MANAGEMENT • 4 MIN READ

Why You’re Stuck On The Business Hamster-Wheel (And How To Fix It)

Are You Stuck Working “IN” Your Business?

Some business owners seem to have it all figured out…

They seem to have an abundance of energy, freedom, and most importantly, time to spend with their family.

They make it look EASY…

All while you’re over here working your butt off…with 60-80 hour workweeks and no end in sight.

What’s the deal? What’s the difference between the hamster wheel you’re trapped on…and their well-oiled business machine that seemingly is running itself?

From what I’ve personally learned running my own businesses… as well as helping our clients at 2X, there are a multitude of reasons and factors.

Business doesn’t have to be complicated, but at the same time, if you don’t know the right things to do (or do them in the right order), it can seem like an impossible code to crack.

You know you have the potential. You know you should be doing more.

Well, here are five of the top reasons we see entrepreneurs staying stuck in the weeds… and how to get out of it so you can finally grow and scale.

1. You Don’t Know Your Numbers

Hamster wheel: You’re not sure what your “numbers” are or why this is important. As a result, you don’t know how your business is performing over time… and decisions are made with your intuition and gut rather than with solid evidence to back them up.

As a result, you could be running in circles and not even know it, and are likely working hard but not on the right bottleneck that you should be… So you stay stuck.

You may not think you have time to learn your numbers or where to start, but until you do, you’ll be missing a big opportunity to make better/faster decisions.

Machine: These business owners make decisions based on the numbers… quickly being able to identify and address the biggest gaps in their ‘value chain’.

By tracking the key metrics meticulously, they are able to identify problems early and also pinpoint low hanging fruit that they can improve upon. That allows them to pull a few key levers that make a huge impact, scaling their business much faster and always have a handle on what to focus on.

Action: Start putting together a list of the top 10 metrics that will give you complete clarity into the health of your business. If you’re unsure of how to do this, check out our free KPI guide here.

2. You Aren’t Taking Initiatives And Projects To 100%

Hamster wheel: It’s exciting to start new projects, but not nearly as fun to complete them. As a result, there’s a lot of half-done initiatives… and nothing is ready to implement in your business.

Next thing you know, there are a ton of moving pieces, all of which need your attention because you haven’t gotten them to 100%. This a very common problem for entrepreneurs, and one we dove deep into on the episode of ‘6 to 7 Figures’ with Liz Cox (who has now made the leap to machine status in the 2X Accelerator Program!).

Machine: They know the power of getting things done, and do less… while driving them to 100%. Even though the last 20% is the toughest to complete, they make it a culture-thing on their team and push through in order to get it done.

Doing new things and starting new tasks makes us feel good short-term, but finishing them is what will move your business forward.

Hamster-wheel entrepreneurs love shiny and new, while the most successful love repeatability, consistency, and having a business machine.

Action: Put a plan of action around a few key projects that aren’t yet complete that would have a big impact on your time and bottom line. Put a 14-30 day deadline to get those done, and go drive them to 100%. Doing so will be a sigh of relief for you and your team, and will help make the business much healthier. This has a ripple effect.

3. You’re Stuck In Reactivity Instead Of Planning Ahead

Hamster wheel: Your day-to-day consists of constantly being interrupted by fires you need to put out… and as a result, your long-term growth initiatives are continually being delayed.

You can’t ever quite escape to just think and plan because there is so much going on, and you’re reacting from the start of your day, everyday.

Machine: Everything in the business has a process or documentation, so that nothing is a surprise. So even when things go wrong, employees know exactly what to do and how to fix it without having to escalate the issue up to the business owner. Plus, your team is ahead, not being reactive in the day-to-day blur of your business.

This is something we go deep on in my new book From 6 to 7 Figures, which if you don’t have a copy yet, definitely take advantage and get your free book here.

Action: Each time you have to react to an urgent issue, document that issue and build out a system so the same problem doesn’t happen again. It may seem tedious now, but it’s worth it in the long run. The template is in our 7-Figure Toolkit for the book that you can access here.

4. Your Business Model Is Built Around You

Hamster wheel: You’re the one behind the scenes… putting together the client strategy, closing the sales, managing your entire team, leading marketing, handling customer service questions, etc.

In other words, you’re keeping the business running, and if you step away for even a day… then the whole operation stops!

It gets exhausting! I’ve been there, many times.

But you have to break free…

Machine: To build a true machine, you must make sure that you are completely removed from the day-to-day sales and fulfillment.

You might step in from time-to-time if necessary, but for the most part, you should spend 90%+ of your time on initiatives that will GROW the company and in your zone of genius.

Action: Start documenting and building systems around everything you’re currently handling. Over time, delegate these tasks to your team, one by one. In the book From 6 to 7 Figures, I go deep into this topic, as it’s so crucial to get you free from the weeds and free up your time. Learn how to do it right in the book here.

5. You Don’t Have Processes To Hire And Build A World-Class Team

Hamster wheel: There’s no clear systems on when you need to hire additional employees, what the requirements are, who your ideal fit is, etc…

So you’re usually reactive and behind on hiring, having to make last-minute decisions and forced to bring someone in who might be subpar. You think that the candidate is a great fit and are excited, then learn they’re not fully what they said they would be.

Machine: There are hiring systems and metrics that tell business owners exactly when they need to hire, so they can make those decisions far in advance.

When bringing someone onboard, there are clear KPIs (key performance indicators), deliverables, and a clear action plan for how they will generate an ROI as quickly as possible.

And once they are hired, there are systems to track performance, review, and support them to become world-class.

Action: Plan out your hiring needs at least once a month (and look ahead for the next 3-6 months). Check out our free hiring guide and even better, the book goes DEEP into how to do this effectively.

So…hamster wheel or machine? Which one does your business more closely resemble?

If you’re like most, you likely have certain elements and aspects that are closer to the machine, and some that are closer to the hamster wheel.

That’s totally normal. What you want to do is focus on one element at a time, drive that to 100%, put the systems in place to delegate it to your team, and then move onto the next, and the next, and the next.

That’s how you build the foundation for a stable, long-term, scalable lucrative business. One brick and one gear at a time, until it’s a well-oiled machine.

And that’s what we do in the 2X Accelerator Program, designed specifically for 6 and 7-figure entrepreneurs to help you get free from the weeds, turn your business into a machine, and start scaling faster than ever.

More growth. More freedom. And a whole new business, in just 90 days.

Get started and apply now here to see if you qualify for this one-on-one coaching program.