 Every entrepreneur wants to build a transformational company. At least the entrepreneurs we have worked with over four decades do. Investors look for transformational growth. Employees want to work for organizations that inspire them, and customers gravitate toward organizations that continually innovate and deliver exceptional value. Yet despite all the attention transformation receives, few organizations ever truly achieve it. Transformation is not a strategic planning retreat, a restructuring initiative, a new technology platform, or the arrival of a visionary CEO. While each may contribute to progress, none of them creates a transformational organization on its own.
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 "If only we had more capital ..." “If only we could get that line of credit …” “If only we could find an investor …” It's an understandable assumption. Capital is tangible. It's measurable. It can feel like the missing ingredient standing between where an organization is today and where it wants to be tomorrow. After working with businesses for more than four decades, I've come to a very different conclusion. In my first book, Me, Myself & Inc., there was a chapter called, “It Takes Money, Unless You Don’t Have It.” What did I mean by this?
 Funding doesn’t fail when you apply. It fails in the decisions made months or even years before the conversation ever begins. If you are seeking bank or investor funding, the time to act is now, and most likely should have been considered a while ago. In this blog, I will help you understand what is important for you not to be doing in your business that are reasons funding is denied. Then we will share why these blunders hurt you and what they may be costing you.
 Every day there are choices that are necessary to keep a business running. Also, every day, a business owner is pulled in a myriad of directions that can cause the focus to be on what is happening at that moment, versus what needs to happen in the next moments. Depending on the business owner’s mindset, choices may also be made based on personal preferences versus strategic initiatives, personal biases versus objective perspective, over-analysis versus simplification, checking off boxes versus seeing progress, and a false sense of demand versus creating real momentum. Being able to weigh choices requires viewing them through a lens that will empower momentum-building decisions being made, not just by the business owner, but everyone on the team.
 As the new year is upon us, we are all consumed with what is to be achieved, overcome and accomplished over the next 12 months. In many ways, we limit ourselves without even realizing we are doing it. We allow disappointment at what was not accomplished skew our belief in what we may be able to accomplish in the future.
A work/life balance mentality causes us to weigh our personal lives against our professional lives in a mindset of guilt or sacrifice with a belief that one must give up some things to get other things. The transition into a new year causes us to think only for the short term over these next twelve months instead of a more expansive vision to guide us in our life versus a small part of it.  We are always reminding our entrepreneurial clients to focus on what they can control. Easier said than done. Business owners tend to overcompensate when it comes to being in control, and fixate on what is outside of their control, resulting in no traction for the business. External volatilities (economy, regulation, supply chains, increased competition, etc.) often get the headspace and the focus. Internal volatilities can be more undermining, limiting growth or the ability to scale at all.
 Every day decisions must be made in business. What sets growth companies apart from the rest of the pack is grounded in leaders having the ability to make momentum-building decisions, using both emotion and logic appropriately. How momentum building are your decisions in growing your company?
What we have found is there is clear delineation for when logic is key, emotions are key and when both must be balanced in decision-making.  Being an agile, quick-on-your-feet business owner is why you are still able to conduct business amidst economic uncertainty, competitive pressures, global innovation, and the list goes on. The ability to flex and adapt is what has always made America’s entrepreneurs the foundation of economic recovery. Just as important as your agility is your capability in knowing what is in the best interests of your customer to the point of inflexibility. What … you might be asking? Inflexibility?
 Too many business owners are stuck in an expense-focused mindset instead of being investment-focused. An expense-focused mindset is a mindset of lack and survival. Certain expenses may be viewed as a cost of doing business or unavoidable and just what is necessary to operate. It is like not valuing your people’s time shared in my Forbes article “Why Everyone’s Time in Business Matters.” Every dollar you spend in your business should reap some form of return on your investment. Every. Single. Dollar.
 Quality referrals are golden to any business. Understanding the strategy necessary for garnering unending referrals is where most businesses fall short. Typically, our BizGrowth 5.0 provides five key success factors on the topic. In this bonus edition, we bring you 12 key success factors to consider for building an endless flow of referrals into your company that convert to loyal customers.
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AuthorSherre' DeMao is founder and CEO of BizGrowth Inc. An author, speaker and entrepreneurial innovator, she was named in 2025 among MSN's Ten Women Trailblazers Revolutionizing Their Fields. Her ability to scale and grow businesses has earned her position as a Forbes Council member and regular thought leader and expert in articles on Forbes.com. Archives
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