Now THIS is one of my current favorite topics. Too many entrepreneurs are slaves to their businesses when they should be the masters of them. Think about it—do you sacrifice personal time for your business? Do you regularly spend more time working on the weekends rather than playing? Do you forgo social opportunities to work? If so, please consider the possibility that you are working for your business—and it’s NOT working for you!

Hey, there’s an infinite amount of work to do, and good work is “rewarded” with more work! So it’s healthy to have Conditions of Satisfaction for your business, to clearly state what you will and won’t do or tolerate. Just like in a relationship. Use the questions below to help you get a clear picture of your relationship to your business and to help you build some personal strategies for success in this area.  There is no right answer, but some answers will add complexity to your business, and thus, your life. There is nothing wrong with this. The goal here is simply to intentionally design your business – keeping in mind that the successful result is a result NOW.  That is the key to creating CEO Freedom, instead of CEO Prison. 

How many hours do you want to work each week?

What is the “end game” of your business? This is your vision for your business (do it forever and make it part of your lifestyle or build it up and sell it)?

Do you want a business you could run alone and one that requires the help of others?

Do you want employees or contractors?

How many direct reports are you willing to have?

Do you want to self-fund your business or seek outside financing?

What monthly revenue do you require?

What do you want to pay yourself?

Do you want to offer products or services?

If products, digital or physical?

Do you want to sell direct to clients or also add sales channels (such as affiliates, joint venture partners, value-added resellers, strategic alliances and retail/web channels)?

Will you document and follow SOPs and best practices or shoot from the hip?

What tasks do you want to do? Are you willing to do? Must you delegate to remain sane?

Figuring out your answers to these questions and working with others toward these shared results fosters communication and connection. Most importantly, it creates a strategy for success now and that path to CEO freedom that I talk about so much. 

Christine Comaford, CEO Freedom Fighter

PS: If you haven’t gotten my FREE CD on the “6 SECRETS to Creating More Time, Money, Freedom & FUN In Your Business,” you’re simply leaving money on the table.  Click here and let me help you get serious about living a better life and building a bigger success story.  http://www.bit.ly/iBmuI