Life is a series of peaks and valleys, and this truth holds especially for those who embark on the entrepreneurial journey. Starting a business from the ground up can be a thrilling roller coaster ride, with exhilarating highs and challenging lows.
While some might throw in the towel when faced with tough times, others persevere with the right mindset, pushing through until they turn their company into a success story. So, what exactly is this winning mindset? Join us on this blog journey to discover the key to becoming a successful entrepreneur, no matter what obstacles come your way.
Fueling your business with passion and strengths
Discovering and nurturing your passion is the secret to making your business successful. While many start businesses solely for money, they often don’t achieve the wealth they desire. Instead, focus on what truly motivates you – your passion.
Here’s the deal: Most of your work, around 95%, will be repetitive and dull, with only 5% being exciting and enjoyable. That’s why you must absolutely love that 5%.
Your passion is already inside you; you just need to tap into it. Think about what you want to change or fight against – that’s where revolutionary ideas often come from. People like Gandhi, Mandela, and Martin Luther King Jr. took action against injustices because they were passionate about it.
Your passion is connected to your strengths, so use them wisely. Remember that success isn’t something you’re born with; it’s the result of hard work, determination, and a commitment to improvement. Your passion will be your driving force, helping you overcome the challenges on your path to success.
Why sales should be your top priority as a new entrepreneur
As a new entrepreneur, you might feel overwhelmed by all the tasks you have to juggle, like finding the right suppliers, maintaining quality, and managing finances. In this situation, it’s crucial to focus on what matters most, and that’s sales.
Sales should be your top priority because how well your product sells depends less on its quality (which is only 10% of the equation) and more on how you market and sell it (making up 90% of the success). Look at popular products in any industry; they aren’t always the highest quality. For example, McDonald’s isn’t known for gourmet food, but it’s the world’s most visited restaurant due to its marketing and sales efforts.
If the word “sell” makes you uncomfortable, think of it as “help.” Your product should address people’s needs and make their lives better. Empathy is crucial in sales because you need to understand how your product can benefit your customers.
Take the example of John Lennon, a successful Miami real estate agent. He sold over $3 billion worth of real estate in identical buildings by personalizing his pitch for each buyer. For instance, if the customer was a vintage car collector, he emphasized the building’s safe garage, showing how it met their needs.
In the end, your business’s success relies on sales. So, whether you call it selling or helping, start connecting with customers and making those sales happen!
The importance of hiring the best employees
Your employees are the most important part of your business, so it’s crucial to hire the best people, even if they’re more skilled than you. Hiring the wrong people can be costly since most businesses spend a large portion of their budget on salaries. However, the reason to focus on hiring the right people goes beyond saving money.
The people in your company define its success. To create a high-performing business, you need high-performing employees. Even in industries with similar products, some companies stand out as excellent. Take airlines as an example. When you buy a ticket, the plane is similar, but the service can be vastly different based on the people working for the airline.
Your employees can either make or break your company. So, when building your business, make sure you choose the right people for the right jobs.
But, as the leader, you might think you should be the smartest person in the company. Actually, it’s better if your team is smarter than you. Strive to be the least knowledgeable person in the room. Why? Success doesn’t require extraordinary intelligence or skills as long as you can hire people who possess them.
If you find yourself coming up with better ideas than your marketing director or financial solutions superior to your CFO’s, it’s time to make some changes.
Building a successful business depends on the team you assemble and your ability to recruit exceptional talent. Make your business a success by hiring the best of the best.
Why leaders must lead by example
As a leader, you are the one who sets the rules and standards for your company. This means taking responsibility and being a positive role model for your employees. For example, if you’re the founder of a successful business and an employee in another office loses their temper with a customer, your first instinct might be to discipline that employee and their manager. However, as the head of the company, you are ultimately responsible for everything that happens, including your employees’ mistakes.
It’s crucial to take ownership of your company’s actions because you are setting an example for your team. Your employees look up to you, so if you want them to be disciplined, dedicated, and focused, you need to exemplify those qualities yourself. For instance, if you always wear a suit, your employees are likely to follow suit. If you’re punctual, they will be too.
As a leader, you need to prioritize what’s best for the business, even when it’s not the most popular choice. Your employees may not always listen to what you say, but they are always observing what you do. Be sure to set a good example for them to follow.
Prioritizing your way to the top
Productivity is about getting more done by figuring out what’s most important to you. Have you ever wondered how super successful people manage to achieve so much? We all have the same 24 hours in a day and similar opportunities.
Some entrepreneurs work extremely hard and long hours but don’t achieve great success. Why is that? It’s because being busy and working hard doesn’t automatically lead to success. The crucial elements are having a clear sense of what you want and staying focused.
To improve your productivity, you must identify your priorities. Concentrate your time, energy, and resources on the things that matter most to you while avoiding distractions from less important matters. It’s as important to stop doing things you shouldn’t as it is to do the right things.
Take Warren Buffet as an example. When asked about the key to his success, he said it’s the ability to say “no.” He rejects 99 out of 100 opportunities and carefully selects the one “yes.”
But how many priorities should you have? A good rule of thumb is to have no more than three. You can follow Buffet’s technique: list all your priorities, narrow it down to three, and discard the rest.
Remember, everyone’s priorities are different, and there are no universal right priorities. This technique helps you determine what’s right for you.
Your time and resources are valuable on the path to success, so focus on what truly matters. Don’t get sidetracked by things that might seem important. Name your priorities and delegate the rest to those who can handle them effectively.
Maximize your potential by facing your fears
To reach your full potential as an entrepreneur, you must confront your fears, which often revolve around the unknown and uncertainty. Many aspiring entrepreneurs have been held back by these fears, so it’s crucial to learn how to overcome them.
First, try to understand your fear. Often, what we’re afraid of isn’t as terrible as we imagine. It’s the anticipation of fear that magnifies it, a relic of our primitive instincts to protect ourselves from danger. Nowadays, though, we’re not facing hungry lions; instead, we fear things like public speaking or making difficult phone calls.
The good news is, once you grasp this, conquering your fears becomes more manageable. Remember, when you’re dealing with customers or speaking to a large audience, there’s no life-threatening danger. The real risk is letting fear control you.
However, it’s not always easy to overcome fear. By concentrating on the task in front of you and pushing other thoughts aside, you can conquer your fears and excel in your work. Overcoming fear is vital for entrepreneurs because it allows you to take bigger risks, and bigger risks can lead to greater rewards.
Chase your dreams and trust your instincts
You can become the person you want to be by chasing your dreams and believing in your own decisions. Imagine you have a dream and you go after it, like starting your own business. You set the rules and do things your own way. But over time, you get distracted by other people’s success and start copying them because you doubt your methods. Soon, your business is struggling, and you lose your passion. In simple terms, you can’t live someone else’s dream.
Take Jeff Bezos as an example. He had a well-paying job in New York but had the idea of an online bookstore. His boss rejected it as too risky, but Bezos believed in himself. He quit his job and started that bookstore, which later became Amazon. When you face a tough decision, like starting your own business, ask if you’ll regret not doing it 30 years from now.
By following your dreams and having confidence in your choices, you take control of your future and become the person you’ve always wanted to be.
In conclusion, starting your own business is a tough journey, and most entrepreneurs are well aware of that fact. It involves creating great products, running operations efficiently, and taking care of your customers – it’s a demanding full-time gig. However, what often goes unnoticed are the hidden challenges that come with entrepreneurship. To truly succeed, you must also face your fears, set your priorities, and chase your dreams. It’s not just about the business; it’s about conquering your personal obstacles and staying true to your aspirations.
Inspired by a book “The Entrepreneur Roller Coaster”; Darren Hardy”