Ever heard of the quarter life crisis? I am pretty sure I had one myself, which is part of what led me to run my own business and explore and identify exactly how I wanted my life to go. It's a beautiful thing!

Something else I frequently experience is a mid-year crisis.

Mid-Year Crisis Defined: Deep desire for change and definite, purposeful action being taken toward change mid-way through the calendar year. Generally happens 6-7 months after the New Year.

This mid-year crisis is by no way a bad thing. It is time for a Fresh Start- and there is nothing that gets me more excited than a Fresh Start! In addition to giving myself a Fresh Start, this mid-year renewal gives us a chance to reflect and reset and make progress on our 2015 goals before the year end is here.

The other thought that comes to mind when I reflect on this Fresh Start where I am currently leading and taking ownership in my life, where I am or need to be following, and where I need to get out of the way so my business can experience growth!

Maybe you've heard this saying before:

“Lead, follow or get out of the way.”

As a business owner, this is a great thing to consider – Are you leading your business? Because if you’re not stepping up as a leader, you’re not able to be the CEO. If you’re following or possibly even worse, floundering, it’s way too hard to get where you want to go.

But let’s face it. Leadership is hard.

Are you leading, following or floundering?

It’s easy to fool ourselves into thinking we’re leading when we’re not. To pretend that we’re leading the way when really, we know deep down we’re playing it safe and holding ourselves back.

For most of us, it’s way less scary to stay in follower mode. Or to flounder about because if we’re not getting it done, it’s much harder to fail.

You, my friend, owe it to yourself to get out of follower or flounder mode and embrace your role as a leader.

But how? Let’s start with a quick rundown of what it looks like to lead, follow or flounder, because you can’t move past it if you’re not truly aware of it.

You’re a leader if…

• You’re focused on creating your own thing and innovating within your market. Rules, schmules.
• You know exactly where you’re heading and nothing is going to stop you on the road to getting there.
• You wake up everyday with a clear plan of what you’re going to work on.
• You could give a flying fig about what your competitor is doing. Because, eyes on your own paper.
• You totally feel like the CEO and you’re doing your best to be the boss.
• You know when to get out of the way or to follow your team or consultants expertise because smart leaders get leverage.

You’re likely in follower mode if…

• You spend ALL your time in research mode and stalking other business owners.
• You fantasize about having someone else’s business or seemingly magical talents.
• You’re afraid of owning your own voice or opinion in the market so you play it safe instead.
• Small risks feel WAY too big to take because what will people think.
• The idea of being anything other than a freelancer or solo show gives you a nasty case of hives.

You may be floundering if…

• A single Facebook post can send you in the the entrepreneurial what if spiral.
• You spend your days not getting your shiz done and feeling stretched to the max.
• You don’t really have a handle on your numbers and money stuff feels icky.
• You’re not really sure who you can lean on when things go bad or you need a little extra TLC.

No matter where you find yourself on this list, or if you’re across all of them, you don’t have to go it alone. And honestly, smart leaders don’t go it alone.

It starts by building a solid support system including:

• Getting Help. Hiring a coach, bringing in subject matter experts or building a team so you can get out of follow/flounder and focused on what’s most important to your biz.
• Peer Support. Some days things are going to suck. You’re going to do the ugly cry. You’re going to need a shoulder to cry on (literally) that understands what you’re dealing with. Find peers that will pick you up when you need it and kick you in the butt when you need that too.
• Creating Your Master Plan. It may sound a wee bit evil like you’re creating a master plan for world domination, but you need to have a plan. Without a plan, you’re on a trip without a plane ticket and no idea what to pack.

Even when you’re in leader mode, it’s worth going back over each of these points to check yourself. It’s easy to think you’ve got it under control until something happens and you realize that you’re actually floundering about and have been for months.

This is exactly what we do here at NiceOps, and I’ll be talking more about how this all plays out in our businesses in the coming weeks.

So, where do you stand? Leading? Following? Floundering? A heavy mix of all of the above? Share below in the comments.