Own the Dirt: what I want an owner to take from the book

When you think about the future of your business, what are you trying to build toward?

It is easy to answer from the demands of the current week. There are people to support, decisions to make and work that cannot wait. But the next stage of the business also needs attention. I want Own the Dirt to create room for that conversation.

For me, the useful question is what you want the business to support and what you are prepared to take responsibility for in getting there.

Begin with the future you want

Describe the working life and business you want to build. Be specific about your role, the people around you and the responsibilities you want to continue carrying.

Then look honestly at the current operation. What is helping you move in that direction? What keeps you occupied without bringing the future any closer? Which assumptions are you still carrying from a different stage of the business?

You need enough clarity to make choices. A future goal that never changes today’s decisions remains difficult to act on.

Examine what depends on you

Look at the decisions that return to you, the knowledge only you hold and the relationships others cannot yet manage. Ask which responsibilities genuinely belong with you and which need a better arrangement.

Ownership includes being willing to examine the system you helped create. If the team waits for your permission, consider whether you have given them a clear boundary and the support to work within it.

Choose one part of the operation to improve. Make the responsibility visible, provide the information needed and review what happens when someone else carries it.

Include the people in the plan

The people who help build a business have ambitions of their own. Ask about them. Discuss what they want to learn, what responsibilities they want to take on and what your business can realistically offer.

Be clear about commitments. A useful conversation can reveal an opportunity to develop someone or prepare a future handover. It may also show that their next step will be elsewhere.

Those conversations deserve more care than assuming everyone sees the same future you do.

Think carefully about what you control

The title Own the Dirt also opens questions about premises, assets and the responsibilities attached to them. Those choices need to fit the business and the circumstances, with the appropriate professional advice.

I want the broader discussion of ownership to remain practical. What do you understand? What can you influence? What needs verification before you commit? What will your decision require from you and the people around you?

Take one question back to the business

My hope is that a reader leaves with a question worth acting on, whether it concerns their own role, the team’s responsibilities or the next stage of the business.

Start with the future you want to create. Then choose one decision today that deserves a clearer answer.

Follow the updates for Own the Dirt as the book takes shape.