Omar Zenhom shares four rules for running two businesses: each must work without you, hire a general manager before launching the second, do a quarterly "vampire" audit to see where your time and money actually go, and be honest about why you're doing this instead of just running one well.
If you're gonna run two businesses, here are the rules I would give anyone based on what I learned in 10 years. Rule number one is make sure both businesses can run without you. They don't rely just on you. Rule number two, hire general managers before you start the second one. Don't hire them after things get overwhelming. Do it before. Rule number three, watch for the vampire. Every quarter, look honestly at where your time and your energy and your money's going. Make sure if one business is consuming 80% and the other one is getting 20%, Name it. Be honest. Rule number 4: Know why you're running both. Are you running two businesses because they genuinely complement each other? Or are you running two businesses because you're afraid to let one go? Be honest with yourself. Only you can answer those questions honestly.
