5 things I wish I knew one year ago, Marta Frenna

Looking back, it’s amazing how much has happened to me and how much I’ve learned in just a couple of years.

I’ve found out that starting my own business is one of the most exciting adventures that I could ever dream about.

Like most things, the first time you try you make mistakes and — hopely — you learn from them.

In the time it has passed since, there are a few things I wished I knew.

If I had known these few things, I’d have saved myself a lot of headaches. Here we go.

1. Master the details as well as the big picture

Maybe we are great starters, but sometimes we did not build and put the right procedures in place on time.

I didn’t have the entire vision on the cost drivers of the business, and the ways I had to execute a strategy or vision in small parts. I just wanted to launch my project.

People, culture, organizational structure, compensation, processes, suppliers, and systems all play a role in how effective the strategy is. I learned to take time to manage these elements of the strategy ecosystem in order to improve the picture, but still there’s room for improvement.

2. Value your time

Time is the greatest resource we have and one thing we can’t get back.

To stay on top, I’m forced to understand the full gravity of Time. How to prioritize my life and business in a way that lines up with a healthy balance.

I’ve spent the last 17 months without allowing myself to actually feel the moment and with no time to give back.

If time is precious, how am I bringing the most value to the present moment? How am I planning for my future so that each minute counts?* (CIT. Kevin Harrington)

I’ll have to get it through.

3. Avoid distractions and stay focused

I have more ideas than I’ll ever be able to execute. I failed into the trap of getting brilliant ideas and chasing them, neglecting my core business.

Now I’m keeping an “ideas column” in my Trello instead. I write my long and short term goals so I can look at them daily. I go through the list periodically and evaluate which ideas should be executed right away and which can be saved for later.

4. Good Employees Make Mistakes. Great Leaders Allow Them To.

We all make mistakes.

Everyone of us.

If not, we are falling deep into our comfort zone.

As a business leader, I found that one of the scariest things to do is to let your people make mistakes.

Mistakes allow individuals to learn and grow, but they can also be very costly to any company.

Making any mistake once is ok, so long as it was an honest mistake. Repeating that same mistake a second time is not ok.

It can be summed up very easily: if you make any mistake for the first time than the entire team will have your back in fixing it. But if you ever repeat that mistake a second time, then you are on your own to face the consequences.

I want to help my people to learn and grow.

5. It’s Not all About the Money

Obviously, making money is important.

But having A Mission-Driven Company is likely more important.

And I made that mistake too.

When you promote a vision to your employees, it results in a higher level of engagement and a positive work culture, keeping them loyal, productive and motivated, they remain longer, costing the organization less over time.

They feel they are contributing to a common goal, and they are not just a number in an ocean of numbers.

Now, I’m trying to make my people fall in love with the vision the way I am.