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There is a mentality today about working. Either you work for someone or you work for yourself. Ask ten people about working for someone else and they would probably say that it is the safer bet. The herd mentality has led us to believe that we should go to school, graduate, and find a good job. Why? Well partly, because it's easier. Being the owner of a business is a tough gig sometimes. The rewards are bigger but most people cannot see that. It's a bit ironic that when you talk to people that are not happy in their jobs; their reason is because they feel they don't matter in their workplace or career choice.

The system
Every good business has a system. When you buy a franchise, you buy a system. One of the reasons some franchises are so expensive is because they have a good system. Systems sell, and systems are what keep good companies organized and running smoothly. Most new businesses that fail do so because they lacked a good system. Anytime that you spend on building a good system, is time well spent. Yes a good business plan is important, and having a good financial plan is important too. Having a good system is what keeps all of that working. Most people fail to realize that employees are part of the system.

There are certain companies that rely solely on the employees to provide a service that their company system is based on. Airlines come to mind as a good example. The airlines philosophy is based on customer service in almost every realm of the business plan. If the employees are not happy, the system suffers. As a business owner it does concern me that I would give a lot of control of my business future over to my employees. Not that I don't trust them or care about them, but it's hard to have a business that relies on others for success. I know that sounds stupid but in my opinion that is a lousy system.

Currently more and more businesses, especially online businesses, are being automated. They are removing much of the human element to increase the systems effectiveness. Do customers like it? That is the magic question. If you can automate the process of purchasing with human intervention, it can run much smoother. However there will always be the customer who would rather have that human intervention. But the real story is about systems so I will get back to that. If you are part of someone else's system who really benefits? The answer is the system owner. You agree to work for a salary and maybe benefits. The system owner is the one who benefits from the exposure and risk of owning the company. But he or she also gets to strategize the growth and expansion of the company as well. If you're unhappy with your job, perhaps you are unhappy with being a part of someone else's success. So exploring the opportunity of being the owner might be a valuable exercise for you.