E122: Building Systems to Get Over the Other Side of the Crest with Cheryl Herrick

Cheryl Herrick is the quintessential entrepreneur. Their family-owned medical device business went from breakeven to $4 million per year, to selling personal development and running a 100-employee automotive company, to coaching.

Cheryl credits her success to following this system that she has created for herself and continues to innovate. She is currently a partner in a startup company producing new technology houses and she’s the founder of Ponytail Racing.

Here are some power takeaways from today’s conversation:

What to do in moments you feel like giving up
Making a business decision vs. a personal decision
What is the crest and how to get over the other side of it?
Applying Deming’s philosophy and removing the barriers to creativity
The CEO’s job as the Chief Education Officer

Episode Highlights:

Making a Business Decision vs. a Personal Decision

Emotion and passion run us as people and we should take that into our business. But there are certain moments where we have to disconnect those two things. When we're trying to make decisions about business, we have to take a more professional and a little bit of a distant decision about it when emotions are really high.

Self-reflection is very important. You have to be honest with yourself to try to figure out if you’ve made a bad bet and whether you need to get out of it and stop investing.

What is the Crest?

If the big order has fallen through something that you thought was factually accurate turns out not to be, it means you have to take five steps backward. When everything feels tiring, and it seems like no matter what you're doing, none of it is easy. It's that moment where it feels like nothing is going right and you've been in this space for a while. This is usually the moment when people tap out because they're tired.

How to Get Over to the Other Side of the Crest

When you're at that moment, and it feels like everything is kind of working against you in your back is up against the wall, that's not the moment to quit. Even if that business does not work out, that isn't the moment to quit.

Get to the other side of the crest, because on the other side of the crest, then you'll really know if there's something there or not. But giving up just out of exhaustion and frustration will only live on you forever.

To get over to the other side of the crest, have a small circle of very reliable friends who have your permission to tell you the unvarnished truth. Follow a system founded on a business philosophy and get the knowledge from trusted advisors who are outside of you.

Sketch out a system for yourself and everything you need to do for the job to be successful. Then develop the processes necessary to get all of those things done.

Resources Mentioned:

Ponytail Racing

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