The Way to Grow a Business is to Grow Yourself

When it comes down to it, the hardest thing about growing any business is the people. It’s not just about hiring more staff or adding new titles.

It’s about developing yourself as a leader so you can help others develop, too. Your professional growth will never outpace your personal growth. If you’re not pushing yourself to grow, you’re not going to push the company very far, either.

If you want to grow as an owner, then expect the following:

• You will face personal shortcomings you never knew existed.
• Your biases, ego, and comfort zones will be tested.
• Every new layer of growth forces you to address who you are and who you need to become.

But if you come through on the other side? You'll be all the better. Let's look at what that growth has looked like for my company.

From Doing Everything to Leading Through Others

Early on, I ran a small team of about eight. I knew everyone, touched every project, and solved problems directly. But as the team expanded—first to 13, then to 27, and eventually beyond 100—I had to learn to get things done through other people.

What to Keep in Mind:

• At some point, you must step back from the front lines and let your leaders lead.
• Empowering managers means giving them room to make decisions—and learn from mistakes.
• Your job transitions from “doing tasks” to “creating clarity,” so everyone else can do their jobs better.

That’s a tough shift. I no longer had my hands on everything. Instead, I had to trust leaders to run the day-to-day, and I had to support and guide them rather than solve every problem myself.

Embracing Discomfort and Accountability

When one of my senior leaders began in our call center four years ago, she never would have believed she’d someday run nearly all of our revenue as the director of fulfillment.

That transformation only happened because she leaned into discomfort instead of avoiding it. Accountability can feel aggravating—being held to a higher standard can be frustrating and even unsettling—but that’s exactly where growth occurs.

Each time she encountered a challenge that pushed her outside her comfort zone, she chose to face it head-on.

Over time, she realized that what initially felt chaotic was actually the necessary friction of getting stronger and more capable.

Growth rarely feels gentle or easy; it often looks and feels like stepping into the unknown. The key is to understand that this discomfort signals you are developing into someone ready for bigger responsibilities.

Creating a Culture of Forward Momentum

As you and your leaders embrace personal growth, it’s natural for that mindset to cascade through the ranks, fostering a culture where everyone actively seeks improvement.

Instead of waiting on orders or avoiding risks, managers begin to encourage their teams to think critically, solve problems, and take initiative. Over time, that approach reshapes the entire organization, making it less about top-down directives and more about mutual progress.

Communication evolves beyond simple instruction; it becomes an ongoing dialogue where new ideas, solutions, and opportunities for growth rise to the surface.

This environment doesn’t emerge through luck or chance; it’s a direct result of leaders who have challenged themselves, learned new ways to motivate others, and created space for genuine collaboration.

The forward momentum becomes almost self-sustaining, fueled by people who want more for themselves and the business.

Are You Ready to Grow?

Ultimately, growing a business is less about external resources or clever tactics and more about the individuals steering and supporting it.

If you are not willing to grow personally, your company’s growth will stall. Releasing your grip on day-to-day tasks and allowing others to step up is rarely comfortable, but it’s essential if you want to achieve real scale.

Embracing the frustrations, the uncertainties, and the periods of chaos is what transforms those challenging moments into milestones of personal and professional advancement.

Over time, as you see others around you doing the same, you’ll recognize that the true engine of sustainable growth is the collective drive for constant improvement.

Keep learning, keep challenging yourself, and keep listening to those who’ve already faced the paths you’re just starting to tread.

The way to grow a business, in the end, is to first grow yourself.

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