Owning a Business is a Spiritual Journey
Owning a business is a spiritual journey. Most people are familiar with the life coach Tony Robbins. I was listening to one of his short videos when he made a simple statement that caught my attention. His statement was “business is a spiritual journey.”
It caught my attention because what I do on a daily basis is receive calls from business owners that own a business and wish to sell or those that want to become a business owner be it by starting their own business, buying an existing business or buying the rights to a local franchise. Without exception, all those that call are looking to make a significant change in their lives.
If they own and operate a business they have come to a cross road where they need to decide should they continue owning their business, is it time to close it down or hand it off to someone else? If the business is not performing well, their decision revolves around disposing of the business and moving to something more rewarding. For some business owners, this has been a quick process where they have decided that change is a positive thing. For others, it’s been long and complicated as they wrestle with their willingness to keep going because they want to see the sale of their business as a success or for many, the stresses and strains of the long recession have meant that continuing to do what they have been doing no longer makes any sense. For others, it’s time to hand the business on to a new and younger owner so they can take the reins. For example, I have a medical practice for sale in southern California that two doctors have owned and loved for over 40 years and so now they have both turned 80 years old, feel it’s time for a younger owner to continue their legacy.
For those that are looking to get into business, all have made the simple decision that they would like to understand their options and find the right business opportunity for them. Without exception, their initial process is doing an analysis to see how much they can afford to buy and what will be their earning potential. Hidden inside this process which very few potential business owners explore is the reasons behind their motivation and what do they think the best opportunity for them will look like. To say it another way, our decision making process generally moves between our conscious thinking or what our brain says we should and shouldn’t do and our emotions if a business feels right or what our heart says we should and shouldn’t be doing.
The critical point in all of the above is that it’s the alignment of the head and the heart that allows the right decision to be made. To complement this, as Tony Robbins says, is being willing to understand that owning a business is a spiritual journey because at its essence, how well we serve and help others will determine our success or failure or indeed, how successfull we will be. Serving and helping others shows up in how we treat our customers or clients. Serving them well results in them becoming an advocate for you or your business which is the highest compliment. Serving and helping your employees will influence how hard they will work for you and their willingness to go above and beyond when the situation requires it, for example, staying back and helping another employee or going above and beyond to a customer or client. Finally, helping and serving appears with those with whom the business owner comes in contact as part of their business circle; landlord, suppliers, bank, accountant, attorney, lender, Insurance Agent and more. If the owner looks after these people in their business circle they will encourage others to do business with them.
Owning and operating a business comes with tremendous demands. These demands ebb and flow with the economy and how it affects the business and the personal matters affecting the owner. If the head and the heart are aligned and the business owner embraces the ownership of the business as an opportunity to connect and help those around them it will only increase their chances of success. If doing this is considered a chore or a challenge it will reveal itself in the performance and operation of the business.
If you own a business and it’s no longer a rewarding journey for you and would like to sell and move to the next challenge in your life and would like me to help, please contact me on (916) 570-2674. Perhaps you would like more information and this is available in a book I’ve written called ‘Successfully sell your business.’
If you are thinking of owning or operating a business and want to understand your options including what fits your journey, please contact me. Perhaps you would like more information and this is available as a choice in one of three books I’ve written; ‘Successfully start your business;’ ‘Successfully buy your business’ or ‘Successfully buy your franchise.’
If you would like more information please visit my website Business Advice Books.
