Three Wise Monkeys

...aka "see no evil, hear no evil, speak no evil". Great metaphor to describe the lifecycle of a business.

See no evil: Entrepreneurship. This is when a fresh college graduate (or dropout) decides to take the leap and start their own business. It is also when an employee moves (voluntarily or otherwise) to the self-employment arena. Surveys suggest that most entrepreneurs would not have done it if they knew or saw what was coming their way. Once they were able to see, that helped them become successful self employed tradesmen/tradeswomen. They took their skill and sold it independently.

Hear no evil: Incorporating. Not to be mistaken with the legal process, this milestone requires individuals to move from being good at one trade to managing a middle-market business. Too many small business owners fail at this transition because they refuse to hear other opinions and they stick to their trade not wanting to relegate control and delegate functions. Once they start listening, they become managers of managers and their business grows.

Speak no evil: Big Box. The business could start franchising and even go public. This is when communication becomes crucial internally and externally. Marketing takes a major role and the brand is definitely recognizable. Until a middle-market business can learn how to speak the correct language, it cannot cross this milestone. Most often, it will need experienced business advisors to help it move past this milestone.

Now how many businesses do you know that are stuck in milestone 1, milestone 2 or milestone 3. The above metaphor could be used as a guideline to quickly understand their pain points.