Lead with Purpose: The Law of the Harvest for Business Growth

Read time: 4 mins…
Hello again everyone🙋

This week’s Business Builder Bulletin covers:
🌾 Are You Stuck in the Weeds?
💡 The Critical Difference Between Busy Work and Growth Work
🚀 How to Focus Your Time to Build Momentum

Let’s get started…

It’s been a busy week on my end!

Between working with clients, and squeezing in a few late-night brainstorming sessions, I’ve been reflecting a lot on what drives growth versus what just keeps us busy.

This reflection reminded me of a conversation I had recently with a business owner—and it’s a story I think many of us can relate to:

I recently spoke with a business owner who runs a successful local bakery, let’s call her Emma.

Emma was exhausted.

Every day, she juggled ordering supplies, managing staff schedules, answering customer queries, and keeping the business running.

At the end of the year, she was exactly where she had been 12 months earlier. No growth. No increased revenue. Just the same hustle, day in and day out.

Emma wasn’t lazy or unmotivated—far from it. But she was stuck in the weeds.

🌾 What Are “The Weeds”?

The weeds are the daily tasks that keep your business afloat—emails, admin, problem-solving. While necessary, they don’t move your business forward.

If you find yourself constantly reacting to problems instead of proactively planning, you’re likely stuck here too.

The result? A year of hard work with no measurable progress.

Emma made one simple change: she scheduled daily growth time.

Every day, she blocked out 30 minutes where she couldn’t be disturbed. No emails, no staff interruptions, no distractions. During this time, her focus was crystal clear:

• How can I get and keep more customers?

• What proactive steps can I take to grow my business?

That 30-minute habit transformed her bakery.

She introduced a loyalty program, partnered with local events for exposure, and even created a pre-order system to make mornings smoother for regulars.

💡 A Critical Business Tip: The 80/20 Rule

To make the most of your growth time, focus on the 80/20 rule—the idea that 80% of your results come from 20% of your efforts.

Ask yourself:

• What 20% of activities bring in the most revenue or customers?

• What tasks can I delegate, automate, or eliminate?

Emma realised that while managing her team and handling customer service were important, her real growth came from marketing partnerships and new customer initiatives.

By prioritising these, her bakery began to thrive.

🌟 The Moral of the Story

Good things happen when you make time to work on your business, not just in it.

It’s easy to get stuck in the weeds, but breaking free is the key to growth.

Lead your time with purpose, and the results will follow.

As always, I hope this inspires you to make time for growth in your day.

To your success,
Graeme