You Are The Expert Of Your Own Business

I want to draw your attention to something that comes up consistently for my clients - how much to listen to experts.

This is a tricky situation - as a business that advises startups and small businesses, I’m guessing you would think that I want you to follow my instructions every time!

But that is not the case, for one simple reason - I’m not you.

When you thought of starting your own business, that decision was made in your context and how you want the business to run will remain in that context.

Whether you wanted to be a role model for your family, earn a little bit of money on top of your employment, go all in on being the next Elon Musk - your entrepreneurial journey started from somewhere only you know.

When an expert comes in, therefore, you remain the expert of that context.

Everything they suggest you do is filtered through the question “What do I want to do for my business?” and good advisors will know that.

If an advisor tells you that you HAVE to do something in a particular way, they are not listening to you and they are not tailoring the advice to what you need.

This isn’t always the case, obviously.

Sometimes, the expert or advisor will know that something is not a good idea because of the consequences of going down that particular route and they are obliged to tell you that.

If for example you were going to break the law, then they would be wrong to cheer you on!

But, those instances are thankfully rare, and there are far more opportunities for you to go your own way and make those decisions.

Business owners can struggle to feel connected with their business, to feel ‘in charge’ because so much of how it was put together was via third parties.

My accountant told me to incorporate, my lawyer told me to take on a secondary shareholder, my marketing expert told me to approach the market in this way - the list goes on.

If you feel that other people are making your decisions for you, then it stands to reason that you would not feel the one in control of the business.

Advisors are there to advise - to let you know of the potential impact of any decision you make, to suggest options that you had not known about - but they will never know more about your business than you do.