In the middle of 1996 I sat down in “the big chair” after becoming the co-owner and President of a middle size international freight and logistics company. More than 140 in staff, 6 offices and 150 million in revenue flowing in and out of the organization. While that may sound impressive, the real picture was not a rosy one. We were losing money. Clients had gone bankrupt on us during the recession of the late 1990s leaving us holding the bag. Our competitors, battling for their own survival, were giving away services for less than half of our normal fees and clients demanded we match competitive quotes. We started losing a few key members of our team. Our bank was breathing down my back. All early clues of business decline that I missed or ignored.

I remember it so vividly. Looking out across my desk was like looking at a landscape littered with business wreckage. So many things urgently needed my attention that it was hard to know where to begin. But more than anything, I felt alone in the battle. Like any competitive industry, if the staff thinks the ship may be sinking they look to jump to another ship. Our staff was more than loyal but human nature is what it is and they had families to feed. It was up to me to deliver on the challenge I accepted, alone.

My friends, old and new, looked to me as a young but smart business person. “I am sure you will figure it out” they would say. So how could I tell them about my fears and worries? What would they think of me if they knew the truth?

So many things need to get done. So many things...

I picked up the phone and called a business owner I respected and asked for a referral to a business turnaround expert. Specifically, I said, “I do not want a management consultant who will tell me to buy low and sell high. I want someone who will tell it to me straight and call me out when I bullshit myself.”

My first call with his clear choice lasted well over an hour. When we were done I asked the one question that was left before moving forward - “Can I afford you and can I afford not to afford you?”

I made the hardest, and ironically smartest business decision in my life and spent the money we didn’t really have because getting the company back into the black would be worth 10 times what I would pay him. He supported me as advertised. I could tell him the naked truth and he wasn’t going anywhere. He called me out on my bullshit with candor, empathy and integrity.

Within 6 months we were back on track. We adjusted our focus and made some smart moves into higher-margin businesses. We executed a plan that had a manageable number of objectives.

He was worth 1,000 times what I paid him.

Looking back, I should have called him 2 years earlier. But why didn’t I? I knew the business was stumbling and tried everything I could think of to fix it. But I never asked for help. Sure, I talked to marketing, design, PR and communication agencies looking for some “secret sauce” and paid handsomely for them to build up the facade of a business that was cracking at the foundation.

But here is what I could not see and what too many others never see until it is too late - It was the business and my internal issues, blocks and fears that needed attention simultaneously. And very few like to get involved in all of that. It’s not sexy, the underlying issues are not clear and the outcome is far from certain. There is no “magic bullet” other than grinding work, tough choices and demons to face. But leave it alone in this battle and you will continue to feel alone. The end of the story ends badly. And it will end.

Over 25 years have passed since I picked up the phone and asked for help. Since the business turned around we were able to sell it in January 2000. A year later I hung out my own shingle to help business owners never have to go through what I went through. To help those who are brave enough to ask for help before it is too late. To realize what I learned the hard way, when a business is struggling, so are you. And vice versa.

Having now helped hundreds of business owners, entrepreneurs and CEOs through their own dark times there is one common threat they defeated before I could help them. It is the same demon that caused me to lose two years of my life, and my smile, before asking for help.

Pride.

Don’t confuse pride with integrity. Pride is holding you back and keeping you alone with your pain and stress. Now you know what to tell your pride. The next move is yours…

Are you ready to transform your business and reclaim the life you dreamed of when you first started? Click here to learn more about the unique process I've developed, inspired by my journey and honed over 25 years of work across every industry you can imagine (and many I never could have imagined).