I Do. We Do. They Do.

There are three stages in the life of an entrepreneur’s business mindset: I do it, we do it, and they do it. Over the years, I have found that most entrepreneurs get stuck in the “I do it” which hurts their ability to scale. In this stage, you’re doing all the work yourself which can even include micromanaging/re-doing the work that your team does.

In order to take the first leap, into “We Do It”, you must hire the right team that you can manage. Once you have mastered leading a team, you can make the final leap into “They Do It”, which is where you let your team run the operation with board type management. As you are able to make the transition from one phase to another, you will find that your financial results increase exponentially with more freedom than ever.

When talking with fellow entrepreneurs about this, I like using the analogy of an NFL team:

Players – “I Do It”: Yes, these guys can sign large contracts however the average career for a player is a little over three years. Once their career is over, their income disappears.

Coaches – “We Do It”: The best coaches are able to find and manage talent to fit within the system that they execute. Coaches, when successful, have longer careers than the players even though they aren’t the ones making the plays on Monday Night Football.

              Owners – “They Do It”: Owners invest capital in the team, craft a vision for their franchise and then hire people to execute on that vision. Owners often communicate with a board and a General Manager and allow that GM to communicate/manage the others.

Making the transition to both “We Do It” and “They Do It” hinges on one big unknown, your ability to hire and manage talent. Without talent working in your world, it is very difficult to execute from anywhere else than “I Do It”.

Bottom line, in order to take your business to the next level, you need to hire the best talent, people who are smarter and more capable than you are.

Over the years I’ve cultivated a very detailed strategy for gaining and retaining emerging talents that can take your team to the next level. If you find the right people, you’ll feel comfortable letting them do the daily tasks for you, so you can raise the ceiling and continue marching toward your vision.