Working In vs. On Your Business: A Change-Readiness Blueprint for Sustainable Growth

Most leaders know Michael Gerber’s injunction: don’t just work in your business, work on your business. Yet many find themselves trapped in day-to-day firefighting, reacting to issues instead of proactively building systems that scale. This article explores why that shift is essential, why it hinges on change readiness, and how you can lead your organisation from reactive chaos to strategic growth with The Change Gym’s tailored programs.

1. The Business-Doing Dilemma

Running an organisation often feels like spinning plates. You’re pulled into customer escalations, operational glitches, hiring bottlenecks, and unexpected crises. Over time, you become indispensable in execution, glorified as a “problem-solver”, yet powerless to catalyse long-term transformation.

Common symptoms include:

• Endless to-do lists that never shrink
• Decisions by urgency, not by strategy
• Reinventing the wheel for repetitive tasks
• Leaders as bottlenecks, delaying approvals and progress

When you’re constantly “in” the business, you lack the headspace to design efficient processes, develop talent, or anticipate future challenges. Growth plateaus, culture stagnates, and talent churns.

2. Why Working On Your Business Matters

Shifting to “on” the business means becoming the architect, designing systems, structures, and strategies that enable your team to thrive without your constant intervention. Key benefits include:

• Scalability: Documented processes and clear roles let you onboard new staff quickly.
• Consistency: Standard operating procedures maintain quality and reduce errors.
• Strategic Focus: Allocating time to market analysis, innovation, and competitive positioning.
• Employee Empowerment: Delegation fosters ownership, accountability, and professional growth.

Yet this shift is not just a matter of intention—it’s a challenge of change readiness.

3. The Change Readiness Imperative

Change readiness is an organisation’s ability to absorb, adapt to, and sustain change. It spans two interlinked dimensions:

1. Structural readiness: Systems, processes, roles, communications, and training programs
2. Psychological readiness: Mindsets, resilience, motivation, trust, and growth orientation

Without addressing both, attempts to formalise processes or delegate decision-making often meet hidden resistance and fail.

Why it matters

• Resistance stalls progress: Teams cling to familiar routines under stress.
• Poor alignment confuses: Ambiguous roles lead to silos and finger-pointing.
• Low engagement kills momentum: Disconnected staff undermine new systems.

By investing in change readi­ness, you reduce friction, accelerate adoption, and ensure your “on-the-business” strategies stick.

4. Diagnosing Your Readiness Gaps

Before you reorganise or redesign workflows, conduct a readiness audit across three layers:

This structured diagnosis pinpoints the areas most vulnerable to disruption, enabling you to prioritise interventions and tailor your change-readiness tactics.

5. Practical Steps to Transition “On” Your Business

Once you understand your gaps, use this phased approach to reallocate your time and empower your team:

Phase 1: Delegate with Documentation

• Identify one recurring task that consumes your time.
• Delegate it to a team member with a written step-by-step process and reference toolkit.
• Monitor progress, fine-tune the documentation, and reinforce accountability.

Phase 2: Build Process Playbooks

• Host rapid process mapping sessions with frontline staff.
• Co-create visual workflows, decision trees, and exception protocol guides.
• Store playbooks in a shared knowledge base for easy access and updates.

Phase 3: Establish Feedback Loops

• Run weekly pulse surveys to gauge comfort levels with new processes.
• Set up bi-weekly “innovation huddles” where staff propose tweaks and share quick wins.
• Publish an adoption dashboard that highlights key metrics, such as process cycle time and error rates.

Phase 4: Shift Leadership Focus

• Block 20% of your weekly calendar for strategic “on-business” activities: market scans, team coaching, and innovation sprints.
• Use this time to mentor emerging leaders by delegating problem-solving and decision-making responsibilities.
• Celebrate visible successes and recognise staff who drive improvements.

6. Case Study: From Firefighting to Growth Architecture

ABC Engineering, a mid-sized manufacturing firm, struggled with quality issues and delivery delays. The CEO spent 40% of her week troubleshooting production hitches, leaving little time for sales strategy or capacity planning.

Intervention

1. The Readiness Audit revealed overlapping approvals in quality control and unclear escalation protocols.
2. Change Management Training for operational managers to learn stakeholder mapping and strategies for managing resistance.
3. Personal Change Fitness Program for frontline supervisors to develop resilience and motivation in response to new procedures.
4. Change Readiness Superpowers for HR and Continuous Improvement Teams—Sharpening Diagnostic and Influence Skills.
5. Transformational Leadership Program for the executive team to model delegation, a growth mindset, and strategic coaching.

Results

• 50% reduction in quality-related exceptions within three months
• 30% improvement in on-time delivery rates
• CEO reclaimed 15 hours per week for strategic growth activities
• Employee engagement scores rose by 25%

By allocating time “on” the business and embedding change-readiness principles, ABC Engineering transformed from a reactive operation to a proactive growth engine.

7. The Change Gym’s Pathway to Change Readiness

No two organisations are identical; that’s why The Change Gym offers a suite of targeted, self-paced online programs—designed to build structural and psychological readiness:

Keywords: change readiness, change management training, transformational leadership, structural readiness, psychological readiness, process mapping, delegation, digital transformation.

8. Integrating Change Readiness into Your Growth Strategy

To sustain your “on-the-business” momentum, weave change-readiness practices into everyday operations:

• Embed in Onboarding: Include change-readiness modules for new hires, setting clear expectations about adaptability and continuous improvement.
• Align KPIs: Reward not just outputs, but behaviours that demonstrate a growth mindset, collaboration, and process adherence.
• Cultivate Champions: Identify and train internal advocates who model new practices and coach peers.
• Maintain Learning Rituals: Schedule monthly “Lunch & Learn” sessions on process optimisation, change resilience, and leadership best practices.
• Leverage Technology: Implement collaboration platforms and dashboards that make process compliance and feedback visible.

By normalising these practices, you’ll nurture an ecosystem where working on the business becomes second nature, fueling continuous innovation and scalable growth.

9. Next Steps: Your Change-Readiness Action Plan

1. Perform a Quick Readiness Check
   Download our free Change Readiness Checklist to score your structural and psychological preparedness.
2. Select Your Learning Pathway
   Select from our four programs tailored to your priority gaps: operational management, individual resilience, applied diagnostics, or leadership influence.
3. Launch and Learn
   Enrol teams in self-paced modules—supplemented by AI tutor support and live coaching with Dr Steve Barlow.
4. Track and Adapt
   Use real-time feedback loops and adoption dashboards to refine processes and maintain momentum.
5. Scale “On-Business” Activities
   Gradually shift more of your calendar from reactive tasks to strategic design, coaching, and growth planning.

Each program can be completed within 2–4 weeks, delivering immediate tools and measurable improvements in change management, team engagement, and operational efficiency.

Conclusion: Lead From Above the Fray

Leaders who remain mired in the business risk burnout, stagnation, and missed opportunities. By systematically building change readiness—through structured, people-focused interventions—you reclaim the space to work on the business, architect growth, and cultivate a resilient, agile organisation.

The Change Gym’s integrated suite of programs accelerates this transition. From empowering individual resilience to sharpening transformational leadership, we provide the frameworks, coaching, and practical tools that enable sustainable change.