Our Philosophy – Harmony and High-Level Operational Support

Business Goals

If you think the extent of setting business goals starts and ends with setting a sales goal for no other reason than that it sounds impressive or it seems like it “should” be the next step for your business, think again. While finances are a huge aspect of any business (and one we definitely look at), I personally believe that figures mean nothing without greater meaning or reasoning. Therefore, when setting your business goals, we dive deep.

We ask questions like: What does your ideal day look like? What do you want your life to look like in 2, 3, 5 years? How much time do you want to be spending in the business? What aspects of your business do you love? Which aspects do you not love so much? What’s the end game? What do you want your role to be within the business? What do you want your team to look like? How is that team structured? What do you eventually hope to outsource? How much do you need to be bringing in to sustain the business? How much would you ideally want in reserves? How much do you earn from your business? How much do you want to pay your employees? Do you even want employees? What kind of offers do you want? What kind of clients are you trying to attract? How do you want to show up for your clients? I could go on and on, but you get the picture.

Ultimately, we dive into every area of your business, covering finances, team, marketing, delivery, systems, and your operational ecosystem. Which is essentially how each of these sectors feeds into making your bigger vision a reality. 

Personal Goals

This is where it gets fun. As an entrepreneur, it can be easy to let business become all-consuming, but there is life outside of business. Your family, friends, hobbies, untapped interests, and unexplored passions matter too. For example, I love to spend my time outside of business enjoying good food with the people I love most, exploring snowy-topped mountains, and more simply curling up on the sofa with my partner to enjoy a good series. The systems and structures I have set up both in and out of the business support me to be able to do all of the above and more (I’ve just recently rediscovered my love of netball!).

Whether it be travelling to a new part of the world every couple of months, Sunday lunches with the family, morning runs with your local group at the park, galentines dates with your girls, weekend getaways with your partner, slow morning walks to get coffee with your dog, midweek days off, dedicated time in your calendar to start painting again, learning how to play an instrument or being able to do the school run in the mornings, there’s nothing I love more than learning what my clients love doing outside of their business and helping them create more space for those things in their life.

It’s funny because when we start this process, our clients often begin with “Well, it would be nice to take the occasional day off without interruption.” Then, as we prompt with more questions and build faith that so much more is possible, it becomes “being able to pick the kids up from school would be great” and “Well, I have always wanted to pick painting back up again”. And before you know it, the original goals of taking an occasional day off are so far in the rearview. We’re talking about new business ventures, the exciting projects they’ve had on the “one-day shelf” in their business for years, 2-week family vacations, and so much more. It’s amazing that through the support we provide, we help you realise that you were made for so much more and that all of your big visions are possible for you to live and enjoy in this one incredible lifetime.

Current Reality

This may be the most important of the three because without a clear understanding of your current reality, it’s impossible to work towards creating your new one. But this is also the most challenging step, as it requires brutal honesty.

The first thing we do with any of our agency retainer clients is a full audit, where we dive into every area of your business and life. We get really honest about how you’re utilising your time. And from here we carry out a thorough gap analysis between where you are, and where you want to be. We then reverse engineer a clear plan with actionable steps to remove things that are no longer serving you and implement new structures to support your journey. As said author, speaker and world-renowned habit expert James Clear in his #1 New York Times bestseller Atomic Habits – “You do not rise to the level of your goals. You fall to the level of your systems”. And it is by integrating the right systems that we’re able to close the gaps between where you are and your goals. 

(In Atomic Habits James speaks frequently with great passion on the importance systems play in building an identity with which we feel aligned and a life in which we achieve our full potential. It’s a great read that I’d highly recommend to anybody looking to improve their daily habits, routines and success both in business and in life. You can explore Atomic Habits along with other books, articles and resources by James here)

The Connection

Each of these elements are important in their own right but when you look at them as an ecosystem, the game will change for you. See, I believe that if you’re pouring energy into one element, your efforts (or lack thereof) will be felt across the other elements. If you’re doing this intentionally, this will be of great benefit to you, if you’re not – it’s likely you’ll feel that constant frustration of “things are great at work but my personal life is a shambles” and vice versa.

Given each element holds the same level of importance, it is important that each element is granted the same resources. But without a clear framework, it is easy for these 3 elements to feel entirely separate, which typically results in the rewards being separate (See above: “things are great at work but my personal life is a shambles”). This is where our framework comes in. 

The Framework Behind The Philosophy

Growth doesn’t happen by chance; it requires deliberate and constant refinement. At RVPA, we have developed a comprehensive framework that allows us to guide our clients through the transformative journey of aligning their current reality with their business and personal goals. The framework is straightforward: Find the pattern, Fix the problem, Refine.

Finding the Pattern:

To identify a pattern you must first be able to see it. That’s why the first thing we do in any business is work to create visibility. This can take many forms. It can look like implementing effective time tracking throughout the business, setting up automated records and alarms every time a client fails on their payment or a team member misses a deadline or creating dashboards to give you a birds-eye view across your entire business. And it is through working to create this visibility within your business, that we can identify patterns. Both the patterns propelling you forward and the patterns holding you and your business back.

Recognising these patterns is crucial. By understanding these recurring themes, we can better diagnose the core problems that need addressing.

Fixing the Problem:

Next, we focus on fixing the problem at its source. This step involves deep analysis and strategic planning to implement effective solutions. It’s not just about treating symptoms but solving the root causes to create lasting change. This can look so many ways. Sometimes it’s simply tweaking a process or automation, other times it’s a complete overhaul of an entire workflow. It can look like integrating a new tech platform or migrating from an existing one. It can look like offer refinement, documentation and sometimes more simply the development of you and your mindset as a leader. But our ultimate goal whenever we’re looking to solve a problem in your business, is to make sure that it is the best fit for you and your company.

Constant Refinement:

Finally, as your business, life, and current reality evolve, so too will your goals. I always say – “If a problem was ever really a problem, you’ll face a whole new wave of issues after implementing the solution.” This means that the systems and processes we put in place will need constant refinement. This is where the visibility we worked so hard to create really pays off. Having the visibility already built in means that you can spot the patterns and gaps within your business sooner and resolve them more efficiently. It allows you to see exactly what’s going wrong, why it’s going wrong, and what needs to happen to get you back on track. Continuous improvement is key to maintaining alignment with your evolving objectives and ensuring sustained growth towards achieving your vision for ultimate success.