Just Go for It
Go for it today. Don’t wait to start what could be the best decision of your life. The longer you wait to get started the harder it will be and the more opportunity you give a competitor to take your potential customers.
Speak Up About Your Business
No one will be as passionate about you and your business as you. It’s easy to be timid about speaking up or marketing your business, especially when it’s new. Don’t let that fear stop you. You may not have the confidence of a seasoned professional, but the only way your business will take off is if people know that you are doing it. Tell everyone you know and ask them to tell everyone they know. Generate word of mouth relentlessly.
Balance Passion with Wisdom
You should be passionate about your business. You need to love what you’ve decided to do and believe in the mission you’ve set out on. You also need to be wise. Balance your passion with wisdom. As your business starts to take off, reach out to people that are already in the industry and understand what they've done that’s worked and what hasn’t worked. Formula One racecar drivers love to go fast. They blast down the straights with passion and then as they approach a turn their wisdom kicks in and they tap the breaks and take the most effective line through it. Be like that in business. Go hard for what you want and take the calculated risks.
Fail Often
You are going to fail. By fail, I mean you will make mistakes. Don’t' be afraid of little mistakes or even (sometimes) big ones. These are all lessons that will help you as you grow your business. Many people can develop such a fear of failure that they won’t take risks that are likely to pay off in a big way. Fearing hiring that second employee or buying that new tool that will increase your productivity can stop you from getting to the nest level.
Don’t Accept Excuses
There are plenty of reasons why you can’t do things. Legitimate reasons. There are also illegitimate ones. Be honest with yourself, your employees and the other companies you work with. If you aren’t doing what you should to win hold yourself accountable. If your employees aren’t doing what they’re supposed to hold them accountable and help them get better. If you’re working with another company that doesn’t deliver what they said they would, tell them it’s unacceptable and if they can’t get it together, drop them and work with someone else. Excuses are a way of making yourself feel better about failure. Don’t do it. You’re the business owner and you need to own the result.
The 80/20 Rule
There’s a level of effort that generates maximum return on investment called the 80/20 rule or Paretto’s law. Paretto was a scientist that noticed that 80% of the beans in his garden came from 20% of his plants. The same comes from your work. 80% of your results come from 20% of your actions. 80% of your sales are closed by 20% of your employees. 20% of your clients earn 80% of your revenue. Focus on the 20% that’s generating the majority of your output. If you earned $80 for 20% of your efforts and doubled those 20% efforts, you’d earn $160. If you tried to drive hard at the 80% of your efforts that earned you $20, you’d work twice has hard for ¼ the money. Identify what those 20% are in all parts of your business and focus on those exclusively.
Hustle on the Side
It takes money to make money. Start your business right now, on the side. You’ve got a day job that’s paying the rent and putting money on the table. When that job is over dive headfirst into your side hustle and start generating income. That income will grow and compound, but don’t start buying boats, instead reinvest that back into your business. When that income exceeds your day job, you’ll be financially free and able to quit the day job and spend the 40 hours you were working your day job on driving what used to be your side hustle.
Ignore the Naysayers
When you start telling people about your business, you’re going to get all kinds of negative advice from people. You’ll know these people because they’ll be really good about telling you why you can’t or shouldn’t do something. Why your business will fail and why you should do something else. When you get this advice ask yourself who is giving it. Is this someone that has had success in business giving you solid advice or someone that was afraid to start a business or someone who failed and gave up? If you wanted to get rich you wouldn’t take financial advice from someone who is always broke, so don’t take business advice from someone who can’t succeed inb usiness themselves.
Be Legal and Do it Cheap
Don’t operate illegally. If there are licenses or taxes that you must pay, then get the license and pay the tax. You don’t want your business destroyed on a technicality. Small business owners get awesome free advice at their local Small Business Administration. The SBA is a program that can give you call kinds of information about how to setup and grow your business. Their services are completely free, and they will help you plan, launch, manage and grow your business. These hidden gems are in offices all over the country. Check them out at SBA.Gov.
Count the Costs
It takes money to make money and it also takes money to lose money. When you’re running a business ask yourself if the purchases, you’re making will help you grow the business. Do you need an office, or can you work from your dining room table? Do you need a fancy new truck or will used truck get the job done for now? When you’re answering these questions be honest. You want the latest and the greatest and you’ll get it when it makes sense. How do you know it makes sense? Ask yourself, will this purchase make me more money than it costs me? If it will, then buy it and don’t feel bad. If it will cost you more than it makes you, put that purchase off and look for an alternative. For example, you can get by with Google Docs instead of Microsoft Office, you can get basic black and white business cards, instead of high gloss color printed cards. Use your money wisely.
Starting a new business is truly exciting. The time to start is right now. Just use these tips to ensure that you have balanced your passion with wisdom, and you’ll be on your way to building your empire.
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