I want to share with you the best piece of advice I have ever received in my business life that was from a speaker and mentor that I really look up to – Mike Agugliaro of CEO Warrior.
This game-changing piece of advice created the fastest yet most controlled and stable growth for my business and validated something that I have always believed to be true but have been in the minority with this belief (among business owners).
If I can attribute my success today to one piece of advice, this would be it.
Mike Agugliaro was an electrician by trade, started his own business and grew it to a multi-million dollar company. He then founded CEO Warrior to help other service-based businesses do the same.
I am not a client of Mike’s, never have been, and never used his electrical services as he is in New Jersey and I am in Massachusetts. I did however hear him speak at a conference I was at and I was captivated. He speaks from the heart, off the cuff, incredibly real, and he’ll tell you anything you want to know. He has a great story and a great way of telling it. I have seen a lot of speeches in my day and this one really took hold.
There is one thing (of many) that he said during that speech that I have never forgotten, and I use it as my “permission” one might say, to grow my business the way I want to grow it.
Mike said, “… as soon as I hear an idea that I want to implement in my business, my very next thought is ‘who’s going to do it?’. Because it ain’t going to be me…”
This simple thought validated something that I have believed for quite a while. However, whenever I would mention it to a client, prospect, lead or colleague, I’d get push-back. People would say “you can’t trust anyone else to do what matters in your business”. Or “you should be fully knowledgeable and in-charge of everything that goes on in your business”, or “I can do it. So why would I pay someone else too?”.
My thought has always been, just because you can do it does not mean you should do it. In my experience, a jack of all trades is a master of none. I particularly see this proven true in business. Our clients that are “DIY’ers” are the smallest, most stagnant businesses we work with. Their growth year after year is minimal, if at all. They are also generally the first to fail. Conversely, the businesses we work with that also embrace this philosophy are the ones that are by far the most successful. They have seen tremendous growth, and have created stable, strong and profitable companies. Furthermore, they also have employees who are truly invested in the company and its future. When you have that… the sky is the limit.
About Spark
And that is how I see my company, Spark – that the sky is the limit. That I am incredibly lucky and grateful to have a team that truly cares about their job and about our company. Also that there is a culture in place that I could not be any prouder to be a part of.
Had I continued a mindset of “I can and should do it all” and not looked to hire and invest in people that had the personality and skills that I wanted to promote in our company, I’d most likely still be a 2 or 3 “man band” wondering why my company won’t grow. Had I not leapt off that fence and made the decision to work on my business and not in it, we would never be as successful as we are today and I would not be anywhere near as in love with my job and my company as I am today, tomorrow and every day.
And now, over to you!
- Question #1: How can you implement this piece of advice into your life?
- Question #2: What’s the best piece of advice you have received in your life with regards to business growth?
Let me know your answers to these 2 questions in your comments below – I’d love to hear your thoughts!
Lastly, as always, if you would like to know more about our services, please visit our Services page. Alternatively, feel free to contact us via our Contact page.