By Rebekah Hill
Robert Herjavec knows a thing or two about starting, growing, and running a business. As one of North America’s most recognizable business leaders, Herjavec is a true from-scratch entrepreneur, tech leader, motivator, and he really is “the nice shark.” I was so excited to be able to learn from him at a recent conference I attended. You can tell from the photo that I was not at all chill about meeting him. That fan girl grin on my face is so embarrassing! He is the most famous person I’ve ever had the opportunity to meet. Not only that, we share the same initials. So basically we have a lot in common. So we are practically besties now. All kidding aside, yes, he is a Shark Tank star but more importantly to me, he runs a 1.7 billion dollar (that’s Billion with a “B”) Managed Security Services firm. Computer Depot Business Solution is not quite on that level yet, lol. Nevertheless, Herjavec understands the industry and he shared some great insights and guidance for business leaders, much of which is applicable to all professionals.
Growth Depends On You
Speaking at an IT conference in Nashville, Herjavec said something that really stuck with me. "If you want to run a successful business, you need to be a student of growth and a student of learning. Your business isn't really going to grow if you aren't willing to grow,” he said. Herjavec always has pen and paper in hand. I was surprised to see that when he took the stage, he had a page full of notes that he had just taken while the presenter before him was speaking. “The bigger the money, the bigger the growth, the faster you need to learn." For a person running a billion dollar plus company Herjavec knows how to keep it real. He keeps up with what is going on in the industry but he always knows his numbers. He recommends looking at your key numbers every day. "Don't let your ego fool you when you look at data." According to Herjavec, your numbers are one of the biggest predicators of failure. “Your business has a heartbeat and if you don't know that heartbeat, you're going to have a heart attack. The numbers tell a story of what your business is and there's some basic data that you must look at; revenue, EBITDA, churn... There are certain numbers you got to know every day. They have to be a part of you, and you have to share those with your team.” Numbers are different for every single business, but ALL business owners need to figure out what they have to track. "If you don't love numbers, you don't love business," says Herjavec.
Build The Team You Need Not One You Like
You don't need to be friends with everyone you work with to have a winning team nor do you have to like everyone. A successful business owner understands that this is not the meaning of teamwork. "Teamwork is not a bunch of people who like each other. Teamwork is a bunch of people who respect each other and understand the mission and the goal of every person on the team,” said Herjavec. “If they happen to like each other, that's okay but it is not criteria for building a great team. You have to have people on your team with different voices, dissenting voices so that you don't drink your own Kool-Aid.”
What are you doing right now to grow? How are you trying to grow personally? Are you willing to learn and try new things? Are you building the team you need, not necessarily the one you want? One last question, what is holding you back? If that something is lack of good, reliable IT Support, we would love to talk. Go to https://www.ComputerDepotBusiness.com/DiscoveryCall or Call 865-909-7606 to schedule a free 10-minute consultation today.
