If you’re building and growing a business to provide for you for the rest of your life you have to make smart deals and seek strategic opportunities across international borders.

There is a distinct difference between those entrepreneurs who are business owners and those who are value innovators. To put it simply: To be an architect of growth and to excel under competitive pressures, entrepreneurs like you must adjust pricing, adapt to change, assimilate as needed, engage in strategic marketing, and foster innovation and value creation within your client base.

I know I’m getting a little deep here but it’s time to step up and do good business. Are you ready? Are you up to the task?

Alright then…Here are five ways to be an architect for growth the strategic way:

Let go of the employee mindset. I still revert back to my corporate days every now and then but I’m able to pinch myself and maintain my entrepreneurial style. The employee mindset works strict hours, normally nine to five, takes only two 10 minute breaks, possibly a half hour lunch, and is always looking for someone to tell them what to do.

If you engage in some of these activities, I ask you to stop the madness! You Are The Boss! Start by creating an environment that allows your ideas to flourish and your personality to come out. Put systems in place, organize your office space, and outsource low payoff activities. Make a conscious effort to let go of the employee mindset.

Define your business. You will run your business differently depending on your vision and the solutions you offer. If you define your company as a family business to be passed down from generation to generation, then your focus will be to maintain control. You probably won’t sell the company to someone outside of the family for One Million dollars (or maybe you will). Your goal is to create a family asset that will provide jobs, skills, and income for those who choose to go into the family business.

If you define your company as an asset + value generation focused business, then your primary objectives might be strategic partnerships, acquisitions, leverage of resources, and bringing in the right talent to operate the business for you.

Either definition is great or even a combination of both. Main takeaway: In order to grow and generate the cash flow you need, you have to be willing to define your company and commit to maximizing value in order to provide maximum returns on a consistent basis.

Reinvent and Redefine. I’ve changed my scope of work so many times you would be surprised. I’m not talking about changing your business model or changing your vision. I’m talking about doing what you’ve always done just in a different way based on the market, your target, and the ability to incorporate new technologies.

For instance, I used to do up to 10 speaking engagements per month. It was my main client generator, but as my company grew, I had to figure out how to still reach all these people but on a more global scale in order to stay on track towards my vision (global resource centers across the world).

I could no longer travel to provide (free) workshops and maximize value and cash flow. It was to time consuming. I had to figure out how to maximize my time, create a growth model that incorporated new team members, and how to reach more people in smaller nuggets of time. I quickly learned the power of technology and created Telecourses, eSeminars, a new virtual mastermind group and other virtual activities are being planned.

As a result, I’m reaching more of my target and setting the stage for creating the physical representation that I’m creating virtually. Now I only do three in-person speaking engagements per quarter with a much better response.

So reinvent and redefine does not mean let go of everything you’ve created. It means create an infrastructure that supports growth, expansion, and flexibility.

Target a global market. We have such a unique opportunity to reach across international borders. Why not take advantage and reap the reward? There’s this huge thing called the Internet. I know, you’ve heard of it. But, are you utilizing it as a growth tool for your business? Yes, you can sell eBooks and information products, but you can also create a platform that positions you and your company…drum roll please…any way that you want!

In one week I managed to get 200 new subscribers to my newsletter, three new experts to partner with on training projects, two great interviews on my radio show with celebrity entrepreneurs, and 70 new friends that allow me to research a network of 196,856,900 people! How did I accomplish so much in just one week? I pimped my MySpace page. (You can join me on the MySpace Telecourse to learn how to do the same).

Target a global market.

Forget about getting a mentor, be your own mentor. I’ve been searching for a mentor for over five years. One colleague even told me that maybe my standards are too high. What? Are you kidding, of course my standards are high. I don’t want a mentor that is at the same level that I’m at, I want someone who has made it well beyond where I’m trying to go…you know what I’m saying.

In my quest, it’s been a real struggle. There are a lot of great people out there who give back and make time to help entrepreneurs. In the mean time, I’ve learned how to be my own mentor. I read, write, count, plan, and think. If you engage in all five of these actions, you will acquire the knowledge, tips, recourses, access, and skills you need to go where you want to go. That’s basically what a mentor can provide or at least what I’m looking for.

Don’t give up your search for a great mentor, just learn how to research. (o;

You might be thinking that you can’t view your business in this way because you’re a small business owner. That’s disconnect – you should be thinking this way because you’re an entrepreneur! If you want to be an architect of growth – these are the type of things you have to not only consider but take action on.

© Effició, Inc. Sherese Duncan