Are You Working “In” Your Business or “On” Your Business?

From leading strategic meetings to creating systems, discover actionable steps to shift your focus from daily operations to long-term business growth.

I recently spoke at the Restoration Technical Institute’s annual managers and owners retreat, and a participant asked a great question that resonated with many others. Surprisingly, it was a topic I hadn’t thought to discuss before. We were talking about working “in” the business versus working “on” the business, and this gentleman asked, “What does that actually mean? What does it look like?” 

In this article, I’m going to address that question. I want you to imagine I’m observing you throughout your day. What would I see? What would be the mix, the percentage of time you’re spending working in the business versus on the business?

In the meantime, if you don’t know me, my name is Scott Miller. I’m the owner of TheGrowthLeague.com, and I’ve been coaching restoration professionals across the country since 2009. I’m passionate about helping owners and their teams become more profitable, reduce business chaos, and build something truly sellable. When the time comes for an owner to move on, I want them to have a business that’s attractive to potential buyers.

Alright, back to “in” versus “on”. If I’m a fly on the wall, following you around and observing your day, your week, your month, what am I going to see? What percentage of the time are you working *in* the business—answering phone calls, visiting job sites, handling customer complaints, talking to adjusters, making collection calls, helping with invoicing, or creating Xactimate estimates? These are all spur-of-the-moment, reactive tasks, and they can leave you feeling exhausted.

Now, let’s talk about working *on* the business. What does that look like? Working on the business means leading strategic meetings, reviewing financials, analyzing data to understand the story it tells, and devising strategies to improve margins. It might involve documenting processes, recognizing that you’re currently the first to answer calls, and then creating a call-handling script so you can train someone else. It’s about delegation and training—taking steps to build a self-sufficient team.

So, what does the business really need from you long-term? Does it need you to be constantly involved in day-to-day operations, or would it benefit more from you working *on* the business? Is the best way to grow and build a valuable, sellable business to be deeply involved in every detail, or to focus more on long-term strategy?

If you think, “I need to work on the business more,” here’s a simple suggestion: start with just 30 minutes a week. If you can do more, great, but start small—something manageable that you can commit to. Think about how easily 30 minutes can slip by scrolling through your phone or doing something unproductive. Instead, block out 30 minutes and dedicate that time to tasks like delegating, setting goals, or creating systems. These are steps that will help you grow the business, make it more valuable, and ultimately work yourself out of daily operations.

So, get out your calendar, block off 30 minutes this week, and work on the business. And if you need any help, don’t hesitate to reach out.