We all know that freedom isn’t free. We fight for it at different levels; We fight for it as a country and even as business owners. At the end of the day it is definitely worth the fight but there is a struggle along the way. What does freedom look like to you for your business and how can you achieve the freedom you’re for which you’re striving?
What we cover in this episode:
- 03:26 – Defining Freedom
- 12:11 – Achieving Freedom
- 24:18 – Resources
Defining Freedom
Defining what freedom means to each individual person is very subjective. Freedom can mean a multitude of things in business and personal life; so finding out what categorizes these freedoms for you is extremely important. Two basic categories that are usually the leading definitions of freedom, especially when it comes to business, are freedom of time and financial freedom.
Time
The struggle with time is you cannot make more of it or get it back once it is gone. Being able to prioritize and allocate your time is an important step towards freeing it up. When starting a business, freedom of time is on a lot of owners benefits list but inadvertently ends up the complete opposite. This is a great example of why, as a business owner, you need to take a step back and look at what your goals are and then align your time with these goals.
Defining the number of hours you want or need to work and do these align with what you set for personal goals. Allocating time for personal health, development, hobbies, and family is a secure route on making sure you are living out the freedom of time goal. Define where you want your time to go, and then make a plan on how to implement it.
Financial
Financial freedom of some sort is probably a major reason why people start a business. Unfortunately you need money to do just about anything, including daily living. Finding out what amount of money you need to live, pay bills, and eat, the basic necessities of life and survival is top priority of course. Next is budgeting for additional way of life expenses such as travel and hobbies, children and family activities and vacations. For everyone this looks different; and though it may not seem important these are things you more than likely won’t or don’t want to sacrifice and live life without.
Being able to think a bit further and plan for retirement is an important long term objective that seems to be forgotten early on . Knowing what this number looks like for you and your family is important to knowing where you need to be financially. Having your finances set and understanding them is important to being able to feel like you are financially free.
Achieving Freedom
The ‘how’ you achieve these defined freedoms is the major picture. Being specific with your goals can help you establish parameters that will help you reach both time and money goals. When being a business owner these goals pertain to personal and business which is why parameters are so important.
Time
Building your business in a way that creates freedom of time for you in your business will also trickle over to your freedom of personal time. One of the most impactful ways to assist in this, is building a solid team. If you establish a reliable team and create systems that support your processes, you can leverage your time. This is kind of where opportunity cost comes into play by switching money for time.
By hiring on a support team, in the short term you will be spending more money but it is a great way to be proactive when thinking long term. Bringing on the help before you need it allows for a smoother and less chaotic transition. Having a solid support team can help make sure you are being held accountable for your time. Are you delegating and prioritizing effectively? One of the topics we like to discuss in this scenario is automation. Are you utilizing your team and automated systems to be more productive and efficient? This takes us to the prioritizing portion of your time.
As easy as it would be as a business owner to work 24/7 on everything, doesn’t mean you should. Setting your priorities and building a strategic plan on how you will enforce these needs to be done early on. Asking yourself the right questions about plans on your agenda like, is this doable? What does that make my week look like? What is of highest importance? Scheduling out annually, quarterly, monthly, weekly and even daily can help you align your goals with what your priorities should be.
Financial
Financial freedom means something different to everybody. The common goal is how to achieve it, especially through your business. Strategically setting metric financial goals is a starting point so you know what they look like and this gives you a better indication of how you can go about achieving them.
We talk about having an abundance mindset and how it is important in focusing on your market, sales and strategy. Making sure your business structure aligns with your goals financially. Do you need to charge more? Are you marketing to the right people? Focusing on your systems and your business and monitoring these to make sure you are staying on track makes all the difference in the end. Knowing your business and making adjustments where they are needed and regularly updating these metrics, measurement and financial numbers will set you up for success and on the right path to achieving your freedoms.
Resources
We know that finding the right tools to be able to dissect and dig deeper into planning out your freedom goals can be difficult. In previous episodes we discuss topics that were referenced above. Episodes #1 through 10 are our strategic series are a great place to start if you’re looking to establish a good foundation.
The 4 Ways to Grow your Business in episode #20 can also be helpful if you’re hunting for financial freedom. In alignment with sales, marketing and promotion, we cover some business processes in episode #87 through #89. There are many sites and helpful resources available including some on our website.
Conclusion
Being a business owner isn’t free in any way, especially when it comes to time and money, but it is an avenue that can get you there. Freedom does not come free, but it is worth fighting for. Having the right support system and resources helps a ton when it comes to seeing the bigger picture and the end goal. No matter how your idea of freedom looks, it is worth it and it can happen. We have been able to be involved in these kinds of things and it is definitely worth it in the end.
Links Mentioned in this Episode
- Episode #1-10: Strategic Planning Series
- Episode #20: So You Want to Grow Your Business?
- 4 Ways to Grow Your Business Webinar
- Episode #87: Business Processes, Documentation & Their Role in Growth
- Episode #88: Why Should I Establish Operational Processes in My Business
- Episode #89: Marketing & Sales Processes for Business Growth
