T he Seven Priorities of High Impact Business Owners are your keys to leading your business and your teams beyond mediocrity to higher levels of success. Focusing on these priorities – in order – is essential for remarkable results.
This article is the first in a series and serves an introduction. You can find a list of all articles in the series HERE.
High Impact Business Owners see the world differently and act accordingly. They see possibilities in the world around them, in their teams, for their families, and themselves – in that order. They take transformative action, improving things for the better. They create opportunities and guide others to do the same. They have influence and as a result, they have impact far beyond themselves.
Being a High Impact Business Owner means advancing your business and teams as a servant-leader, focusing on what your business and each individual on your team requires in a leader.
Comparison of Mediocre and High Impact Business Owners
There are significant differences between mediocre owners and High Impact Business Owners. These differences are the basis for the Seven Priorities.
Which Owner are you?
More importantly: Which Owner would your employees say you are?
This series will create clarity and enable you to be the โHigh Impact Business Owner your company and employees deserve.โ
You wonโt have to wonder or answer the question for yourself; company results and team engagement and capabilities will be your answer.
Your team will respond to the question of “which owner are you” with enthusiasm.
The Seven Priorities are focused on you as the servant-leader of your company. Aligning your focus and activities with them will free you from worry, position your teams for success, and have a positive impact on your family.
The Essence of Leadership
Before we move forward into the series, we need to define leadership.
One of my favorite leadership quotes is from Carly Fiorina. She served as Hewlett-Packardโs CEO between 1999 and 2005. Ms. Fiorina was the first woman to serve in that capacity for a Fortune Top 20 Company. She also ran for the US Senate in 2010 and was a Presidential candidate in 2016.
Carly Fiorina reveals that the essence of leadership is โSeeing possibilities, changing the order of things for the better, and unlocking potential in others.โ (From an interview on Catalyst Podcast #503 โHow to Unlock Potential in Yourself and Othersโ 12:35)
Her words set in context the opportunity that High Impact Business Owners are uniquely positioned to embody the essence of leadership.
Ownership in this context is a threefold challenge and opportunity:
- We are in a position to see possibilities for our company, our people, and ourselves
- We have the obligation and capacity to assess the status quo, then identify and pursue improvements
- We have the responsibility and the opportunity to unlock the potential in each of our team members.
Now ask yourself a second question: โAs the owner of my company, do I embody the essence of leadership?โ
Just as with the first question of “Which owner are you?” this question will be answered by your team members. Donโt worry if you canโt answer or are unsure how your employees might answer today; the Seven Priorities of High Impact Business Owners will enable you and your team to do that.
Your Company, Team, and Family Deserve Your Bestย
So, why use the word โdeserveโ?
It is a forceful word because it implies obligation.
I often help clients understand that โYour vision, cause, employees, volunteers, team, supporters, and those you serve, are worthy of your best at all times.โ I've also written “How To Be the Intentional Leader Your Company Deserves,” which explores a framework for being the leader your company deserves.
When we set Fiorinaโs essence of leadership in the context of deserving, we commit to be High Impact Business Owners. We have a responsibility to our company, team members, and family to live up to the essence of leadership.
We consciously lead in the ways our company, team, and family deserve.
High Impact Business Owners embody the essence of leadership. They act knowing that their company, teams, and family deserve their best.
Why Financials Are Not the First Priority
In the next articles of this series, weโll explore the first of the Seven Priorities of High Impact Business Owners. The first priority has nothing to do with finances and everything to do with it. We won't talk directly about finances until we reach the 7th Priority, โEnsure Fiscal Security & Opportunity.โ
Mediocre owners focus on the 7th Priority first, often minimizing the importance of the first six.
A mediocre ownerโs emphasis on the last Priority seems logical because it is measurable and serves as evidence of success. It is easy to assign action items to team members and measure them by the financial results created by the business.
Financial information is easy to see in reports, and it indicates performance. It is a familiar place to focus our energies and is the most tangible of the 7 Priorities.
Focusing first on the 7th Priority, however, means you trade your best results for mediocre outcomes, which might be good but will never be the best. This may not be obvious now; it will become clear as you read this series.
High Impact Business Owners approach the Seven Priorities in order. If you do the same, You will find the 7th Priority produces far better results, because it has a solid foundation.
The First Priority – Vision – is Your Foundation
Focusing first on Vision and prioritizing it daily will pay significant dividends for your company and teams. Your words and most importantly, your actions, will set the foundation necessary for your company and teams to achieve remarkable results
The next article in this series dives into the 1st Priority for High Impact Business Owners: Define and Communicate Vision. Making Vision your top priority is your first step in being a servant-leader for your company and teams.
Are you up for the challenge of being a High Impact Business Owner?
This article is second in a series on the Seven Priorities of High Impact Business Owners.
The Seven Priorities reflects work I get to do with clients (identities changed to protect confidentiality). The series is aligned with my main speaking and workshop topic on being the leader you company, team, and family deserve.
The first article introduces the series and the next article calls High Impact Business Owners to Drive Culture.
Notes:
- This article was also published on LinkedIn and Medium.
- Carly Fiorina Quote source: (From an interview on Catalyst Podcast #503 โHow to Unlock Potential in Yourself and Othersโ 12:35)
Photo Sources:
Light Bulb in Hands: Ricardo Annandale via Unsplash; Hand with Key: Abbie Parks via Unsplash; Coins and Jar: Josh Appel via Unsplash
