Taking the Pain
Out of Growth
by Jon Abrams
Although the dream of every small
business is supposed to be unlimited
growth, for many small builders
business expansion is a mixed
blessing. Many of us settled into this
field because we wished to avoid an
impersonal work life in a large
institution. We were attracted to the
freedom, the desire to use our physical
and mental capacities together, and
the opportunity to create something
real and lasting. Viewed from this
perspective, growth can seem like the
enemy, not the goal. Yet there are
compelling reasons for slow, wellmanaged
growth, too.
The custom-building business I run
has been growing slowly but steadily
for 14 years. Despite our efforts to
keep it small and