Hey GirdleyWorld!
Today I’m talking All-Star Teams — the types of people successful CEOs surround themself with. It turns out that business is a team sport.
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Successful entrepreneurs don’t try to go it alone.
Of course, they have people inside their company they depend upon.
I learned that successful CEOs/investors/business leaders surround themselves with key service providers.
So, I’ll talk here about who should be on your all-star team. Advisors, counselors, service providers you need to win.
Some of these people are no-brainers. Others you may not have thought of.
Let’s get into it…
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Your All-Star Team
CPA / Accountant
Unless you’re an accountant or you enjoy it as a hobby, don’t do your own tax returns or books.
Be familiar with how they work because you need to double-check their work, of course.
You’d be irresponsible not to. But it’s not a good use of your time to get into files and forms and accounting rules.
A good CPA will make sure you’re doing things by the book. They’ll help with implementation and preparation. They’ll usually prepare your tax returns, too.
Attestation firm
These are special accountants that just do financial auditing.
Once you have an accounting department and a few million in revenue, you should be getting your financials audited or reviewed annually.
It’s huge for peace of mind as it reduces likelihood of theft by insiders/outsiders. Plus it makes things like loans or selling your business way easier.
Tax Lawyer
Many expect their CPAs to give them tax strategy advice.
I hate that. CPAs are usually rule followers and don’t understand gray areas like lawyers do.
A dedicated tax lawyer will help you develop a strategy to minimize tax liability, then get the legal stuff in place to formalize it. They know the best ways to get stuff done. They don’t view everything as black and white like CPAs do.
Your “Home Team”
This is the family, spouse, and friends that are your life outside of work.
It’s easy to forget how important these people are in keeping you on the right track. They are why you’re working so hard.
Besides, changing a few diapers will keep you grounded. Life isn’t all business, and a little balance can go a long way (especially when things get tough).
CEO Peer Group
Entrepreneur/owner can be the loneliest job in the world.
I believe in joining a driven, high-performing CEO peer group. Nothing replaces the learning and fellowship from peers in these groups.
Plus, being part of a community gives you a network of like-minded people you are accountable to, and who you can turn to for insight and advice.
There’s the big ones, like Vistage, EOS, YPO, etc.
Or join the one we started for companies aspiring to join these groups: Scalepath.
There are local groups all over the place. Interview a few, and find the best fit.
Transaction attorney / General counsel
In early stages, your transaction attorney and general counsel are usually the same person.
Consider them the quarterback of all your legal work. They’ll be your lawyer for transactions with entities, contracts, deals, and more.
As your empire grows, you’ll hire specialists for more challenging issues.
Business coach
Coaches are the best way to keep you in a growth mindset. They challenge your thinking and blindspots when nobody else does.
Sometimes these coaches come with your peer group membership. Other times, they're separate.
The usual logic applies here: We get our kids coaches for junior basketball but we don’t have them for something a important as business? Makes no sense.
Litigation attorney
No matter how reasonable you are, the rest of the world isn’t. Which means disputes and lawsuits are inevitable.
And when they happen, you need a specialist. This is different from your transaction lawyer or general counsel — they get deals done. Litigators are your fighters.
Litigators are wired differently than the other attorneys in your life. Those get used to keep you out of trouble via good contracts and planning. The litigators are when that fails.
Estate planning attorney
Sometimes the same as your tax lawyer, this attorney is a specialist in:
- Making sure you have a solid last will and testament in place
- Helping you avoid taxes (especially if your USA estate will exceed the ~$24mm estate tax exemption)
Remember the home team. This is part of taking care of the next generation.
Financial advisor / Insurance agent
This person helps you build a retirement savings plan. Lots of financial advisors can also sell you insurance, so this could be the same person.
As entrepreneurs, we have to do a little extra to get ready for retirement. (And sorry, social security ain’t it!)
It’s also another way to protect your family if you kick the bucket ahead of schedule.
Pro Tip: look for someone younger than you. Not ideal if you’re retiring at the same time as your retirement advisor.
Let’s recap
Your entrepreneurial All-Star team should cover these three buckets:
People who help your business
- CPA / Accountant
- Attestation firm
- Tax lawyer
- Transaction attorney / General counsel
- Litigation attorney
People who keep you sane
- The “Home Team”
- CEO peer group
- Business coach
People who help you play the long game
- Estate planning attorney
- Financial advisor / Insurance agent
This may seem like a lot of people to worry about. But your team will make your life easier in more ways than you realize.
Your legal team can turn big headaches into little ones.
Your peer groups will spark your creativity and outsource your problem solving.
Your long term plans will let you sleep better at night, knowing you’re taking care of the people that matter to you.
A final note
Your team changes as you grow.
The insurance agent who was the right person for you at $1mm net worth is not the same person you need at 10x or 100x that.
In other words, the players swap out over time. And the bigger you are, the less you can afford to skimp on them.
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Quick hits
Stuff that caught my eye this week
- Appetizer: A Eulogy for Dark Sky. The greatest weather app ever made. Apple bought it and rolled up into their weather app. Which sucks.
- Main: Want to get nerdy about finance? My bud Kurtis Hanni’s deep dive thread on equipment costs is the CFO nerd content I’m on social media for.
- Dessert: Star Trek’s case study in leadership. Sometimes you have to remind people who’s in charge. Data is the kind of AI I can get into.
That’s it for today! Did I miss anyone? Who are the key players on your team?
Hit reply and let me know. I read everything that comes in. Or hit me on Twitter @girdley.
Talk soon!
Michael
