This is a fundamental business question for every small business owner.  Over at Marketing Pilgrim, guest writer Jeremy Luebke posses the question “Can Your Business Exist Without You?“  In it, he outlines some fundamental “to do’s” that every business owner should consider.

In particular, this is a critical topic for small business owners who are either in their first 12-24 months of operation or for the owner who has decided to maintain an intimately sized employee base (less than 10).   Do you find yourself editing the website, cleaning up the office, tweaking proposals or just flat out doing alot of the dirty work?  If so, you are working “in” your business and are not playing the part of owner/CEO.  Since you are acting as an employ of the company………who is actually running the business?  Working “in” your business is important, but when habitual, it can be a major detriment to your potential and the company’s true value in a fair marketplace.  Consider stepping out of the trenches and begin to create new ones. 

If you work “on” your business, congratulations!  You just earned an additional 1X for your company’s fair market value!  Professional business valuations will take these factors into consideration.  When it comes time to sell, no buyer wants to manage A-Z………they want trained, experienced employees to do much of the dirty work. 

Other informative articles about working “on” your business versus “in” your business:

http://www.inc.com/resources/startup/articles/20050501/firmtypes.html
http://www.smallbiztrends.com/2005/10/working-on-not-in-business.html
http://carolinanewswire.com/news/News.cgi?database=columns.db&command=viewone&id=218