Owner To Owner Podcast

Katrina Myers from Barham Avocados on taking an extended family trip, the business planning they did for this temporary exit and why it was good all round.

Episode Summary

Katrina Myers is a co-owner with husband Tim of Barham Avocados, a family-centric business. We talk about taking why and how they planned a temporary exit from day-to-day operational responsibilities aka an epic overseas holiday, for the long-term benefit of the family, the staff, and the business.

Episode Notes

@KatrinaMyers is the co-owner with husband Tim and tribe of 4 children of @BarhamAvocados. It's a generational business that's deeply embedded in the local community. Katrina and Tim had successful professional careers and lived and traveled extensively overseas before the lure of returning to the farm became irresistible. 

Katrina and Tim also didn't want running a significant business to be a barrier to them and their children experiencing extended international travel. Katrina knew the business was there to serve the owners, not the other way around. They spent years planning for an epic family adventure. Listen in to hear Katrina talk about:

• moving away from the feeling of being trapped by your small business 
• the importance of “living life for the moment”
• how putting further responsibility on staff allows for the business to develop - “when you’re not here, they figure it out”
• how to make a business more sustainable with long-term planning 
• why "doing everything is not good for you as a business owner”
• the strong link between a business and its owner's identity - it's upside and downside
• making the distinction between business and owner 
• not attaching your identity to your business and understanding that “if our business fails, we are not failures”
• why it is so important to ask for help and advice for you and the business
• what different models and planning can be put in place for your small business to assist with taking a break and coming back to it
• encouraging other owners to think about taking a break
• ensuring your goals, values, family and other life matters are included in your business planning
• how they prepared the business to enable them all to go traveling, and then come back to the business
• dealing with the pressures that all small business owners face
• leaving successful professional careers for avocado farming
• juggling a family and small business
• the concept of a temporary exit from your business rather than exit planning for a sale and a break that may never happen
• the importance of owning mistakes and responding to them openly as they are a part of the small business journey