As an owner of a successful landscape company you have won the lottery. My good friend Barry Schneider (Surrounds, in Virginia) has told me this many times.
But ironically, many business owners don’t cash the ticket, meaning they don’t maximize the value of their investment, and they don’t enjoy their good fortune.
So how do you cash the proverbial lottery ticket?
Five Key Guidelines to Follow. Life is like a lottery ticket, the trick is to be aware of that and enjoy your good fortune. Moreover, the fact that you are operating in the US (or Canada) gives you an advantage that many other countries don’t offer. You just need to be proactive.
- Enjoy your good fortune now. Don’t wait for retirement, or some magic day in the future, to start enjoying life and the fruits of your labor. There is no honor in grinding it out without reward.
- Work at your highest value. Do the work you enjoy that will drive the highest value in your company. Take the important jobs, and delegate them to others so they can grow, too. This will allow you to do true “owner’s work.”
- Enjoy your culture. Your culture is your profit driver, and more than that, it’s a reflection of your character and that of your people. Build it, enjoy it, and it will drive growth.
- Nurture the cash cow. Make sure your operations are throwing off excess cash, not sucking in cash. And not just one year, but year over year. In order to reinvest it, you have to be producing it.
- Burnish your value. You don’t need to sell your company now, but make it more salable for when the perfect offer comes along. Every year its value should grow. This requires strategic thinking — What is your core business, and how are you growing it?
Owners who treat themselves like lottery winners will experience more in life than those who get bogged down in details, focus on the negative, or postpone their joy. Honor your team and yourself.
Regards, Jeffrey!
Client Brag: The Lawn Butler of Knoxville was named The Tennessee Landscape Contractor of the Year. Congrats to Seth and his team!!
