The 5 Lies That Franchisees Believe
Apr 29, 2025
Success in franchising is not just about hard work and having a great brand; it is also about having the right mindset. I see many hard-working franchisees who, unknowingly, believe little lies that hold them back and stall their growth.
- Although these lies feel true, in reality, they're keeping them stuck, stressed, and overwhelmed with running their multi-unit organization.
In today’s blog post, I'm gonna call these five lies that franchisees believe and what's behind them. And, if you resonate with any of these misconceptions, discover what you can do to stop sabotaging your growth!
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Lie #1: “I can’t find good people”
The truth is that you can, but not without a system that allows you to have the best people working for your company.
- You need to carefully design a pipeline for attracting, recruiting, interviewing, hiring, and onboarding great people.
Once you do, it would only depend on how much money and time you're going to invest in building that pipeline, not just for the currently open positions, but also for the future. That way, when you need them, you’ll have people ready to go.
That is a way for you to combat this lie that franchisees believe about staffing.
Don’t miss: Winning Strategies for Staffing and Talent Acquisition
Lie #2: “Corporate should handle that”
Another lie that franchisees believe is that the franchisor is responsible for providing everything they need to be successful. This is a common misconception about franchising: people often think that when you buy a franchise, you get everything you need to succeed, but that's not the case.
The franchisor provides a proven brand, a product, a service, an image, and national and regional marketing, if you pay a marketing fee. However, when it comes to the business side and the systems to manage the business day-to-day, convert revenue into profit, and keep under control the labor cost, the cost of goods, and all the other expenses, especially the controllable ones, that's on you as a franchisee!
Don't believe that the franchisor should be in charge of that because they won’t! You won’t find anywhere in the FDD or the franchise agreement that they're going to give you a business degree in franchise management. That is not what you acquire when you buy a franchise; it's up to you to create those systems.
If you don't have a small business management background and are struggling with this critical task to be able to manage your franchise business profitably, I would like to invite you to explore our COMMAND Program and other educational programs at the American Franchise Academy.
- This is what we do every single day: we train, teach, coach, and develop franchisees and their leaders on how to manage the franchise organization profitably.
You can learn all about our COMMAND Program in our upcoming informational webinar, “The Top 1% Franchisee Formula”. Register for free below:
Lie #3: “I’m too busy”
The third little lie the franchisees believe and have their business stuck is that they are too busy. While it is true that as business owners, we are constantly dealing with issues related to our business, the reality is that we cannot control everything.
I know that sometimes franchisees like to do things their own way, but that only takes away the time they need to focus on strategy and growth. They may even be doing things that a leader should be doing instead!
- That’s why, to prevent this, franchisees need to learn to delegate!
Take inventory of everything you do and consider what you truly should be doing versus what you need to delegate.
If you want to have true time freedom, you need to give your team the opportunity to step up and do a great job. This will depend on how well you train them and whether you provide them with the necessary resources to do things the way you want them to be done. Once you do that, you can then delegate with confidence.
This will be key for you to eliminate this small lie about time management. At the end of the day, you need to prioritize tasks, take on what you are responsible for, and delegate tasks that belong to others. That will give you the freedom that you want and deserve.
Lie #4: “I’m not ready to grow”
The fourth little lie that franchisees believe sometimes comes more from fear than from true readiness. Transitioning from one unit to two, three, or ten can be scary and overwhelming, especially if you are not clear about how to prepare for that growth.
- But I promise you: once you reach the first District Manager area, things get really easy. The key is getting to the first District Manager as quickly as possible.
To be able to get there, you need to, again, create the systems, processes, and procedures that a multi-unit enterprise requires to run smoothly.
That’s one of the things we teach in the COMMAND Program that we deliver at the American Franchise Academy, by the way.
One last tip on this: cut yourself some slack. Things don’t have to be perfect for you to grow. Sometimes you just have to push through to be able to accomplish the goals you want in your life. But if you still want to feel more prepared to grow and achieve that successful multi-unit enterprise, then reach out for the resources that will help you get ready for it.
Keep learning: Multi-Unit Franchising, The Key to Achieving Financial and Time Freedom
Lie #5: “I know what I’m doing”
The fifth little lie that franchisees sometimes believe is that they know everything they need to know. But the reality is that, while having that confidence is fantastic, we can always be better. I will tell you that, as the founder and CEO of the American Franchise Academy—with over 35 years of experience in the franchise industry—I still reach out to other experts for help.
Having the humility to understand that we don't know everything and that we can learn from other people how to do things just a little better has its benefits. Our own employees may have amazing ideas that can help the organization be better or more efficient!
The more we understand that we can continue to grow and that we do not know everything, the more successful we will be in the long run.
If any of these little lies sound like something you believe, I hope this has given you a couple of tips on how to address them and taken you a step forward in your business, so that you can achieve the dreams you want. And remember, the American Franchise Academy is here to help you along the way, as our purpose is to protect the American dream of business ownership through franchising.
Explore the details of our COMMAND Program or register for our upcoming information session, where we will share how we can support you throughout your multi-unit journey. You can complete your free registration by clicking on the banner below:
Reflections:
- Do you have a consistent recruiting strategy?
- Are you actively attracting talent and building a strong bench?
- Do you have your business management systems in place, or are you expecting corporate to do it for you?
- What is the cost of not delegating some aspects of your business?
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