There’s no course in business school that teaches how to run a business with your wife. Marketing. Finance. Supply Chain. Law. Most of my business school experience taught “Business” with a capital “B” — the suit and tie variety. So, when my wife and I launched a business 10 years later, I was unprepared and uneducated on the challenges we would face.

Most plans are useless. A typical 5-year plan is nothing more than a collection of guesses. And when these guesses turn out to be incorrect (as guesses often are), companies are forced to choose between their original plan and what makes sense today. That said, there’s one plan that no company should ever ignore… The 30-60-90 Day Onboarding Plan.

Entrepreneurship is growing. In 2021, 5.5 million small businesses were created, a million more than in 2020 and a 54% increase over 2019. As basic supply and demand often goes, there has also been an uptick in businesses designed to help entrepreneurs succeed. Which means the digital space is flooded with experts, gurus, and coaches all claiming to help you avoid the challenges of entrepreneurship. The problem? Everyone talks about the same challenges with the same solutions.

We all love the myth of the “natural born leader”. The Alpha that takes charge of every situation, ensuring the job gets done, no matter what. But leadership is so much more than someone with an outgoing personality. It’s a collection of skills. Empathy. Listening. Coaching. Motivation. Powerful leaders act a lot like a Swiss Army Knife, deploying the right tool at the right time to get the desired result.