Don’t Just Work In Your Business — Work On Your Business
If you're a business owner, you're probably no stranger to long hours, putting out fires, and juggling everything from client emails to vendor calls. That’s the hustle. But if all your time is spent managing the daily grind, you might be missing the bigger picture.
That’s where this powerful reminder comes in:
“Don’t just work in your business — work on your business.”
Working in your business means handling the day-to-day operations—fulfilling orders, responding to emails, managing clients, troubleshooting problems. It’s the necessary, hands-on work that keeps things moving.
Working on your business means stepping back to evaluate strategy, growth, systems, and scalability. It’s about long-term planning and building a business that doesn’t constantly need you in the weeds.
Why It Matters
Many entrepreneurs wear every hat in the early stages. But if you stay stuck there, you’ll burn out. Your business will only grow as far as your capacity. Eventually, your time becomes the bottleneck.
Working on your business helps you:
Build systems so it can run without you
Hire and delegate with intention
Spot opportunities for growth or innovation
Improve profitability instead of just revenue
Create a business that supports your life—not consumes it
How to Start Working On Your Business
Schedule CEO Time: Set aside a weekly or monthly block where you focus only on strategy, goals, and big-picture thinking.
Audit Your Tasks: List everything you do. What can be automated? Delegated? Eliminated?
Create or Refine Systems: Build repeatable processes for your most common tasks.
Invest in Tools & People: Technology and team members can free you up to do high-level work.
Track the Right Metrics: Are you measuring busyness—or actual business growth?
Your time is valuable. If you’re constantly stuck working in your business, you won’t have the energy or space to scale it. Growth comes when you carve out time to lead—not just do.