Silly Bandz are a trend that lead to “flash in the pan” growth. Overnight, middle schoolers went into a frenzy for the shaped bracelets. Stores could not keep Silly Banz in stock, and they became so popular that schools banned the tradeable item.

At the height of its popularity, Silly Bandz seemed unstoppable, but there was no real explanation for the extreme demand. Over time, that frenzied demand cooled off. Silly Bandz is still in operation, but the company is not still a must-have item that is selling out of stores.

Growth that is not understood is impossible to recreate. Sudden growth generates more revenue, but it also generates more expenses. A business needs a sturdy internal infrastructure to deliver when there is more demand.

For Silly Bandz, less than adequate supply resulted in more demand. That concept does not always work. A homeowner with a broken air conditioner in the middle of summer will not wait around on a favored company that does not have an open appointment for weeks. If a restaurant has a line out the door, some customers will go elsewhere. Growth that is not prepared for can result in loss, even if revenue increases.

There is no shame in riding out the high that can result from the waves of supply and demand. Nevertheless, planned sustainable growth is better in the long-term. When there is a clear reason for growth, investors are more comfortable investing in a business.

Numbers can also skew. For a new business or a business that is recovering from a crisis, any progress will look like exponential growth. For example, a business that increases from one sale on its first day to ten sales on its second day has experienced 10X growth, but that growth may not be enough to keep the company solvent.

Growth is not about big numbers and huge milestones. Slow and steady wins the race. Growth comes from the consistent, less than glamorous actions taken every day to build a stable business with upward momentum.

“Revenue is vanity. Profit is sanity, and cash is king,” goes the adage.

Do not get caught up in numbers and increases. Especially at the beginning of a business, reasonableness is necessary when it comes to growth. Anyone can smash a goal, but a business needs the five pillars (link to article) as a strong foundation. Marketing should be a strong focus at the start of any business.

Since a business owner makes key decisions, growth for a business is often preceded by growth within the entrepreneur running it.

Albert Einstein is famous for saying that judging a fish by its ability to climb a tress is silly. The fish will always fail at climbing a tree, but a fish would excel at swimming. Many entrepreneurs who do not delegate are putting themselves in predicaments that are just as fruitless.

Each entrepreneur has unique skills, so focus on areas of brilliance and delegate other tasks. This is the first step towards building a business rather than a one-person operation that puts entrepreneurs on the fast track to burnout.

This step towards personal growth also contributes to business growth. Delegation may lead to hiring employees or hiring outside contractors. Either way, it requires consistent cash flow to pay people, which is a sign of stability. The delegation also frees up the business owner’s time to focus on their area of expertise that will help move the business forward faster. The entire business operates at peak efficiency when people who can do the best job at the quickest pace handle tasks.

Consider this: Two otherwise similar pairs of sneakers have different prices. One costs $100 and the other costs $20. Which pair seems to be the better purchase? Despite the drastic difference in price, many customers would opt for the more expensive pair of shoes because the other pair is so inexpensive that it seems inferior.

Entrepreneurs often go through hoops to keep prices low for customers, but cheaper is not always better. As much as business owners often think it is true, customers are not apt to remember prices. Incremental increases over time will not cause a revolt among customers.

Business owners are in total control of the growth of their business. Growth goes beyond numbers and sales figures. This ongoing process always involves making the entrepreneur better at handling business. See our article on growth to learn the exact steps to fostering growth in a business.