A common theme I’ve noticed from talking to small business owners and solopreneurs is that investing in development for themselves is not seen as a necessity.

They can see the value of investment in their teams, their systems and any training that’s needed to keep the business running. But that’s where it stops.

Affordability is often cited. They can’t afford the time away from the business. They don’t have the budget. There are other things that take priority.

If they manage people, then I often hear that it doesn’t look right for them to be investing in themselves. They should already know what to do. Or the money should be spent on the team first.

But - a bit like the advice on the emergency demos you get on boats and planes - you gotta look after yourself before you can start helping others!

I mean, if you are the top boss in your business, how long do you think you are going to stay top if you don’t invest in your development?

An investment in you is 100% an investment in the development of your business!

When I worked in a corporate role, personal development was a must-do. My CEO had two coaches, a mentor and a team coach. As a director I had a coach and a team coach, as did my colleagues. Talking about our development was a regular feature in our 1:1s and annual reviews, as well as our regular team and organisational development days.

As a result, through clarity in our strategy and a better understanding of our individual contributions, we started to see the dials positively shift in operational performance, staff experience, customer satisfaction, community trust and all the other good stuff that matters.

Even now, running my own business – and as a one-woman business - I continue to have a coach, I have informal mentors I can talk to, and I continue to maintain my professional accreditation. Having these things in place gives me the space to think about my business growth and what I might need to learn in order to take it to that next level. I carve out time during my working hours to focus on this as I know it will make things easier for me and the business.

And the clients I work with have told me that the few hours that they put aside for our sessions is the first time that they’ve really had the chance to step back and look at their business.

Through our work they’ve started to identify what is and isn’t working with their business. They’ve set ambitious goals and a vision for how they want the business to develop and the actions they need to take. And they learn more about themselves and what they personally need to do to step into the space they’ve now opened up.

At the end of it, the investment they’ve made in themselves they have more than given back to the business!

So, if you have been on the fence about investing time in yourself during 2021, then it’s time for a reframe.

And if you want to chat about how I can help you to start taking control, then why not book a free 15-minute inspiration call.