Ashley Alderson explains the difference between entrepreneurs and CEOs: entrepreneurs hustle and DIY, while CEOs build systems and delegate. Ask yourself three things: Are you outsourcing low-value work? Do you have measurable goals your team is accountable to? Can your company run without you?
Foreign. Business can be a lonely game. But it doesn't have to be. Welcome to Boutique Chat, where we explore community over competition and how to scale your company with the balance and the happiness that we all seek. We'll hear from product based businesses of all types, retailers, E commerce and wholesale brands, along with industry experts shaping the future of our industry. I'm your host, Ashley Alderson from the Boutique Hub and and I can't wait to chat. Okay. You've heard me talk about this idea that there is a difference between being a CEO and being an entrepreneur. And essentially it's like this. Everyone starts their business as an entrepreneur. We're trying to figure it out, we're trying to solve a problem, we're hustling, we're doing all the things, we're maybe diying a little bit just to get our way forward. But eventually we realize, well, the only way to grow is to really be a CEO who values systems and processes and ultimately who understands the relationship between time and money. Because that is the ultimate definition in business. You see, time in this world is the only thing that's limited. Truly. We cannot create any more of it. But money in this world is infinite. And so a CEO does a really good job of understanding how to leverage. If I invest money to create more time, then my business can grow. So if you want to get a quick pulse on where you are, Am I being the CEO? Am I being the entrepreneur? How am I showing up right now? I want to give you three questions to help just judge where am I at on this journey and maybe give you a little bit of insight about where you're going to go next. All right, the first question is this. Are you actively saying no to busy work and asking for help so that you can focus on income generating activity? Are you actively saying no to busy work so that you can focus on income generating activity? Boy, so clear. That's one of the first lessons I learned is where do I need to ask for help? Who can help me with some of the busy work? How do I get this off of my plate? What do I need to say no to? Because as a CEO, I do the hundred dollar an hour jobs and I try to outsource the dollar ten an hour jobs. That's where your leverage really comes from. So how am I doing that? Second question to ask yourself. Do you have clear monthly, quarterly and annual goals that are measured, your team is accountable to and rewarded by? So do you have. I mean, I know January 1st comes around and we all create goals, right? But Are they clear? Are they measured? Are we rewarding to them? Are we holding people accountable to them? Yeah. You want a raise? Well, show me your goals. How many of them do you complete? Or did you just set a big company goal but then didn't distill it down? How is everyone on your team contributing to that big goal? Did you take that big goal and break it down by quarter so that you have 90 day sprints to run in, or did you take that big goal and break it down by month? Okay, in order to do this big thing in January, I've got to do this first. How have you taken that big goal and really broken it down into bite sized pieces and then that is how your team is rewarded and that's how they're held accountable. No raises until these other things are done first. Right? Makes your job a lot easier. Okay, third question you're going to ask yourself. Do you have a long term vision for where the company is going and does it include its ability to operate without you? Ooh, I remember first thinking about this question on my own entrepreneurial journey and going, well, that'll never happen. That's not possible. And sometimes I still think that, right? And I'm like, oh, shoot, I need to do better. But the truth is we all have to start thinking like that. Because if we've built a business that solely relies on us and it solely revolves around us, and our business has become our identity and our identities become our business and we don't have anyone else helping, then our business is at risk. I mean, not only do I have to think about the bus rule, what happens if you get hit by a bus tomorrow, but do you have anything that's marketable to sell down the road or what's your long term strategy really going to be? So I'm not saying that you can't be the fake face of your business. Clearly I'm the face of our business at the Boutique Hub, but what I really strategically worked on was how do I create a SEAL team, 6 of retail experts to surround myself with who are also on the Boutique Hub team. So the value of the Boutique Hub isn't just the value of Ashley Alderson, but it's the value of the Boutique Hub as a brand and Ashley Alderson is a part of that brand. Does that make sense? So how are you building that long term vision, creating a business that's able to operate without you being there or being there as much as you want? Right. You want to go have a vacation, you want to have hobbies, right? That's got to be a part of your dream and your vision too. So I hope these three questions were helpful and insightful and give you just a little bit of direction on your path to continually moving from being a hustling entrepreneur to a steadfast and smart and savvy CEO. You guys have got this. I know you've got this. Thanks for tuning in. I hope you love these episodes of five Minute Friday. They're honestly one of my favorite things to do. The bite sized piece is so fun. So if you love them or you have a topic you want me to cover, send me a message. AJ Alderson is my Instagram. I would love to hear what you're doing while you listen or at the Boutique Hub on Instagram anytime. I'd love to catch up with you guys. So if you love it, please leave a review. We would love your reviews on Spotify or wherever you listen. That also is super helpful. With that, you guys have an amazing week. I will see you inside of our groups and our community at the Boutique Hub and I can't wait to see where your business takes you next. Thanks for being here you guys. Thanks for listening guys. I hope you took away all kinds of nuggets and new ideas from this week's episode. Don't forget to subscribe and leave a rating and review. We love to hear your feedback and give you a chance to be featured on the show each and every week. For more information on our spirit of community over competition and and to access guest downloads and bonuses and all the resources we talked about on the show, head on over to the boutiquehub.com and join the community. We'll see you next week.
