There’s an old saying: sometimes you can’t see the forest for the trees. I agree. As a founder, I was jumping from one detail to the next to keep the business operating. It was hard to see the bigger picture.

A few years in, I joined EO and had monthly accountability meetings with other entrepreneurs. To prepare for these meetings, I had to think through the business at a high level and make notes. I then shared my thoughts and the previous month’s metrics with my EO forum members. I engaged in this ritual every month for years, and it was transformative for my business.

The meetings forced me think about my business more broadly. I had to consider what strategic things I wanted to accomplish and what was hindering me. I got perspective from people who didn’t know the details of my business but were familiar enough with it at a high level to ask tough questions, share relevant experiences, and point out insights I was staring at but couldn’t see.

I learned from my years in EO that, as a founder, it was easy for me to live among the trees. But I couldn’t stay there all the time. To take my business to the next level, I had to get a bird’s-eye view of it. These regularly scheduled sessions with credible people I respected—whose only view of my business was from high up—were invaluable.

You’ll always have a ton of problems to solve down among the trees. But being intentional about looking at the business from a higher level on a regular cadence can be transformative. I did it with EO, but you can accomplish this in many other ways. Whatever your method, make time for it. The forest looks different from up there.