Resources to run a better business.

A CEO has no shortage of responsibilities. The role is complex—and it requires courage. ‍As the leader of your company, you’ll play the role of visionary, coach, strategist, brand advocate…‍But the most important role you’ll play? Parent.

There’s no doubt that there is a right time to sell your company. But trying to optimize for the best time can get you in trouble. You become the gambler who’s unable to quit while he’s ahead. And for every hand you continue to stay at the table, there’s a greater and greater risk that in the end, you’ll lose.

In business, you have to care about your team. Regardless of how they act, how much money they make you, or even if they’re the right fit for your organization. You need to care about those people because they’re your people—not because you’re trying to get something out of them.

Last week, I wrote about the importance of satisfying your customer’s needs. Need satisfaction is the cornerstone of my sales process. But this approach isn’t just for prospects. It’s for your team, too.

The clients I meet with day in and day out are CEOs who want their companies to grow. While profitability rules the day, bringing more revenue in the door is certainly a good way to kickstart growth. And how do you do that? You sell, of course. Not exactly.

I was recently running a strategic planning session with one of my oldest clients. This client is exemplary when it comes to company culture and team health. They’re clear, aligned, and dedicated to building the kind of business where people thrive. At this particular meeting, we had a lot of ground to cover. By the end of the session, we’d run out of time for the team health exercises we’d planned to include. Oh well, right? Wrong.

You’ve heard the expression: Revenue is vanity. Profit is sanity. Cash is king. Best I can tell, this quote comes from Alan Miltz, who co-wrote Scaling Up with the great Verne Harnish. And the sentiment is accurate. I know it. You know it. We all know it. If you run out of cash, you’re screwed.

Learn how to strategize for a successful business sale with this free webinar featuring owner-advisors Eric Crews, Darren Fredette, Derek Mohamed, and Charles Henry.

Welcome to the four and final post in our series on leading bravely. Here’s the dirty little secret all business leaders share.‍ Every single one of them has thought about quitting.‍ Correction.‍ Every single one of them thinks about quitting. On a regular basis.‍ For me, it’s like clockwork. Every 3-6 months, I swear I’m going to hang the whole entrepreneur thing up. ‍