Are You Stuck or Growing With Purpose? Armida’s Perspective

By Armida Peña

Many businesses are standing still. They sell enough to cover expenses and focus on surviving each day. But expenses rise, customers change, and competitors keep reinventing themselves. I invite you to ask: are you working only to keep your business alive, or are you helping your vision grow?

Hard work needs a clear direction

Growing with vision means more than doing the day’s tasks. It takes strategy, financial organization, and creativity with the resources you already have. It also helps to surround yourself with people who are growing with purpose.

Take time to review prices, control costs, speak with suppliers, and think calmly. Working harder without a clear direction can bring exhaustion without progress. My message is to work with intention and be honest about where the business stands.

What I changed at Triple A Plaza

I remember a time when Triple A Plaza Appliances generated just enough. I told myself that everything was fine as long as we were not losing money. But that mindset was taking away my energy and vision. I was trying to accept something that did not match my goals.

I decided to make changes: reviewing prices, training the team, launching new services, and digitizing processes. Eventually, things changed. Making the decision was not easy. Leaving a standstill takes a choice, and sometimes it takes time to make it.

Five small actions to discuss this week

I recommend small actions that make necessary changes easier to introduce and sustain. These are the five starting points from my experience:

1. Speak with five former customers and ask what they would improve.
2. Review fixed costs and identify something you could renegotiate or reduce.
3. Consider an additional service, even if it is temporary.
4. Digitize one part of the business that is still manual.
5. Set aside an hour to think rather than execute.

Questions that help a team regain focus

Sometimes we need more honesty about the business rather than more ideas. Asking useful questions can reveal what is slowing us down. Discuss these with your team:

• What would we do differently if we were starting this business from zero?
• Which part of the operation is most behind and needs updating?
• Which customers are we attracting, and which do we want to attract?
• What is working, and what no longer works?
• Which decisions have we postponed because of fear?

For me, this is a chance to recover the vision: to question, improve, and make decisions with courage. Survival is not the goal I want to settle for. I want to grow with purpose, and clarity begins when I make room to pause and think.

Read more about the people behind Triple A Plaza and Leyris’s professional-growth experience.