Episode 79: Bridging the Expert to Business Mindset Gap
In Episode 79 of the Business Habitat (formerly The In Demand Accountant), Sam identifies the missing link between having a business built on expert knowledge alone, and building a thriving business designed on your own terms.
If the purpose of business is to solve a problem, and that problem is created by the need for compliance to government or financial regulations, as it often is in the case of accounting, then the demand for services is automatically created.
The situation changes when you provide services that add value beyond legal requirements. When you’re defining a problem that isn’t immediately obvious and need to build a client base from scratch, the skillset that’s required begins to change.
Recounting her own experiences with Treebiz, Sam shares the lessons she learned going from an expert mindset into a business where her technical knowledge base wasn’t the key service. Covering everything from sales and marketing to communication and boundaries, Sam provides insight into the skills gaps that are common in business, and what to do about them.
What we cover in this episode
The Expert Deficit
The Struggle Gap
Sam’s experience with Treebiz
The importance of frank, open communication
The Accountability Gap
How to identify your Expert Deficiency
Quotes
“Expert businesses don’t have to define their problem, the government has done that for us. Then if we’re super lucky, they make it illegal not to solve the problem”
“Because I was a numbers person, and numbers based, I really thought I knew everything there was to know about business. That was the first gap. There was a whole lot of skills…that I wasn’t even aware of“
“In businesses, you need defined roles, and there’s different stages of that. Marketing and sales are absolutely key for growth“
“If we didn’t make those changes and if we didn’t learn, if my husband hadn’t learned how to be a good salesperson and I hadn’t learned how to really do sales and marketing, how to really get creative and make change, we literally wouldn’t have eaten”
“The pain of not following the system was far greater than the pain of just getting it done”
“The way you communicate and the way you lead is super important to your business and we’re not really taught how to do this“
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