We return for part deux of Ian and Christine’s journey, where we find out how they’ve achieved new heights in their ventures, and reclaimed the most important things in their life. Need to catch up? Check out part one here.
When it came to business pursuits, Ian had a hunch: “I worked on the theory that if you start ten businesses, one will come off.”
However, much to his and Christine’s disappointment, it just wasn’t that simple, and after more than fifteen attempts, none had performed to expectations. It was very discouraging, and it stopped Ian from being the family man he’d always pictured himself to be:
“Our lives became completely entrenched in the businesses. We became business partners and our relationship wasn’t right, and I am sure that was hard for Christine.”
Ian had no choice but to spend the majority of his time simply keeping their ventures afloat, and it had a clear impact on family life. Christine and their four daughters missed his presence, as Ian solely focused on solving problems within the businesses. Christine explained: “It gets to be a bit of a treadmill. Ian was working a lot, we didn’t see him a lot… it was hard.”
Ian and Christine knew something had to change. They needed their businesses to start working for them - fast. Ian was missing his family, and he could see the potential in his creations - he just needed the missing piece to a very frustrating puzzle. They went in search of help.
Christine knew they were on the right track after their first encounter with Fingerprint for Success (F4S): “I sort of went, ‘oh my god!’. It really changed the dynamics.” F4S was able to shed light on their blind spots, and highlight the areas that had impacted their business success, with viable solutions for overcoming them. It illuminated their complementary skills and identified where they were best suited to contribute to the overall health of their ventures. Ian said: “In return, the businesses started to make really good profits, and turned around really quickly.”
With business picking up, Ian finally had the flexibility that comes with business success: “I mean the flexibility of having a successful business that’s passive means that I’m the dad that actually picks the kids up and drops them off, and for me it’s a very rewarding thing to have that.”
It’s impossible to be good at everything, and sometimes, letting a co-founder shine can be the best medicine for an ailing business.
Through F4S, Ian and Christine were able to see a clear picture of each other’s talents, how they complemented each other and could benefit their myriad of businesses. As Ian says,
“Where I was weak, Christine was strong, where I was strong, Christine was weak. We started to use those abilities together, within the business, to move forward. I look back on the things we have done, and the guidance from Fingerprint for Success has been the key to our success.”