“What does a fish know about the water in which it swims its whole life?” asked Albert Einstein. We often take the environment essential to our success for granted.

Business owners should ponder two questions: 1) Do you own your business or does it own you? 2) Are you in your business or on your business?

Several years ago a very successful freelance writer told me he could never turn down an assignment, because if a client found another writer for the task, he might choose that writer for the next assignment. So my friend worked all the time. He never took vacations. Yes, he earned more than most writers, but it seemed to me he had turned his business into a relentless grind, and he lacked the liberty I associate with entrepreneurship. It was a necessary phase of business development, but at that point in time, his business owned him.

The distinction between “in” and “on” is the difference between managing tasks and managing the business.You know you are “in” your business when it feels like you are drowning in mundane details everyday.My father used to say that the mundane is like a cancer; it eats away at your creativity and prevents you from seeing the bigger picture.Being “in” the business means you spend downtime worrying rather than dreaming. Getting “on” your business provides a completely different perspective. As the saying goes, it’s hard to think about how to drain the swamp when you’re up to your waist in alligators.

When you step above the frantic daily challenges, you can focus on three big questions: are your coworkers motivated? Is your checkbook balanced? Where are your customers going? To answer these questions, you need time to think.

How can you anticipate tomorrow’s customer needs when you’re obsessed with yesterday’s orders? You need motivated coworkers to get the daily work done. Many entrepreneurs face difficulty here, because when you start as a one-person shop, it’s very difficult to trust others with the work. But trust allows motivated coworkers to blossom, so if you want to grow, learn to let go.

I don’t think you have to do your own bookkeeping to manage cash flow, but I think every business owner can benefit from an accounting class. When it’s your money on the line every day, you should be conversant in the language of finance.

I often say that accountants live in the past, managers live in the present, and leaders live in the future. Get on your business, and you’ll become the kind of leader who creates the future.