Most growth-oriented entrepreneurs are wired for starting a business, not running one. I called them “on-base hitters” in a previous column because unlike “sluggers” in baseball, they focus on getting lots of little wins in the form of starting many small businesses instead of rare but fantastic successes.
Yesterday I described the Kolbe personality test, which allows you to measure yourself on four personality attributes that predict your success and happiness in running a business. People with a high Quick Start score on the Kolbe test thrive in the chaos of a start-up where every day brings new challenges and the need to think peripherally.
One of the reasons Quick Starts rarely grow big businesses is because all of that creativity makes them bad managers. If you’ve ever watched a 230-pound slugger try to lumber his way to first base, its not a pretty sight. Neither is watching a Quick Start entrepreneur try to manage a large team of employees.
When the boss is a high Quick Start, employees get frustrated trying to keep up with all of the new ideas. Employees have trouble prioritizing which brainchild was just a thought and which of the boss’ initiatives needs their urgent attention. People with high Fact Finder scores often see their high Quick Starts boss as an impetuous, superficial risk taker.
That’s why most growth-oriented entrepreneurs are happiest – and most successful -- in the start-up phase. In a start-up, new ideas are valued at a premium and there are only a few employees to manage. To follow our baseball analogy, they are happiest with the quick, regular success of getting on base a lot rather than hitting a rare home run.
Here’s an informal quiz to identify whether you’re best suited to be an on-base hitter or a home run slugger Answer each question with a simple “agree” or “disagree:”
• I get bored easily.
• I feel overwhelmed with complexity.
• I have higher employee turnover than is normal for my industry.
• I like proposing new ideas in a meeting that some people think are “off the wall.”
• I’ve started lots of little businesses before the one I’m running today.
• I’m a big-picture person.
• I started a little business when I was in high school or university.
• I get burnt out when my business gets too complex.
If you answered “agree” to more than four of the questions above, you’re probably a person that thrives on the variety of the start-up and would flounder running a larger business. Focus on just getting on base by getting the business off the ground with revenue and positive cash flow and then either selling it, or installing a manager.
Clearly you won’t earn as much from the sale of one small business than if you hung on and built it up, but by getting out quickly you’ll have the energy and creativity to devote to a new business. Collectively a portfolio of successful start-up businesses in a career could easily surpass the financial success of one home run and you’ll be infinitely happier along the way.
Special to the Globe and Mail
John Warrillow is the author of Built To Sell: Turn Your Business Into One You Can Sell. Throughout his career as an entrepreneur, Mr. Warrillow has started and exited four companies. Most recently he transformed Warrillow & Co. from a boutique consultancy into a recurring revenue model subscription business, which he sold to The Corporate Executive Board in 2008. He is the author of Drilling for Gold and in 2008 was recognized by BtoB Magazine’s “Who’s Who” list as one of America’s most influential business-to-business marketers.
