There’s a moment every entrepreneur faces. It’s that gut feeling that something isn’t quite right, but you can’t put your finger on it.
You’re working hard, making sales, handling clients, and even scaling – but still, something feels off. The anxiety from not knowing what to fix first is enough to make even the most seasoned business owner feel stuck.
This is exactly the problem I wanted to solve when I wrote Fix This Next.
I’ve had my fair share of moments like this. I would feel overwhelmed by all the moving parts – managing employees, handling cash flow, worrying about marketing, and constantly asking myself, “What do I fix next?” I knew if I was feeling this way, other business owners were too. And not just startups or small businesses, but companies of all sizes and stages.
Once I figured this all out for myself, I wanted to help other business owners cut through the noise and finally get clarity on what to focus on to move their business forward. Instead of guessing or randomly jumping from one problem to the next, this framework provides a structured way to assess and prioritize what your business really needs to thrive.
The Problem: Too many moving parts, not enough focus on one
You’re an entrepreneur, so you’re no stranger to problems. They come in every shape and size: customer complaints, cash flow issues, employee turnover, and marketing campaigns that don’t land. The natural instinct is to jump in and try to fix everything at once. But when you’re putting out one fire after another, you lose sight of the bigger picture.
The result? You’re constantly busy, but nothing really changes. Your business stalls because you’re focusing on the wrong things.
The Solution: Fixing the right thing next
Pop quiz! What’s the first thing you need to fix in your business right now?
Are you sure?
Identifying your business’s most critical need and fixing it before moving on to anything else is paramount here.
The Business Priority Pyramid offers a great visual. It’s modeled after Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs, which explains human motivation by prioritizing basic needs first (like food and shelter) before moving up to higher-level goals like self-actualization.
Similarly, businesses have their own priority needs. And just like with humans, if the foundational needs aren’t met, nothing else matters. You can’t focus on expanding your market if you don’t have stable cash flow. You can’t scale a team if you haven’t nailed down consistent sales. That’s where the pyramid comes in – it guides you on which areas of your business to focus on first.
The Business Priority Pyramid
The Business Priority Pyramid breaks down into five key levels, from the most basic survival needs at the bottom to higher-level optimization at the top:
- Sales – The foundation. If you don’t have sales, you don’t have a business. You need to generate consistent revenue before anything else.
- Profit – Next comes profitability. After you’ve secured steady sales, the focus shifts to turning those sales into actual profit. This means getting control over expenses, improving margins, and ensuring your business can sustain itself.
- Order – Once sales and profit are in place, it’s time to create systems that allow your business to run smoothly without constant firefighting. This is all about efficiency and making sure your business can scale without you being the bottleneck.
- Impact – With strong foundations in place, you can now focus on making a positive impact—whether it’s on your employees, customers, or the community. Businesses that reach this level are no longer just about survival; they’re about making a difference.
- Legacy – The highest level of the pyramid is legacy. At this point, you’re thinking beyond your business’s current success. You’re focused on creating something that will outlive you, building a company that makes a lasting difference in the world.
By identifying which level your business needs attention, you can fix the root cause of your problems, not just the symptoms. For example, if you’re stuck in survival mode and struggling to make sales, it doesn’t make sense to focus on improving systems or scaling. You need to address the sales issue first, build a solid foundation, and then move up the pyramid.
How Fix This Next solves the problem
The beauty of Fix This Next is in its simplicity. It takes the guesswork out of business growth. By using the Business Priority Pyramid as your guide, you’ll always know where to focus your time and energy. No more jumping from problem to problem, no more getting stuck in the day-to-day grind.
It’s not about doing more. It’s about doing the right thing at the right time.
The process is simple:
- Assess where your business stands by using the Fix This Next evaluation tool. This helps you figure out which level of the pyramid is most pressing for your business.
- Pinpoint the core issue holding you back. Once you’ve identified the level you need to focus on, the next step is honing in on the specific problem within that level.
- Take action. After you’ve identified the issue, Fix This Next gives you a clear plan for tackling it. Fix the one thing, move up the pyramid, and repeat the process as needed.
By following this method, you’ll stop wasting time on things that don’t matter and start making meaningful progress toward your goals.
Final Thoughts
If you’re a business owner feeling overwhelmed by too many priorities, remember—you don’t have to fix everything all at once. In fact, you shouldn’t. Focus on fixing the one thing that will make the biggest difference right now, and the rest will follow.
Let’s get back to the basics, fix what’s broken, and start building the business you’ve always dreamed of. You may want to start here, by completing this evaluation to assist you in knowing where to focus first.
You’ve got this!
-Mike
Want a hand implementing some of the Fix This Next methodology?
Take the quiz here.
Get in touch with a Fix This Next Certified Advisor here.
Become a Certified Fix This Next Advisor here.