How I Became The CEO I Was Always Meant To Be

Todd Graves on business leadership.

When your business finally takes off, it can be difficult to adjust your role as leader. In many ways your company is constantly reinventing itself. It’s up to you to guide your business through the changes that success brings. Birthing of Giants fellow, Todd Graves, took time to share with us how his week spent at a Gathering of Giants event helped him learn where he was under-serving his growing company. He learned strategies to improve his business leadership skills, catapulting his business to even greater success.

Todd’s company, Graves Golf Academy, was made up of three core offerings—a physical golf school, retail instructional golf products, and an online instructional course. With 20 employees and an annual revenue of around $5 million, business was booming. But his company was also spreading very rapidly. He worried that progressing his business through continued growth and profitability could become unfocused. Todd recognized that he needed to step back to gain some perspective before he could move forward.

Use Objective Analysis to find Growth Opportunities

This is a common theme among entrepreneurs who take part in a Birthing of Giants program. It often takes a fresh set of eyes to analyze what’s going wrong and to find where the biggest opportunities for growth lay. That’s exactly the kind of support that Birthing of Giants events offer. Entrepreneurs understand the challenges of being entrepreneurs. “This class is a way to get some optics on your business,” he said of his experience. “It’s a bunch of people trying to pull you by the arm out of your business to take a look at it, and that’s what I get most out of it.”

Good business leadership, including objective analysis, goal setting, and shedding fear of failure, is a key component to maintaining a successful business. “Entrepreneurs are way too close to our business—we’ve dug ourselves in, and half of us are trying to dig our way out,” Todd explains. “Every one of these meetings, someone will bring up something that they see objectively that I should have thought of, but it’s almost too simple.” Birthing of Giants events bring entrepreneurs together for invaluable camaraderie and insight sharing.

Birthing of Giants is dedicated to bringing advanced education and strategy-planning to entrepreneurs and small businesses. Each immersive, in-depth program is spearheaded by a team of leading entrepreneurs in American business. These programs, including the One-Day MBA and the Birthing of Giants Fellowship Program, allow fellow entrepreneurs to zero in on the strategies that sustain and enhance business growth.

Todd’s cohort of fellow entrepreneurs helped him to evaluate his business objectively. The long ride home from New York to Oklahoma gave him time to process the valuable insights that he learned at the gathering. He came away with better strategies for growth, some radical ideas on how to streamline his company, and better practices in business leadership. Todd learned that growing his business required growing himself as an entrepreneur.

Don’t Hesitate to Make Radical Changes

A lot has changed for Todd since he attended Birthing of Giants Fellowship Week in September. A large-scale restructuring effort saw his marketing division and golf school rolled into a single company. It drastically improved performance. Now Todd is focusing on which areas of his business are the most scale-able, and the systems he will need to put in place to make that growth happen. “The meeting in September allowed us to really look at the company and decide where we would focus the most attention,” he says. “We all want clarity, and that’s helped a lot.”

Todd’s discussions with his fellow entrepreneurs at the program helped him gain a clearer understanding of the issues he’s facing, along with potential solutions. “A big part of the Birthing of Giants group is you get to see problems being solved from a lot of different perspectives,” he says. “Entrepreneurs are not afraid to make mistakes—it’s about finding ways to do it better the next time.” Todd believes that the program helped him find the business leadership and clarity that he needed to push his company in the right direction. “When you get that kind of clarity, you just go for it and you figure it out as you go,” he says. “I’m not guessing anymore.”

Imagine finding answers to the burning questions that you have about your business. Birthing of Giants knows how to find those answers. This week-long Fellowship program brings together successful entrepreneurs and small business owners across the nation to strategize, fraternize, and learn from leading business experts and your peers. Find out how 1,000’s of other entrepreneurs helped their companies grow and achieved their goals faster. Click here for more details about this game changing program.

MOONSHOTS & MONEYMAKERS: The Oxford Innovation Conference For American Entrepreneurs

AUGUST 5-8, 2024 @ OXFORD UNIVERSITY, UK
HOSTED BY BIRTHING OF GIANTS

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