Last month’s read for the book club was “Water Baby” by Chioma Okereke. I didn’t finish the book in time for the meeting but I finally completed it last week. And got an idea of what to share next. Something that stood out for me in this story of a young Nigerian woman who’s trying to find her own path.
What is it I’m sharing this time?
It’s the power of outside perspective in your business.
You see, Baby had a boat, one boat, she was using as taxi to earn money. She was doing other things as well but this was her favorite activity. And, thanks to her personal journey and a mentor in the face of Mama Jumbo, she bought a couple more boats at the end of the story to expand her business. It was actually Mama Jumbo who encouraged Baby to pave her own path and showcased what it was like to be a successful businesswoman in the community.
So, without further ado, let’s dive into the outside perspective you can benefit from when it comes to growing and scaling your business.
The Power of Outside Perspective in Business Growth
Before we review the various people who can help you on your entrepreneurial journey, I’d like us to pause and take a step back. It’s important to consider the “why”. Why outside perspective matters and how it can benefit you?
There’s a saying I first heard either when I was in the ACES program or with the ASK program. I’m not sure and it probably doesn’t matter. What’s important is that this saying stayed with me:
“You can’t read the label from inside the jar.”
Although it’s unclear where it originated (it’s often attributed to Alan Bennett according to the AI summary I just checked), the idea is pretty clear. Whether it’s about the business or your personal life, it’s difficult to see the whole picture from your own perspective only.
Case in point, I was doing work for a client recently, checking the online presence of her business and updating some listings when it hit me. Why am I not doing this same thing for my own business?
A lot of times, we forget to apply our own advice to ourselves. This is one reason why outside perspective is so helpful.
It’s also beneficial because it allows you to get a different view. Which is so valuable for solopreneurs. Building a business on your own is not easy. Doubts and worries creep in. Having someone from the outside to validate your journey or show you a path forward is liberating.
And data from various studies supports the power of outside perspective in business. Here are just a few examples:
- Small businesses with outside perspective (coaching, consulting, mentoring, etc.) are 30% more likely to achieve long-term growth
- Coaching clients, specifically, show 22% faster decision-making
- Solopreneurs working with advisors, coaches, consultants, or mentors, report 30% increase in client acquisition
In other words, businesses with external support consistently report more growth, better decision-making, improved resilience, less stress, and significantly higher long-term survival rates than business operating in isolation.
So, now that we covered why this matters and what impact it can have on your firm, let’s see who can help you on this wonderful entrepreneurial roller coaster journey.
People Who Support Business Owners
When it comes to getting that outside perspective you can probably guess the various experts you can reach out to, starting with your friends and family. Yes, they might not be “experts” but sometimes a friendly shoulder is everything you need. And when it comes to the experts you can work with one or more of the following: mentor, advisor, coach, or consultant. Let’s take a look at each of them separately.
The Role of Mentoring in Building a Business
Mentor: a person who gives help and advice to a less experienced and often younger person especially in a professional or academic context
Mentors are usually people who have “been there and done that.” Think of Legal (David “Legal” Siegel) in The Lincoln Lawyer Netflix series. Legal is a retired lawyer who used to work with Mickey Haller’s late father. And every season, with every big case, Mickey would meet with Legal and get advice. Interestingly, many times, Legal was acting more as a coach, asking open-ended questions instead of providing straightforward solutions.
Mama Jumbo in “Water Baby” is also a mentor to Baby.
You might also have a mentor. Someone who is a role model in a way.
Many times, this type of relationship is informal. You find a business owner in the same industry who is happy and willing to share his or her experience with you. Sometimes this is in the form of direct guidance and advice and other times it’s more subtle push.
Unlike some of the other support roles, it might be harder to find a mentor. As I mentioned, the relationship is usually informal. It’s a bit more like a friendship where you meet occasionally and discuss your business and life.
What’s great about having a mentor is that this person has been in your shoes. You are getting support from someone who knows the industry and the type of business you have. They know what it’s like to work evenings and weekends, to spend months looking for an employee for this person to leave in a week after starting, to go from bank to bank looking for a loan and be rejected for various reasons… They know the downs and the ups. The good and the bad. And can help you navigate this treacherous path with more ease and calm.
If you have a mentor, congratulations! This is such a gift.
If you don’t have a mentor yet, don’t despair. Keep your eyes open and maybe one day you’ll find one. But, for now, there are a few other people who can step in and help you scale your business.
When you need a mentor: You want wisdom from someone ahead of you
The World of Business Advisors
Advisor: someone who gives advice
Advisors are typically experts who provide specific recommendations and, yes, advice. This is where we step into formal relationships and engagements. You would need to pay for the services of an advisor who would typically offer expert guidance in a specific area such as finances. And that guidance is based on their expertise and knowledge.
Working with advisor is usually about achieving a certain goal and making informed decisions along the way. And as I mentioned, advisors usually specialize in a certain area. In addition to financial advisor, there are also marketing, legal, HR, operations, management, tax, sales, and strategy advisors.
Advisors usually work with companies for long periods of time (can be decades) and at some point, the relationship can become less formal and turn more into mentoring.
When you need an advisor: You need expert strategic recommendations
The Function of Consultants in Scaling a Business
Consultant: 1: one who consults another 2 : one who gives professional advice or services : expert
Consultants are also experts who help you solve a specific problem and implement a solution. Similarly to advisors, they guide you based on their knowledge and expertise. What makes them different from advisors is that in some cases (we do this for some of our clients), consultants get in the trenches with you and do the work necessary to execute the plan. So, they give the recommendations/plan/roadmap and then also do some or all of the work.
Another difference between consultants and advisors is that consultants usually work with companies for a shorter period of time (up to a few years).
You can think of it this way. You have a project that needs to be done. For example, create and run a social media campaign in the next 6 months. This is when you might want to work with a marketing consultant.
Or, maybe, you want to double your business and hire your first employee. This is when you work with us and our Thrive360 program. We come in, assess the situation, provide the roadmap, and help you double your business and hire your first employee.
When you need a consultant: You need a problem solved and executed
The Significance of Business Coaches
Coach: a: a private tutor b: one who instructs or trains; especially : one who instructs players in the fundamentals of a sport and directs team strategy
The fourth and last type of professional you can work with to help you grow your business is a professional coach. One big misconception with coaches is that people usually look for people who “have been there and done that.” Which is not what a professional coach does.
Professional coaches don’t provide advice. They help you figure things out on your own and overcome obstacles – both internal (e.g. the doubt that creeps in every time sales are down) and external (e.g. the need to find a tool to automate your contract signing process).
According to ICF (the International Coaching Federation), coaches partner with clients “in a thought-provoking and creative process that inspires them to maximize their personal and professional potential.”
A business coach is there to help you with goal setting and achievement, keep you accountable, support your personal development, and occasionally provide feedback, observations, or advice.
The main idea behind professional coaching, including business coaching, is that you are the expert in your life and business. You have all the necessary knowledge and answers. And if you don’t know something, you can always google it or ask your favorite AI tool.
This is why coaches are not supposed to tell you what to do. They are there to help you figure out what to do and then keep you accountable to actually do it.
When you need a coach: You feel stuck or need accountability
The Power of the Mastermind
There’s one other type of person who can help with outside perspective.
Who am I talking about?
Other business owners.
They might be in similar or completely different industry. Even the stage of the business can be different. Yet, these are people who can play the role of all others – mentors, advisors, consultants, or coaches.
There are couple of main ways you can engage with fellow founders. One is to organize an accountability group where each of you shares what you are working on and others keep you accountable.
The other form, which I personally prefer, is the mastermind.
It’s usually nice to have up to 4 people in the mastermind. This is how many people I have in my mastermind. We meet once a week over Zoom and spend the first 20 to 30 minutes sharing quick updates about the past week. Then, for the next 25 to 30 minutes, we have a hot seat. One of us shares an issue or topic that the group can help with and we work together to solve it. Then, we wrap things up with commitment for the next week for each of us. And because there are 4 of us, each one has a hot seat every month.
When you need a peer / mastermind: You want support and outside perspective from fellow founders
Business Support Experts at a Glance
All these roles might be a bit confusing, even after reading the previous sections. What I find useful is having a quick summary with the key details to help you figure out who to contact and when.
|
Business Expert |
Relationship Style |
Typical Engagement Length |
Primary Role |
Best For |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Mentor |
Informal |
Long-term |
Shares experience, perspective, and encouragement |
Navigating challenges with someone who’s “been there before” |
|
Advisor |
Paid professional relationship |
Long-term |
Provides strategic recommendations in a specific area of expertise |
Making informed business decisions and planning ahead |
|
Consultant |
Paid project-based relationship |
Short- to mid-term |
Solves a specific problem and may help implement the solution |
Executing projects, improving systems, or scaling operations |
|
Coach |
Paid goal-based relationship |
Short- to mid-term |
Helps with clarifying goals, overcoming obstacles, and staying accountable |
Strengthening mindset, improving leadership, and maintaining consistent execution |
|
Peer / Mastermind |
Informal and collaborative |
Mid- to long-term |
Offers mutual support, accountability, and fresh perspectives |
Reducing isolation and brainstorming ideas and solutions |
Your Turn
Now that you are familiar with the various people who can help you grow your business (from advisors and consultants to coaches, mentors, and peers), it’s time to evaluate your personal support system.
Who are the people who already support you in some capacity when it comes to running your business?
Where do you see gaps?
Based on where your business is right now and what your BHAG is, what type of support you need?
These are just a few questions you can start with to figure out what kind of outside perspective can help you scale your business further.
As with everything related to building your business, it’s not about going overboard and getting an advisor, consultant, coach, mentor, and mastermind group right away. Maybe, at some point, you will have all these perspectives. Maybe not. Chances are that for different stages of your business and different projects you will need different experts. This is why this article is here. To help you figure out what outside perspective to look for depending on your current goal.
