As an entrepreneur, your first response to that question will likely be a resounding, “No, I can’t be replaced!” After all, we have been programmed to believe that being replaceable is a bad thing, like maybe what you do isn’t sufficiently important or involved. But I’m here to tell you that not being replaceable is a problem. A big problem!

Hear me out on this, because I know it is probably unsettling, at first, to think that you should want to be replaceable. After reading this, however, I think you will find that there are some benefits to be being replaceable that make it a must for every business owner.

For starters, if you have built a company and can’t be replaced, you have, in fact, built a trap. And that’s not something you want to get yourself into. Your job as a business owner is to make sure that all facets of your business are systematized, so that it can sustain itself and grow, as people come and go. And that, my friend, includes you.

Your job is to make yourself replaceable by systematizing everything you do. Document the duties you perform. Bring in contractors and employees to do what you are doing. If they can’t do it, go back and fix the system. If they still can’t do it right, it’s time to go back and fix the system.

Here are some of the reasons why you need to be replaceable in your business:

• Saleable. When you are replaceable, your company is more saleable. When someone buys your company (and trust me, this is a happy day), they will value it more if they can just take over the reins and it runs. If your absence will cause it to struggle, because you haven’t made yourself replaceable, the value drops.
• Freedom. This is probably one of the reasons you started the business in the first place. If you are the critical piece, you won’t be able to take time off. If you can make yourself replaceable, you can go out and enjoy life while the business grows.
• Leadership. When you can systemize the day-to-day actions, you can shift into a role where you seek out new opportunities, try new things, and innovate. In other words, you will be able to lead your company where you want it to go.
• Outside In. If you can manage to get yourself out of the day-to-day, it will give you a chance to watch the business from afar. This is big, because it will give you a chance to make little tweaks and changes and watch how the business reacts. You become the chef, rather than just being a part of the stew.

Now you can see that there are benefits to making yourself replaceable in your business. Another thing you may not have thought about is what would happen to your business if you were to suddenly find yourself too ill or incapacitated to carry on your work. While we don’t like to think about these things, we really need to. If you are not replaceable, and something happens to you, it could mean the immediate closing of your business. But if you have made yourself replaceable, others could easily step up and carry on, so that things are running smoothly when you return!

So go ahead, make yourself replaceable. It doesn’t mean that you will immediately be replaced, but it does mean that your business, which you have worked so hard to build, is ready to carry on, even if the day comes when you can’t, or no longer want to!