Last week, one of our Mentoring clients was trapped by Hurricane Sandy.
Stuck in New Orleans with his head trainer, he was forced to spend three extra days away from his Box.
A month before that, another Mentoring client took his girlfriend away for a 2-day break – his first in several years.
Could you do it?
photo credit: Bob.Fornal via photopin
If you were hit by a bus today, would your Box still open on time tomorrow? Would your classes run the same way if you weren’t there? Would your gym family still enjoy the same level of service without your constant presence?
When each of us opened our CrossFit gyms, we dreamed of the Entrepreneurial lifestyle. We wanted to provide something better: to be the best coach, the best boss, and the best life-changer in the business. NONE of us signed up to be a manager.
Until you’ve build systems that make your gym run without you, you don’t have a business: you have a pet.
Here’s how to get yourself free:
- Clearly define every single role in the business (I break this process down in my book, Two-Brain Business.) Yes, your name might appear beside every one at first. That’s fine.
- Measure and record how much time is necessary to complete each role every week.
- Determine the ‘replacement value’ of each role – what would it cost to replace you?
- Create opportunities for staff to ‘grow up’ into each role. This should create more revenue, not cost you more. For example, we group roles together into jobs that will generate more revenue than they cost.
- Monitor, track, evaluate.
- Back off. This can be the hard part. As your brain has wired itself to micromanage, it’s tough to pull away. However, a good entrepreneur isn’t measured by their commitment; a good entrepreneur can replace themselves in their business.
Personally, I maintain a balance that I love: I work and coach for Catalyst 20 hours each week. I spend another 15 writing and editing for CrossFit Media, and a further 20 helping Affiliates with 321Go. Each are rewarding in their own way, and I harvest a lot of joy from all three. It wasn’t easy to back away from the day-to-day stuff at the gym at first, but it sure is great when you get there.
This article was written by Chris Cooper, of Catalyst Fitness/CrossFit Catalyst. He has his own blog, Don’t buy Ads, where he shares relevant info for CrossFit boxes. Chris has also partnered with 321Go Project to offer affiliate business mentoring/coaching to affiliates who are either stuck or are ready to take it to the next level. Find out more about our affiliate business mentoring/coaching strategies >>
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