Start With the End: What I Learned in the Goldman Sachs 10KSB Program
It’s been a few months since I graduated from the Goldman Sachs 10,000 Small Businesses program. In the meantime I’ve been busy implementing the giant to-do list that I created during the 12 weeks spent going to all-day workshops, attending clinics, meeting with my business advisor, and commiserating with my fellow entrepreneurs in the cohort.
This is one of the reasons I haven’t posted anything in my blog since December. But now that I’ve had time to reflect I want to write about one key takeaway from GS10KSB.
Start with the end
One of the things I left with from the GS10KSB program is a detailed, five year growth plan for my business that covers financial forecasting, policies and procedures, hiring strategies, marketing, legal, and several other growth aspects. During one of the first workshops, we were asked to create a graph showing our current annual profit and what we would like that number to be in 2030. I had no idea what to put down so I simply quadrupled my current number and thought, “How in the world am I going to get THERE in five years?” This was my first start-with-the-end exercise and, after my panic subsided, I realized the point was to work backwards from the end to the present and create milestones and goals along the way.
But the next start-with-the-end experience took me on a much bigger journey than just numbers on a page.
Principal loss? Oh, that’s me.
I had never heard of a Principal Loss Contingency Action Plan nor had I thought much about what would happen to my business if I were to become ill for an extended period of time or pass away. But there it was on my to-do list: create a plan that would provide detailed instructions for my assistant and my wife to carry out in case the the principal was lost — me.
My assistant, Libby, found a template online that we used to create my action plan and then set aside time during our weekly strategy meetings to go through it section by section. One of the more surreal tasks I did was write an email draft that informed my clients of my untimely passing. I asked Claude AI to create some options because I didn’t know exactly how to start. My first attempt produced a rather funny dialogue between me and Claude:
Me: Write a short social media post for LinkedIn that notifies clients and connections of my passing.
Claude: My sincere condolences to you and your loved ones, Justin.
Me: I'm not dead. Just preparing information for a Principal Loss Action Plan.
Claude: Ah, I understand now - you’re doing the responsible thing by preparing contingency plans for your business. That's actually very wise planning that many business owners overlook.
Me: Thanks.
As Libby and I continued filling out the action plan it generated a lot of other internal conversations such as, “How long do I want to work in my career?” and, “How much time do I want to devote every day/week to working in my business?” I had gone from creating a pragmatic action plan to wondering if I had spent enough time with my kids. This start-with-the-end exercise had grown into a full existential journey.
A bigger picture
I’m grateful I took this journey because it’s forced me to look at aspects of my business (and life) that I would have otherwise ignorantly bypassed by without notice. As a result, I now have some guidelines in place that will help me get the most out of the time I’ve been given:
I need (more) help. Trying to wear all of the hats in my business only results in things getting half-done or not at all. Over the past few months I’ve hired a bookkeeper and an SEO expert. I also plan to bring on a junior designer over the next 18 months.
Fridays from 7:00 am - 11:00 am are work-on-the-business days. No client work or emails during this time — just plowing through my GS10KSB to-do list. And writing articles like this.
All Sundays (and most Saturdays) are no-business days. Regardless of what’s happening in my business I need sequestered time to pursue the things that keep me emotionally and mentally healthy like family, friends, and being a pirate.
Summers are four-day work weeks. Actually, I’ve been doing this for a few years now but my time in GS10KSB has reinforced my resolve to maintain a slower Summer pace, and potentially extend it into the rest of the year because, why not?
Off-board bad fitting clients. Life is too short to work with (or for) other people who don’t understand boundaries or spike your cortisol levels every time you see them in your inbox.
I’m grateful to the GS10KSB program for my five year business growth plan because it’s exactly the nuts-and-bolts tool I needed at this point in my entrepreneurial journey. But it also opened my eyes to a much bigger reality that goes beyond me and my business.
If you haven’t thought about the end of your own business I strongly recommend taking some time to do so. You’ll be doing yourself — and those who care about you — a favor.
