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    The Indian Eye
             Business Strategy with Hirav Shah                                         AUGUST 21, 2026                                      40

                     The 70-20-10 Formula — How to Split

                Your Time Between Running, Growing, and

                                     Transforming Your Business

                                                                                                                  studying competitors, and exploring
                                                                                                                  technology that could make the busi-
                                                                                                                  ness more efficient.
                                                                                                                      The formula should also be ad-
                                                                                                                  justed according to the stage of the
                                                                                                                  business. During a crisis or peak sea-
                                                                                                                  son, running the business may tempo-
                                                                                                                  rarily require more than 70% of your
                                                                                                                  attention. During a major expansion
                                                                                                                  or rebranding exercise, growth and
                       HIRAV SHAH                                                                                 transformation may require a larger
                                                                                                                  share. The objective is not to follow
                    ost business owners don’t                                                                     the percentages mechanically, but to
                    fail because of lack of ef-                                                                   ensure that none of the three areas is
            Mfort. They fail because of                                                                           consistently ignored.
            poor time allocation. They spend too                                                                      A useful monthly question is:
            much time “running” the business                                                                          “What did I do this month to run
            and  almost  none  on  “growing”  or   Under the 70-20-10 formula, the owner would gradually delegate repetitive operational work to   the present, grow the next, and cre-
            “transforming” it. This is where the                     responsible team members                     ate the future?”
            70-20-10 formula becomes practical.                                                                       If you cannot identify meaning-
                It is a simple framework:     This is where strategy meets expansion.  you will still matter 5 years from now.  ful action in all three areas, your time
                70% time on running, 20% on                                                                       allocation needs correction.
                                                  Most businesses stagnate be-
                                                                                         The Real Problem:
            growing, and 10% on transforming.  cause they treat growth as “extra       Misallocation of Time          How to Apply This Practically
                Let’s break this down in a struc-
            tured way.                        work” instead of “core responsibil-  In real scenarios, most entrepreneurs   You don’t need to change every-
                                              ity.” But in reality, growth is what   operate like this:           thing overnight. Start with structure.
                What does 70% “Running the    protects you from competition.    • 90% Running                     • Step 1: Audit your current time
                  Business” actually mean?    Think of it this way:             • 10% Growth                      • Track one week honestly. Where is
                This is your operational zone.   • Running keeps revenue stable.  • 0% Transformation               your time going?
            The daily engine.                 • Growth increases revenue poten-  This creates:                    • Step 2: Block time intentionally
            It includes:                        tial.                           • Burnout                         • 3.5 days → operations
            • Managing teams                      Without this 20%, your business   • Plateaued revenue           • 1 day → growth
            • Handling clients                becomes  predictable—and  predict-  • No innovation                 • Half day → transformation
            • Delivering products or services  able businesses are easy to disrupt.  High dependency on the founder  • Step 3: Protect transformation time
            • Monitoring cash flow                  The most ignored 10% —          The 70-20-10 formula corrects     This is not optional. Treat it like
            • Solving immediate problems          “Transforming the Business”   this imbalance.                   a board meeting with your future.
                Without this 70%, your business
                                                  This is the highest leverage zone,
                                                                                                                           Final Perspective
            collapses. But here is the risk: most   yet the most neglected.     What the 70-20-10 Formula Looks Like   The formula is not about rigid
                                                                                           in Real Life
            entrepreneurs get stuck here perma-  Transformation includes:           Imagine a business owner work-  percentages. It is about disciplined
            nently.                           • Rebranding                      ing 60 hours every week. Nearly 50   thinking.
                As Hirav Shah often emphasizes,
            “Execution keeps the business alive,   • Business model changes     hours are spent reviewing routine   • If you only run the business, you
                                                                                work, approving small expenses, an-
                                                                                                                    stay busy.
                                              • Technology adoption
            but it does not guarantee growth.”  • Entering new industries       swering staff questions, handling cus-  • If you grow the business, you scale.
                If you spend 90–100% of your
            time here, you are not building a   • Strategic pivots              tomer complaints, and following up   • If you transform the business, you
                                                                                                                    stay relevant.
                                                  This is where future relevance is
                                                                                on payments. By the end of the week,
            business. You are maintaining a sys-  built.                        the owner is exhausted but has made   The difference between aver-
            tem.
                                                  Many  leaders  avoid  this  10%   little progress toward the company’s   age businesses and category leaders
              Why 20% must go into “Growing the   because it feels uncomfortable. It re-  future.                 is not effort. It is how they allocate
                        Business”             quires thinking beyond current suc-  The problem is not a shortage of time. It   their attention.
                Growth is not automatic. It is in-  cess. But this is exactly where break-  is a lack of delegation and priority.  And in business, attention is strategy.
            tentional.                        throughs happen.                      Under the 70-20-10  formula,
            This 20% is where you:                Again, from a strategic lens of-  the owner would gradually delegate   Hirav Shah is the Global Business
            • Explore new markets             ten highlighted by Hirav Shah:    repetitive  operational  work  to  re-  Strategist, Game Changer, and Author
            • Build partnerships                  “Businesses don’t fail suddenly.   sponsible team members. This would   of 19+ books—trusted worldwide for
                                                                                                                    validating big decisions of entrepre-
            • Strengthen marketing systems    They become irrelevant slowly—be-  create time for reviewing new sales   neurs, sportsmen, and entertainers.
            • Improve sales funnels           cause transformation was ignored.”  opportunities,  improving customer
            • Upskill yourself and your team      That 10% is what decides whether   retention, developing  partnerships,   Email : Business@hiravshah.com

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