“When in the Course of human events, it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve…”*
…the employment which has tied them to other people’s visions.
We Declare:
Live Truly Free into your true self and entrepreneurial vision,
while creating sustainable growth and profitability.
“We hold these truths to be self-evident…
…that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness…”*
3 Actions:
1. Live LIFE to the full with balance and significance.
We help you apply practical, real world experience to grow profitably, so your business is not all consuming of you.
2. Truly have the LIBERTY to reach your vision, as your true self.
We guide you in creating sustainable growth for your entrepreneurial endeavor through clear direction and great strategies, all sourced in the focused passions of the true you.
3. Free to pursue HAPPINESS through success in Free Enterprise.
We know that by living as the entrepreneur you are intended to be and doing these things, your fulfillment can increase; as well as, your wealth, time outside of business, and ability to have an impact on your world for good.
All to keep on finding, greater and greater fulfillment in this life,
and the life to come!
“And for the support of this Declaration, with a firm reliance on the protection of divine Providence, we mutually pledge to each other our Lives, our Fortunes and our sacred Honor.”*
* from The Declaration of Independence ~ July 4, 1776
This Declaration Works!
I’ve been living it a long time.
Here’s my story and experience…
“George, thanks to you,
I’m making more money than ever before!”
I was stunned. What!?! How?
My friend explained that after we had lunch a couple of months before, he did everything I suggested.
At the time I worked in the family retail business and he owned a roofing construction company.
“What did I tell you?”, I asked.
As he was telling me, I knew I had said those things, but hearing them again made me realize they were really good, and I needed to start doing them, too.
My friend wanted to hire me. After months of hounding me, I relented and agreed to work on a contract basis, part time.
That was over 25 years ago, and it’s how I began as an entrepreneur working as an Outsource (part-time) C.F.O. (Chief Financial Officer) and Business Strategist.
It was my Declaration of Independence!
I just didn’t realize it at the time.
But, I began to live into my vision, and not somebody else’s.
I quickly discovered that I loved coming alongside entrepreneurs to help them break through barriers, create sustainable growth, and build wealth.
A few years before I had met other retail owners in our industry, and I noticed how passionate some of them were for retail. I wanted that kind of passion, and was sad I lacked it.
Now I was finding my passion. It wasn’t retail, but I was beginning to…
Live Truly Free into your true self and entrepreneurial vision,
while creating sustainable growth and profitability.
Oh, it would be a very long time before I could sum it like that.
But, that is what I was beginning to live into and what I would help all kinds of entrepreneurs do with all kinds of businesses of all kinds of sizes.
I came alive doing what I discovered was true about me.
Hint: A great clue was that often times I had more energy at the end of the day, than the beginning!
I thought work had to be a grind and sacrifice of what really matters! I discovered that was not true.
So very quickly, I decided to live a life of balance with significance, which involved uprooting to another city into a community that offered a better quality of life for my growing family, but it also meant starting over.
1. Live LIFE to the full with balance and significance.
Those first couple of years were rough and full of faith that all the risk would pay off.
As an entrepreneur, your numbers are your reality check.
Most of the time we go off feelings. When things feel bad we avoid the numbers and when things feel good we want to see them.
If you want to achieve a life of balance and significance, your numbers are key.
Leading from your numbers reduces anxiety and builds wealth.
It begins with understanding your numbers, which is much more than knowing a bank balance or profit / loss.
It’s understanding the dynamics of the numbers in your company and what they are really telling you. And believe me, they can tell you a lot!
With that understanding you can begin leading your company by making decisions based on reality (your numbers), not feelings.
For me, I learned that leading from the numbers made all the difference, because I could project the future and know how far my resources would take me.
That removed a lot of anxiety.
In fact, even while things were still choppy in the beginning I was able to begin living with balance and significance, and finding fulfillment as described in Action 3.
But we all know this entrepreneurial trek isn’t without ups and downs and risks, like a crazy roller coaster ride. And, that’s where Action 2 comes in.
2. Truly have the LIBERTY to reach your vision, as your true self.
You have to know where you are headed. This is how to create sustainable growth.
As entrepreneurs we all have setbacks, times when things go badly. It makes all the difference in those seasons, if you know where you are headed.
Early on, I’d ask clients where they were headed.
The usual answers went something like this: “Next year we plan on doubling sales.” or “We’ll be adding 6 more crews.” or “We’re expanding into 4 more counties.” or “We’re adding 3 different production lines.”
My reply: “That’s great! But, where are you headed?”
You see those are metrics, not direction.
Clear direction leads to sustainable growth.
To help my clients focus their passions and map their direction, I developed my strategic process: The Next Level Navigator®.
I share this process step by step in my book: The Next Level Entrepreneur: Focus your Passions ∙ Map your Direction ∙ Build a Great Company.
Here’s how I know this works:
I discovered that when I knew where an entrepreneur and their company was headed I could produce a return of 10x - 100x on their investment in my CFO services! When I didn’t know where they were headed, I could usually cover the investment and maybe make a little more for them (1x - 3x).
The clarity of direction (or lack thereof) that I experienced was the same for every one of their employees. Imagine everyone in your company working together in the same direction - on the same page, including you. It’s incredibly powerful!
Furthermore, when the headwinds blow against you and you hit rough spots, knowing your direction tied to passions will sustain you and get you to the other side.
I know this personally! My own Next Level Navigator has kept me on course and moving forward, especially when the setbacks have hit. And I’ve certainly experienced some of those!
Based on my experience, and that of many of my clients, when you operate using both Action 1 and Action 2, you can then take Action 3:
3. Free to pursue HAPPINESS through success in Free Enterprise.
Even in the early rough years, I began to pursue happiness.
I was home for dinner time with my family. Although I travelled some, many days I was available when my sons came home from school, since I had an office there.
In fact over the years, I was able to be involved in a large part of their growing up and doing some amazing things with them.
It felt like I was getting away with something illegal! But, I wasn’t. It was amazingly, legit.
I was making a good living, not a fortune; and yet, I was able to be very involved in their lives, as they grew up.
We must choose fulfillment. Even if we are super passionate about our business, we are not designed to spend our lives at work.
For me this was living life with my family, raising my sons well, impacting others through all kinds of outreach and ministry, and pursuing other passions and hobbies.
It is essential to our growth and well being as people to live well rounded lives.
I’ve seen this happen for my clients too, even though it would look differently for each of them.
However, there was one common thread: we all wanted to have some kind of good impact on the world around us. And we did and still do, because of our Free Enterprise success!
The Action 3 Double Benefit:
The fulfillment that we are certain to experience through this Action is actually the fuel that powers us through the hard times of being an entrepreneur. So, that is a double benefit.
We all know that there is an ebb and flow to life. There are times when we will have to spend more time on Action 1 or 2 and steal time from Action 3. But…
There will come a season when more time flows back to Action 3.
And this makes it all worth it!
The Numbers, Your Direction, The Fulfillment for You
To summarize the 3 Actions:
1. The Numbers: will help in reducing anxiety and increasing wealth.
~ When you begin leading from your numbers by making decisions based on them. Remember, first you have to understand them.
2. Your Direction: will help in creating sustainable growth.
~ When you map your direction out of your passions to pursue your vision, and not somebody else’s. Remember to align your team to this direction, too.
3. The Fulfillment for You: will help fuel your energies and passions which benefits both you and your business.
~ When you choose to live intentionally into other loves and passions and desires you have outside your business. Remember the greatest fulfillment is impacting others for good.
I know these things are true!
I have lived them and relived them and continue to live them, as an entrepreneur.
I have guided other entrepreneurs and their companies in these things and seen them have similar experiences and results.
If this resonates with you, stirs you to want to know more and to start doing these things in your business, you’re at the right place, here at Live Truly Free!
I invite you to declare your independence! And check out all our resources!
