~ by Candice R
As Founders we are forever on a journey of growth, professionally and personally intertwined. And this journey is a valuable one. The world is beginning to realise the rarity of your unique approach to business but we as Founders still need to stop a moment and revisit how we are fostering our own growth as we grind towards reaching our business vision.
We need to take a good hard look at the way we review our performance, and how we grow and inspire it within our businesses. How we can assess and evaluate ourselves (and others) on this entrepreneurial journey. Here are some questions to get you thinking about where you are at on this journey of growth as a Founder:
Impact - are you making a positive impact? Can you deepen this impact? Are you having a positive effect on lives both within (employees, suppliers, partners) and outside (clients, customers) of your business? Is there a positive impact on your personal life?
Commercials - are you making money (this is a business after all!)? How difficult is it to make a healthy income from your efforts? Have you reached the best possible revenue model to do this (or have you revisited your current revenue model and interrogated it, playing with other potential routes)?
Learning - are you regularly learning new things? Are you applying these learnings to yourself and your business? Have you found ways to pivot according to insights you gain? Do you take lessons from those around you (employees, partners, customers, experts, family, etc.)? Do you really step back and listen?
Evolution - are you changing in line with people, the market, and the change you see around you? Have you built in mechanisms to help your business adapt to change? Do you manage change so that it remains positive over disruptive (in a negative sense). Are you certain there is no change for change's sake? Are you filtering and interrogating ideas to only bring in what is crucial?
Roots - are you still true to your humble beginnings? Are you fighting a good cause in your reason for being? Do you still believe in what you are doing and why your business exists?
Giving back - are you paying it forward? Are you sharing the lessons you have learnt along the way? Are you inspiring others, teaching others? Are you being kind?
When we push ourselves every day to grow as Founders, we fulfil so much more than just the product vision we had from the onset. We are gifted along our journey in ways we often never expected - if we are open to it and if we strive to be better. It starts with holding yourself accountable for growth, and wanting it enough to give it your dedication and constant reflection.
Work with Candice R
“Solving niche challenges founders face”.
Illustrator: Lisa Williams (Instagram: @artist_llw)