How to Get the Right People Doing the Right Things—and Doing Things Right—in Your Small Business

If you’ve read Vern Harnish’s Scaling Up, you know one of his most powerful principles: growth accelerates when you have the right people doing the right things—and doing things right. It’s simple, but for most small business owners, this is the very place where things quietly start to unravel. Not because the owner isn’t committed, and not because the team doesn’t care, but because the daily pressure of running a business makes it hard to step back and evaluate whether the people side of the business is truly working.

At Inspire Results Business Coaching, we see this pattern every day. Business owners who come to us feeling stuck, overwhelmed, or frustrated—not because the business lacks opportunity, but because the team isn’t aligned, accountable, or operating at the level the business needs. And the symptoms show up long before you realize the root cause.

Let’s look at the real pains that emerge when the right people aren’t doing the right things… and what you can do to fix it.

Pain #1 — “Non‑Dreaming Mode”

One of our coaches uses a phrase that hits home for so many owners: Non‑dreaming mode.

This is the state you slip into when fear of failure starts running the show. You stop imagining what’s possible. You stop thinking big. You stop dreaming altogether.

Why does this happen?

Because you’re spending your energy compensating for people who aren’t performing, aren’t aligned, or aren’t taking ownership. You’re stuck in the weeds, doing work that shouldn’t be on your plate, and carrying responsibilities that should belong to someone else.

When you don’t have the right people doing the right things, you lose the mental space required to lead. And when you lose that space, your vision shrinks. The business stops growing long before the numbers show it.

Pain #2 — A Team That Doesn’t Understand the Goals

Another common pain: Your team doesn’t understand where the business is going.

You may think you’ve communicated the goals. You may have said them in meetings or written them on a whiteboard. But if your people can’t clearly articulate:

• • What the goals are
  • Why they matter
  • How their role contributes

      …then they’re not aligned.

Misalignment leads to wasted effort, duplicated work, and frustration on both sides. When the right people are in the right seats, they crave clarity. They want to know the target. They want to know how to win. When they don’t understand the goals, it could be that the wrong person is in the role

Pain #3 — Wanting to Be Liked

This one is more common than most owners admit.

Fear of not being liked keeps leaders from having the hard conversations that would actually fix the problems.

You avoid confronting poor performance.
You hesitate to hold people accountable.
You tolerate behaviors that undermine your culture.

But here’s the truth: avoiding conflict doesn’t protect relationships—it erodes them.

Your best people want you to address the issues. They want standards. They want clarity. They want a culture where everyone is rowing in the same direction.

When you let fear of being disliked drive your leadership, you end up protecting the wrong people and frustrating the right ones.

Pain #4 — Who Is Driving You Nuts?

Do you have that person.

The one who drains your energy.
The one who resists change.
The one who creates drama.
The one who always has an excuse.
The one who’s been there forever, so you feel guilty even thinking about letting them go.

But here’s the question we ask our clients:

If this person quit tomorrow, would you feel relief?

If the answer is yes, then why are you still holding on?

Keeping the wrong person in the wrong seat doesn’t just slow the business down—it sends a message to the rest of the team about what you’re willing to tolerate. Culture is shaped far more by what you tolerate than what you say.

So How Do You Fix It?

Getting the right people doing the right things—and doing things right—starts with 3 commitments. Here’s how to put them into practice.

1. Get Brutally Honest About Your Team

This is where most owners hesitate, but it’s the most important step.

Ask yourself:

• • Who consistently meets expectations?
  • Who’s aligned with your values?
  • Who’s capable of growing with the business?
  • Who drains your energy or slows the team down?
  • Who would you enthusiastically rehire?

We often guide clients through a simple “A, B, C Player” exercise. A‑players are aligned and accountable. B‑players are coachable with clear expectations. C‑players either need to be moved to a different seat—or moved out.

2. Clarify the Goals and the Expectations

People can’t hit a target they can’t see.

Once you’ve identified the right people, you must give them:

• • A clear role
  • A clear set of responsibilities
  • A clear definition of success
  • A clear connection to the company’s goals

We’ve seen several owners who assume the team “gets it,” but the team is often guessing.

When expectations are clear, accountability becomes natural—not confrontational.

3. Measure the Right Things: Leading vs. Lagging Indicators

One of the most practical tools we use with clients is helping them distinguish between leading and lagging indicators for each role.

• • Lagging indicators are results. They tell you what already happened.
    Sales, revenue, customer retention, project completion.
  • Leading indicators are behaviors. They predict what will happen.
    Cold calls made, proposals sent, presentations delivered, follow‑ups completed.

Lagging indicators tell you whether someone hit the goal.
Leading indicators tell you whether they’re doing the work that leads to the goal.

When leading indicators are clear, measurable, and within someone’s control, accountability becomes objective—not emotional. And when leading indicators are healthy, lagging indicators almost always follow.

The Bottom Line

When you get the right people doing the right things—and doing things right—everything gets easier.

You get out of non‑dreaming mode.
Your team becomes more self‑sufficient.
Your culture strengthens.
Your business grows.

And you finally get to step back into the role you were meant to play: the visionary leader who dreams boldly and leads confidently.