Freedom First

CHAPTER 15Pulling the levers

The more choices you have, the more ‘levers’ you can control.

Liberty is the right to choose. Freedom is the result of the right choice.

Jules Renard

The freer you are, the more control you have. Freedom is quite literally the ability to choose.

For most people working a job, it’s not always apparent how little control they have, and that’s partly why when you ask them why they would like to start a business, they answer ‘to make more money’. Before, I insisted that you should want to start a business that frees you, a business that gives you more control. Why is the freedom to make choices more important than money? In part II we looked at this question in the section on cycles, and the ‘lack of feedback’ trap. One day you are working a highly skilled job earning a good salary; the next, and due to forces outside of your control, the market changes and suddenly you are being asked to train your replacement. But the more choices you have, the more ‘levers’ you can control. When the market changes, you can respond.

When you are in control of a ship it’s because you have your hands on the wheel: you get to pull the levers and decide where to go. Otherwise you are just a passenger.

So, now that you’ve taken control of your ship, what can you do that you couldn’t before? The list is almost unlimited!

Since Melissa had brought up marketing, I decided to go through the marketing process with her and see how many things we could influence, and what ...