Escaping Juggle Street: The Blueprint for Ongoing Business Success

In this episode, hosts Nicky and Ness explore the essential formula for business success, emphasising the critical balance between business, team, and personal growth. They uncover the trajectory of success, delving into the perturbation point where many leaders find themselves questioning their journey. From the challenges of "Juggle Street" to overcoming business chaos, they offer actionable strategies to shift towards peak performance and smart growth.

Episode Highlights:

• The Trajectory of Success: The hosts highlight the correlation between longevity in business and achieving holistic success, including revenue, profit, personal growth, and team expansion.
• The Perturbation Point: They define this pivotal moment where leaders question the sustainability of their current approach, signaling the need for change and growth.
• Challenges Faced: Nicky and Ness discuss common challenges such as feeling overwhelmed, perpetual busyness, and business chaos, all of which hinder growth and sustainability.
• Potential Outcomes: They outline three potential outcomes at the perturbation point: regression, plateauing, or proactive growth.
• Moving Forward: To overcome challenges and embrace growth, they introduce the concepts of peak performance and smart growth, focusing on culture, operating rhythms, and skill development.

Ness and Nicky emphasise the importance of proactively addressing challenges and implementing strategies for sustained business growth. They invite listeners to leverage the provided resources to navigate the perturbation point and embark on a journey towards peak performance and smart growth.

Learn more about Nicky and Ness https://businesstogether.com.au

Buy a copy of Healthy Hustle: The New Blueprint to Thrive in Business & Life www.healthyhustle.com.au

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Nicky LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/connectwithnicky/
Ness LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/vanessamedling/

Give us a call
Nicky Miklos-Woodley 0403 191 404
Vanessa (Ness) Medling 0400 226 875

Or send us an email hello@businesstogether.com.au

Music by Jules Miklos-Woodley

Chapters

• 0:04 Navigating the Business Growth Challenges
• 5:58 Navigating Business Growth and Peak Performance
• 14:21 Shifting From Chaos to Smart Growth

Transcript

Nicky: 0:04

Welcome to the Smart Business Growth Podcast with Nicky and. Ness.

Ness: 0:11

We would like to acknowledge the traditional custodians of country, the Turrbal and Bunurong people of Brisbane and Melbourne respectively, where Nicky and I both work and live, both work and live.

Nicky: 0:26

Hello again this week, beautiful listeners and watchers, hello. Now you know that our mission is to help businesses, help organizations, thrive. We want to make sure that the business is thriving, the team is thriving and that you too are thriving as the business leader, because so often you're kind of put last, you're put to the bottom of the pile, and we want to make sure that the business, the team and you are equally prioritized. My friends, and for every level of success in business, in life, there's actually a formula that can be followed. There's always a blueprint, there's always clues to success, as they say, and when we can be aware of what those clues to success are or be proactive in reaching out for and searching for the formula for success. It means that you can accelerate your growth, and you know we're all about smart growth in business. We're all about people leadership for peak performance, and I mean that is all about smart growth in business. We're all about people leadership for peak performance, and I mean that is literally working smarter, not harder. So we thought why not share with you what we believe to be a very important critical formula for success when it comes to thriving? In order to do that, I want you to think about how long you've been in business, now a lot of the listeners and viewers you've been in business Now a lot of the listeners and viewers. You've been in business for five years, 10 years, 20 years, or perhaps you're a business leader. So the business has been around for some time and you've probably been a leader for quite some time.

Nicky: 1:59

What we find is there's a trajectory, there's a link between how long you've been in the business or in the role and your success. So success could be revenue, success it could be profit. Success it's cash flow. It could be going on amazing holidays, buying properties, putting your kids through school, growing your team, business expansion. You know when we're talking success, we're talking holistic success across all areas of business and life. And typically what happens the longer you're in business, the more successful it becomes. Congratulations, by the way, because there's lots of trials and tribulations for you to get there and there comes a tipping point and if you're watching on YouTube, you'll see how it's like. I've got an invisible whiteboard in front of me. I'm drawing this up.

Nicky: 2:46

There comes a tipping point on the trajectory of success where, all of a sudden, there's questioning. You know you've had to work really hard to get to where you have Chances are. You've had to hustle, and unresourcefully hustle. You've had to work some long hours. You've really had to make some sacrifices to get to where you are today, and it leaves business owners questioning, sometimes to the extent questioning is it even worth it? Is it even worth it? Or at least wondering what's next? And that what's next could be what's next for the business, or it could be what's next for you personally, could be what's next for the team, or it could be what's next for you personally, could be what's next for the team, but oftentimes it's what's next for me, because I'm not sure if I want to keep going the way that I am.

Nicky: 3:34

And what we know to be true is that what got you here to this level of success is not going to be what takes you to your next frontier of growth, because you still have goals. You're not ready to walk away and give up, but we have to look at this. We call this the perturbation point. It's actually a growth set point, in that there is one of three things that can happen at this point, and we're going to take you through why you're at this point.

Nicky: 4:00

If you're listening and resonating, it could be because you're at the perturbation point, or if you're not fully resonating. Maybe you're not quite there or you've just come through it. Still listen, because this can be helpful to make sure that you avoid falling into this trap. Now, perturbation is uncomfortable, it's discomfort, but on the other side of that can be exponential growth. And, as I said, there's three things that can happen, which we're going to take you through. But before we take you through, what could happen, nessa, I'd love for you to share. Why do business owners and leaders even get to this point? I mean, they've been in business for a while, they've got great success, so why does this perturbation point happen, where they start to question why am I here, what am I doing or what's next?

Ness: 4:46

Yeah, great question. And look, I really think there's a few things that are going on simultaneously. So we have this sense that, even though we've got a team, you still, as the leader of the business, feel like you are on juggle street, right, You're everything to everyone. Like you are on juggle street, right, You're everything to everyone. There's so much on your plate. There's that, and this discomfort is I have had success, I have been able to achieve these results, and I'm tired and I don't want to keep doing this for another five years, 10 years, whatever that is. And so when we look at juggle street and we look at you know what's going on around you. It's your team, are doers. They're not decision makers. They really are reliant on you in order to be able to achieve the outcome. So you've got to be there, or you feel you have to be there. When you step out of the business, they're constantly ringing you, texting you, getting in touch with you, asking a question that you know they can solve, that you know they know the answer to, but they continually draw on you. So that's one of the key areas that we notice, Another one we call business chaos.

Ness: 5:58

So this is where sometimes a business grows at a rate that is so fast that the structure isn't in place to help support that. So we're reinventing the wheel all the time. It's that chaotic sense of I've just got to get through today, I've just got to get through this week, I've just got to get through this busy phase and then I can sit down and step back and plan out what's going to happen next. Because there is that lack of planning. The cash flow is up and down. There's like there's a sense that you are working really hard and doing great things and then you'll hit a point where your cash flow just you're going. Oh, my God, why am I tapping into my funds now? Why am I having to support this business? I just want profits to be really clear across the line.

Ness: 6:44

And I think that you know, when we're stuck here, when we're in this chaotic sense, there's a sense of not understanding or knowing what to focus on first to get us out of that. So we're just sucked into the vortex, into the whirlpool, and we just keep going and reinventing the wheel every day, knowing in our head that something has to change. And this is the perturbation point, right, this is the point where we're saying I can't again. That's that I can't keep going at this pace, and because the other impact of that, obviously for you in your, if you're feeling like this and if this is what's going on in your business, you're just stuck in the busy trap.

Ness: 7:21

It's just that that the hamster wheel, you're going, going, going, but you actually don't feel like you're going on any kind of direction forwards, and so it's a critical point to be able to sort of go whoa, something's going to change here, right. And so when we're in this kind of situation, you mentioned earlier the three different outcomes that could happen. Let's lead to that now, Nick. What are those three different outcomes?

Nicky: 7:51

I also just want to say they're really important points that you've talked through. And it's not just you that will be stuck in the busy trap. Your team will be stuck in the busy trap and that just adds to the chaos and the feeling of Juggle Street. So it's so connected. When you stay in that place of Juggle Street business, chaos, busy trap, your team are in those states. What's going to happen is your business can go backwards.

Nicky: 8:16

If I had a whiteboard in front of me right now, in front of you, I would be drawing a dotted red line back down the graph because it's not sustainable. Your team are going to end up being disengaged. They'll have enough of it. They're going to want to walk away as well. That's going to put holes in the delivery for your clients. You are going to be dropping more balls. Your team will be the impact on your clients, the impact on your people, the impact on your blah, blah, blah. Can't talk so many P's. The impact on your clients, the impact on your people, the impact on your can't talk so many P's impact on your profit is going to.

Nicky: 8:49

You know it's quite serious. You will end up resenting your business. You potentially will end up hitting burnout wall as your team may as well and ultimately you're probably going to walk away from the business. And you know there's a. It's interesting 80% of businesses fail at the 20 year mark. 80% of businesses fail at the 20-year mark. 80% of businesses fail at the 20-year mark. We're out of startup phase. These are businesses that know a thing or two about their market, about their clients, about building a great culture and business, and yet, due to poor cashflow management or no strategy, due to not being able to upskill their staff appropriately and this is a clincher due to being stuck in the day-to-day weeds of the business they're the three main reasons businesses fail.

Ness: 9:35

Yeah.

Nicky: 9:36

And so that is exactly juggle street, business chaos and busy trap. That's what we're talking about. This is not just our observations that we've seen. This is the data. The research also says that these are the reasons that businesses are failing, and no wonder, because when you're over it, you don't have the energy and time, like Ness said. So that's one thing that's going to happen, one of three options. You hit your perturbation point and things go backwards, team leave, you're leaking and you walk away from the business. The second thing that can happen is you kind of go.

Nicky: 10:07

It's like what we talked about in episode one If you didn't listen, go back and listen. When you're in that growth phase, it's like ah, good enough, yeah, good enough is enough. Or if you're in build phase, it's oh, I'm just going to bury my head in the sand, we'll just suck it up and we'll keep going as is. And so the business plateaus. It's not, it doesn't grow. Eventually, if you plateau too long, you're going to end up going backwards If nothing changes. Nothing changes. So you can either plateau but you know we don't want to be all doom and gloom in this episode and there is a solution which I'm going to hand back to you again, ness, because there is actually a way to get off, juggle straight out of busy trap, to not be in business chaos. And when you can embrace those principles which Ness will share with you now, then you can actually have that trajectory of growth, go on that next growth curve to achieve the next iteration, whatever that looks like for you?

Ness: 11:02

Yeah, for sure, and that's what we want for you. We definitely don't want you to go backwards and give up. We know that the plateau that can be about exhaustion, but the next frontier is around solving the problems that have got us to this point and doing something different in order to get a different result.

Nicky: 11:20

Have got us to this point and doing something different in order to get a different result. Do the Smart Growth Survey in under 60 seconds to get your hands on our Smart Growth Blueprint. You'll get immediate access to our four favorite strategies for sales, profit planning and team, and you'll identify which phase of smart growth your business is currently in whether it's crisis, build growth or momentum mode so that you can move your way to the next phase with ease. All you have to do is click the link in the show notes.

Ness: 11:53

So, when we're talking about Juggle Street, what we want to do is move towards peak performance. Now, what's included in peak performance, or how do we get to peak performance Really? What's included in peak performance or how do we get to peak performance Really? It's about three key areas that we're looking at in order to move the dial to get out of that juggle street place. So the first one would be looking at the culture that you've created within the business. So, as the business owner, the senior leader in the business, you are the one who sets the culture, but it can't just be you alone. The culture is made up of the people who live and breathe the vision, who bring their behaviours into work, who are either growth mindset or a what's the word? I'm looking for Fixed mindset.

Ness: 12:35

Fixed mindset, thank you. So the culture is around the vibe that people want to be a part of that. They're excited to come to work that, they're enthusiastic and they believe in why you started the business and what you do and what you achieve in the world. Just briefly, the other area that we would really want to look at to move from Juggle Street over to Peak Performance, is this area of operating rhythms. Now, operating rhythms is things like the structures that you have in place, the checklist, the KPIs. This is where we stop reinventing the wheel day in, day out and reworking because that is so costly to your business and we start to say, okay, it's going to take more time right now to work out the process and structure around how we do what we do, but in the future it's going to pay off because I'm going to be able to train people so much more quickly and I'm not needed. My knowledge base isn't needed on a day-to-day basis in the business because I've got that out of my head and people are starting to follow the structures to make it happen. And then the third area that we know can make that big difference between juggle street and peak performance is all around skill set. So if you've got a cultural match in your team, we need to make sure that they have skills that match that as well. So what are you doing to develop your team, to coach your team, to mentor your team, to really help them feel empowered to be the very best that they can be and to buy into it in a way that they're confident they can deliver on those results. And you know side note here the fact that if you've got operating structure, operating rhythms in place, that's going to help them to build their skill set and their confidence. So these all interrelate to each other. So that's one way that we can move into peak performance, which gets us into that next level of growth.

Ness: 14:21

If we look at the business chaos, what we want to do is shift from business chaos over to smart growth, and so in order to do that, we need to step back and plan, not just us, but we need to make sure that we're sharing this structure with our teams that they've bought in. They understand what's the destination that we're driving towards here. And therefore, what do I need to do this week? Today, you know, in those micro moments of decisions about what I have to focus on, we're identifying and mapping out the week ahead, the month ahead, the 90 days, the six months, the 12 months, so that what we're focusing on is moving us closer to where we want to be and that chaotic craziness has gone, because I'm actually focusing on things that matter and are important.

Ness: 15:11

The other key area here is sales. Like you know, we need to make sure that the business is continuing to bring customers through the door and retain the customers that we have. So what's the skill set for you and your team in relation to sales and making sure that you know that's the backbone of the business and, of course, my high horse, it's about profit. So we can't just look at the metrics around, like we have to know what goals we're going for financially. We need to know what our turnover is.

Ness: 15:40

We need to know what our turnover is, we need to know what our targets are, but, importantly, we actually really need to make sure that we're making a profit, because there is no point in having a business that's turning over multi-million dollars if your expenses are multi-million dollars, like that's just not economical sense or, you know, just makes no sense at all. So when those three areas are working, then we are moving towards smart growth, and so now we get this combination of peak performance, smart growth, and we're ready to build that momentum, to head up into the trajectory, and if you're watching, or if you have the imaginary board, I'm pointing upwards. So that is where we're going, instead of falling back and plateauing. Is there anything I've missed? Do you reckon, nick?

Nicky: 16:26

No, I think that that is a really great explanation of how to get off juggle straight and business chaos and also a reminder that when you have that place of smart growth, when you're leveraging smart growth, when you do have peak performance, that is the formula, that is the only way that you can get off busy trap and if you're watching I'm like making some serious eye contact with you now.

Nicky: 16:50

So the only way that you can get move from busy trap to time freedom is to have smart growth and peak performance. And I think where a lot of business owners and leaders kind of well, I'm going to say fail. I don't mean this in a judgmental bad way, but what we do is we try we're like, oh, we're so busy we don't have time to think about me, we don't have time for me time. I mean, how many conversations have we had with business owners that I don't have time for me time? And you know, we kind of get it because the reason that you don't is because you don't have paid performance in the team. So then you're relied upon in the business and you're not leveraging smart growth. So if you do want some time freedom and have that holiday and be switched off, you've got to have these things pumping in your business, because it's actually the only way that you can get there without everything falling over.

Ness: 17:39

Yeah, absolutely, and you know, this is where we want to support you to go, and that's what these podcast episodes are all about giving you tips and tricks and techniques in order to be able to move towards peak performance, smart growth. So, as we wrap up today, nick, and we do our actionable action, yes, what do you think is the key action our listeners and viewers can take in the next 24 hours that's going to help them to create this shift to, if they're in the perturbation point, and everything you said at the beginning is resonating yeah, how do we make sure we don't go backwards? How do we make sure we don't go backwards? How do we make sure we don't plateau and how do we start getting on that trajectory upwards again?

Nicky: 18:18

yeah, I think the first thing is to really reflect on and consider what has come up for you listening to this conversation, because chances are there was something that Ness and I shared. There might be many things, but there would be at least one thing where we shared a certain challenge or a point where maybe you had a bit of a little sick feeling in your tummy or a butt clench moment or you're like, oh gosh, I relate to that so much. So think about what that thing is, because that could be what's holding you back from that next growth curve. And, as Ness said, if you don't pay attention to that because it's really easy to do avoidance mode, bury your head in the sand that's good enough, but if you don't pay attention to that and put something in place to turn that around, that could be the little thing that becomes the big thing, or maybe it's already a big thing. And so the first actionable action is pay attention to what came up for you.

Nicky: 19:15

What is that thing? If there's multiple, which there might be, because you know we talk through different challenges around people and sales and profit then kind of pick what you think the number one thing is that's really holding you back at the moment or having the biggest impact. You know, like if it's profit that makes sense, that's having a big impact because you could be nailing your sales but you don't have any money in your back pocket. So pick what that one thing is, and that's what we want you to focus on to find a solution, for we have some strategies to help you in each of those four key areas. So, if you haven't already, we've got the 60 second survey that gives you our smart growth blueprint and we're really passionate about sharing this, because you may have heard us say already and if you haven't I'll say it again it's literally the strategies that our clients are using and loving, and what I mean by strategy is we have if profit was the thing that you're like oh, I feel a bit sick about this has created a really simple profit planner, and if you do the 60 second survey, you'll see what phase of smart growth you're in, but you'll also then that's going to prompt us to email you the profit planner. You'll automatically get that.

Nicky: 20:23

If the profit wasn't the thing that got your butt clenching, maybe it was team. We've got a team code guide, a best practice, team communication code, so it's PDF. You can have a look at it and go right. What's missing from what I'm doing to help create that empowered team? If it was sales, if you're feeling that you're a bit reactive, I've shared a strategy to double your productivity in one hour for sales. Like it's really good. It's really really good.

Ness: 20:47

It's really good.

Nicky: 20:49

And what was the other thing we had in there?

Ness: 20:51

Oh, and prioritizing yeah, to help you prioritize.

Nicky: 20:55

Yeah. So if you're like, oh, I'm winging it, like I just I'm getting to the end of the week, I feel like I've done so much, but I feel like I haven't done anything, you know that feeling. Yeah, we've got a really simple tool that's going to help you and your team prioritize. So all of those tools might be handy for you, but it might just be that one thing. So, in summary, you're going to reflect on what was the thing that stood out. We've got to get that sorted. Oh, oscar's joining us. There you go. He's like, yeah, he's championing you. And then Oscar's a dog. Oh, oscar's one of my dogs, one of my many dogs. No, not that many. Thanks for clarifying that, ness. So, yeah, so reflect what was the biggest point that you needed to focus on and then use one of these tools and strategies. You don't have to use what we're giving you, we're just giving it to you anyway but find something that you start doing differently.

Ness: 21:43

I love it so much. And, of course, the link to that smart growth blueprint is down below in the show notes. So, as we wrap up for another week, we want to thank you for listening, watching, finding a way to get into your ears, and we look forward to seeing you next week, see you later.

Ness: 22:00

Thanks for listening to today's ep. If you loved what you heard, connect with us over on LinkedIn and let's continue the conversation over there. Nicky and I are obsessed with helping businesses install smart business growth strategies and leveraging people leadership for peak performance. We bring two business minds and two perspectives into your business, and our number one goal is to make sure that your business is thriving, your team are thriving and you are thriving. We offer a 30-day business diagnostic, taking you from chaos to clarity in just 30 days. Are you curious to find out more? Send us an email or go old school and give us a call. Until next time, happy listening and here's to thriving in business and in life.