that you use each question as a journal prompt. Give yourself the time to work ON your leadership and character development. Your team, your company, your family and you will find this exercise yields a very high ROI.
Next time, we will look at Step 2.
