Remember Cher in Moonstruck when Nicholas Cage tells her he loves her?

She slaps him and says "Snap out of it!"

Well, sometimes I need a slap in the face too - a reality check. And since I like pie better than pain, today's reality check, thanks to E-Myth is with a pie. Warm cherry, in case you were wondering, just a dab of French vanilla ice cream softly melting along side (is it time for lunch yet?)

I subscribe to the E-Myth newsletter and this month they have an article about wearing all the hats. As a small business owner with no employees beyond my cat, I would say that I'm wearing all the hats. But some hats fit better than others.

So while on their website I decided to take the 2-minutes evaluation of my business, E-Myth style. The survey asks you to identify how your daily time is spent. Here are a few sample questions:

# I spend most of my time producing the product or delivering the service.

# I spend most of my time performing administrative/operational tasks.

# I spend most of my time planning and organizing projects.

# I spend most of my time communicating with partners, contractors, and/or vendors.

# I spend most of my time creating long-term plans for my business.

# I spend most of my time evaluating and innovating the way my business operates.

If I'm honest, and why wouldn't I be, I'm the only one that the information helps or hurts...I spend more time producing the results than viewing my company from 10,000 feet and planning and/or adjusting the direction of my company.

We know what we are SUPPOSED to be doing as small business owners, but it is so hard to pull ourselves up from the weeds. And frankly, I hate gardening. So what is a small business owner to do?

How do you make the transition from doer to planner?

Deborah Chaddock Brown
Writer