Acquisition Aces - Issue #6

Read Time - 3.5 minutes

Fail On Your Own Terms (How To Escape The System)

I am excellent at “systems”. I can look at the entry points, analyze the rules, and operate inside them as well (or better) than anyone. The most popular system that people know about is the traditional career path. There are three different ways to start on that journey: college, trade school, or apprenticeship. I picked the college option.

When I got out of school I was commissioned as an Army intelligence officer. The Army is the ultimate “closed loop” system. Everyone in it works 365 days a year to ensure it runs efficiently. I got out, earned my MBA, and went to work for yet another system. This time it was JP Morgan Chase.

At each stop, I did what I was supposed to and got promoted. At the end of the day, however, I realized I was miserable. The problem with working in a system is that you are just a gear in the machine. It doesn’t matter how fancy your office is, in a system, this is your reality:

This is a picture of a call center I just purchased. It provides valuable jobs for people to feed their families. It runs like clockwork and provides great cash flow. Everyone that works there is awesome. I am proud to own it.

However, what I have discovered about myself is that I would rather own a system than work in one. I had to make a big mindset shift to do this.

The Entrepreneurial Mind Vs. The System Mind

The core advantage of working in a system is that you are able to offload responsibility. You have a job description and you get paid on the basis of your ability to fulfill your obligations. Employees typically don’t need to worry about overhead, payroll, or inventory. Those concerns fall on the shoulders of the owner. Both roles are valuable but each requires a different mindset.

If you want to be an owner instead of an employee, it is not as simple as changing job titles. You must completely change the way you think. When you are an entrepreneur your success or failure is totally dependent on you. Instead of a productive mindset, trading your effort for money, you must take an ownership mindset. You are responsible for everything. Both the wins and the losses.

The two entrepreneurial commitments that allow you to do this are resilience and discipline. If you can shift your mind in this way, and commit to the path no matter what, you gain the edge that most entrepreneurs lack: Complete focus.

The Advantage Of Complete Focus

A constant in business is that things will not go the way you think they will. I learned in the Army that you can plan for contingencies all day long but reality has a way of throwing you curveballs. Constantly. When this happens, you have a choice: complain or find a solution. It is as simple as that. Employees look at challenges as failures. Owners look at challenges as just something to be solved.

If you have committed yourself to an ownership mindset, you automatically start working on the problem. You spend zero time or emotional energy on “Why me?”. Instead, all of your time is spent on “What now?”. This means that all of your effort is put toward solutions.

For Acquisition Aces, this means that you are growing your portfolio of businesses, which means your cash flow is increasing as well. The goal is to create your own system, instead of building someone else's. You are “failing” (overcoming challenges) on your own terms and building a new life in the process.

I can tell you from personal experience that winning and losing in business is sometimes the result of a small amount of extra effort. The people who have complete focus as a result of resilience and discipline are the ones who make it.

3 Quick Steps To Shift Your Mindset From Employee To Entrepreneur

You may be asking yourself: How do I make this mindset shift? Being an owner is not easy, so that means you have to be clear on the reason you are doing it. There is a saying that when the “why” is big enough, there is no price you will not pay to achieve your goals. For me, the “why” is my family. What is yours?

Step One: Take a few minutes and jot down the “why” in your life. Is it big enough to make the shift from employee to entrepreneur?

Another way to bridge the gap in your noggin is to consume content that will help you think differently. You are doing it right now by reading this newsletter. Keep going and supercharge your brain on these concepts by attending my Acquisition Ace Masterclass this coming Wednesday, November 1st, 2023.

Step Two: Register for Acquisition Aces Masterclass here: Register For Masterclass

Okay, you’ve put pen to paper and taken action by registering for the masterclass. Now, I want to really cement this idea into your head with a 5-minute video.

Step Three: Watch How To Transition From Employee To Entrepreneur

Have you completed all three steps? Congrats! You are well on the way to becoming an entrepreneur who has the foundational mindset to build your own “system” and create the life you have been dreaming about.

PS - Coaching compresses timeframes. If you want help finding the perfect deal for you, book a time on my calendar here to explore becoming an Acquisition Ace: Calendar

Ben, I Want to learn more…

If you feel that you are constantly working "in" the business instead of "on" the business and feel that your goal of financial freedom has led you to a prison of your own design.

You are not alone, I used to be there as well.

I have 5 companies and counting and work less than 20 hours a week on them - COMBINED.

It is not rocket science and I can help you do the same for your business.

Choose a time on my Calendar and we will get to it.

Onward,

Ben

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