Do you sometimes feel like your business is catching you with your pants down? Do you feel caught out by stuff you feel you should be in control of? Do you spend time trying to work out how you feel like you are hanging on to the back rail of a bus instead of being in the driving seat?
If you feel like your business is running away from you, it might be down to you ignoring some simple truths about running a business.
The most common mistake that business owners make is thinking that it's easy. That anyone can do it. Which isn't entirely untrue - but those who are successful at it recognise a few things and tackle them quickly. So if you are struggling with being your own boss, maybe it's time for a PDP review with yourself.
Lets start with the fact you have to recognise that running your own business is hard work, and that success doesn't happen overnight. I've started three businesses over the past 20 years, all within the learning and development industry, and let me tell you it takes blood, sweat & tears to build a successful one. Especially tears when it all goes pear shaped. Which it will at some point.
First things first. Keep it simple. If you come up with a product or a service that is so complicated you struggle to understand it, then you are making it very difficult to tell other people what it is. You need something that you have a passion for - if you don't love what you do, it shows. So think carefully about WHAT you are going to offer. Can you explain it easily? Because you are going to need to. One of the many hats you will wear when you run your own business is being your own sales and marketing department - and that means talking confidently about your business. If you shy away from public speaking, you need to get a grip on that quickly and overcome it. Joining a business networking organisation like 4Networking is a great way to do this. Not only do you have the opportunity to build confidence in delivering your networking introduction, but you also get the opportunity to speak about your expertise and experiences too.
Secondly, you need to be prepared for it all to go to hell in a hand cart. You need to be comfortable with being pushed out of your comfort zone. Often. Because you'll never learn and develop as a business owner if you aren't willing to go there. I'm not saying you have to enjoy it. Goodness knows I don't most of the time. But you need to embrace it. Being pushed out of your comfort zone will present you with opportunities - it certainly has for me - if I had said 'no' to three key questions I've been asked in the last 10 years of running my business, I simply wouldn't be doing what I love today. One day you will be on a fantastic high, feeling like you've got this business ownership malarky nailed, and the next, you're hanging on for grim death as you crash into the depths of the lows. You need to be prepared to hang on and enjoy the ride. Even if it makes you want to puke occasionally.
The next thing you must embrace is that you must market, market, market. If you stop doing this, you'll be parked at the side of the road as your competitors drive by. You can't afford to stand still. And yet you still need to run your business. So get better at doing that. Look at processes and systems you could streamline, modify or even get rid off all together. There's no point investing in a superfandango 'must have' product if you aren't using it.
You also need to look carefully at how you are using your time, and recognise that time is money. So use your time wisely. One of the top tips I give all my networking members in 4N is to use meetings for meetings. You are already committing to being at a networking meeting to promote your business, quite often taking significant time out of that day to do so - so make it work harder for you - make calls on your way to and from the meeting, arrange to meet potential clients at meetings (invite them as your guest and show them how well connected you are in your local business community), arrange meetings with your suppliers at 4N meetings, get them to come to you. All this makes the most out of your time - instead of spending half a day going for coffee only to find it was a total waste of time 10 minutes in.
Working smarter, not harder, is key to success - so you also need to implement planning and organisation tools that work for you. Not ones that work for someone else. I do my best creative work in the afternoon - I'm bloody useless in the morning - so I make sure that any content writing (like this) is done when I'm firing on all cylinders. Just because your To Do list has 'do this thing' as job number one on the list doesn't actually mean you have to do it first. I talk about this much more during Getting Stuff Done - you need to get some routine stuff done early doors in your day to feel that sense of achievement. Avoiding planning overwhelm is key.
Then you need to understand that you need a strong personal brand. Of course I'd say that. But I don't just mean it - I walk the walk, and I talk the talk. I've been there, seen that and worn the t shirt. People buy from people. You need to communicate the WHO & WHY of what you do. You need to communicate your passion for your business, and give them the right reasons to want to work with you. You do that by consistently creating a clear message about who you are. What your values are. How you can help them. I help business owners work this out and begin to understand their own personal brand and how to use it for success.
Sheena comes from a place of having to have done this for herself. It isn’t simply theory, it is advice which actually works outside the classroom, for those who choose to implement it., Stefan Thomas, The Networking Retreat”
There is noone else to blame when you start up on your own. Just you. You are where the buck stops after all. Being your own boss requires unwavering commitment and focus. This might mean putting in longer hours than you would like at the beginning. This might mean having to get way out of your comfort zone to move your business forward. It is definitely going to mean getting help, advice and training to make sure you are doing the best job you can. It is definitely going to mean consistent effort from you to build your business and your personal brand.
Running a business isn't about chasing the latest shiny thing and then the next, and the next and the next. It's more like running a marathon. It's about picking a dream, making it your own and sticking with it, even when times get tough.