One of my favourite questions for Founders & Business Owners is, “What’s Your Number?”

The look I get is usually one of confusion. I get that. The question is deliberately simple and vague. People seek clarity. “Well, what number do you want to know?” Herein lies the beauty of the question.

I don’t just love this question because I am a numbers man but because of the focus it brings to what business is - one big game.

We may take it very seriously. Simon Sinek in The Infinite Game talks about it being a never-ending game and the benefits of long-term strategy, but however we look at it, business is a game. A game with winners & losers.

Games only work when you keep score. Who wants to play a never-ending game of football where nobody has any idea who is winning? Even as kids on the street, you keep score.

The beauty of the game of business is it means something entirely different to every person I ask.

Unlocking The True Number

I have asked this question many times. Once they understand the question, I typically get one of three responses:

1. “I don’t know. I have never thought about it.” - They have, but it’s buried away.

2. “Oh yeah, I want to hit £x” - Bullshit, this is the safe number but not the true number.

3. “In 5 years, I want to be doing £x because…” - They have clearly worked on this as they know WHY the number matters to them. This is very rare in lifestyle business owners I meet.

Ditch the Safety Net

Category two can be the hardest to get through to. This is where my direct approach has the potential to offend, but this question only ever comes from a good place.

These owners think they know the answer but are afraid and don’t realise. They are so scared to fail they give an answer which is so safe they know they will hit it. It will typically be a Revenue or Take-home figure only slightly larger than their current position.

Worst of all, this number doesn’t allow them to achieve the life they wanted when they first set out - so what’s the point?

I don’t blame owners for being stuck here. They are shackled by the how. At this stage, we only want the end goal - the how comes next.

Again, lots of probing and time here for self-reflecting should help them to open up for their benefit.

My favourite probing question here that works every time:

Now how do you feel about your number?

Breaking down the number to show what the business would need to look like can be very revealing for an owner.

Do they want to manage a team of 50?

Do they think it’s possible to generate 56 leads per month?

At this point, we are only really focussing on the how over the next 12 months. If the 12-month target puts you on track for the longer-term vision, that’s all good. We can figure out the rest later - it’s too hard and unpredictable to nail the How all the way out at this stage.

At this point, I receive one of two responses.

1. “This is actually achievable” - great. Let’s flesh out the 12-month plan and get to work!

2. “That isn’t going to work” - sometimes seeing the detail can be enough to help them realise their priorities. We can re-work the number to a plan that still enables them to feel successful, delivers the life they want, and stretches them but is realistic.