Building a business is not for the faint of heart. It takes hard work, sweat, determination, confidence, and a willingness to fail and pick yourself up over, and over, and over again. Because of this, it’s not hard to see why a lot of entrepreneurs keep one toe pointed in the other direction while trying to move forward with their business. They often think in terms of having a backup plan just in case this “entrepreneur thing” doesn’t work out. This seems like a good idea in theory, but the problem is you cannot walk forward with one foot pointed the other way. You’re either all in or you’re all out. If deep down you are waiting and preparing your plan of action in the event your business fails, these three steps will help you change your perspective and remind you that going “all in” is the only option.
1. Tell Yourself There Is No Way Out
When I was first starting my business, I had some very difficult days. I cried, stressed over the numbers, and was on a consistent rollercoaster of dramatic highs and lows. One day during an especially deep low, my husband gave me advice that changed my whole perspective. He said, “Kimberly, either you are all in, or get out.” Those words took hold of me and transformed the way I was thinking. As long as I was entertaining the idea of failure, I wasn’t giving it my all to make it work. It was like he had thrown a big bucket of cold water over my head that woke me up and forced me to own my purpose. If you are going to succeed as a business owner, it’s going to take all of you. So if this is what you want, go all in and don’t look back. Stop letting fear and the naysayers tell you it won’t work. Instead, tell yourself you WILL make it work, then go find a way.
2. Focus on Your Purpose
You simply can’t go wrong if you are passionately following your purpose. Of course that does not mean everything will come up roses, you are going to have some really difficult days, months even, that you will have to press through to get to the peak. During those times, remember why you started this journey in the first place. Write down your reasons for starting a business, whether it be financial success, more time with your children, the opportunity to help others, or something entirely different. Post those reasons next to your computer, on the bathroom mirror, at the kitchen sink – everywhere you spend a lot of time – and use them as a constant reminder to keep pressing forward. When you remember why you are in this, it makes it harder to abandon ship.
3. Celebrate the Good Times
There are plenty of reasons to feel nervous when it comes to building a business and it is often far too easy to get caught up in the negatives and forget about the positives. For me, I treat everything as a celebration, an event. I celebrate the small wins constantly. Honestly, there will always be disappointments, failures and fears that come up in your business, but if you amplify the small successes, it will be harder to get caught up in the negatives. What does celebrating small things look like? Sending an email newsletter for me is not a routine task, it’s an event because I am communicating great news to my peeps that will help them and ultimately move my business forward! New likes to my Facebook page are a celebration because it shows me people are interested in what I am doing. Even someone calling me to say they heard about me from one place or another – that is all validation that I’m doing something right. There are far more small wins than big losses, and when you focus on the positives, however small they may be, you will start to change your perspective to one of positive optimism that leads to an “I can do anything” mentality.
So now it’s time for you to decide, are you all in? Are you ready to work through those tough days of fear, disbelief, stress, naysayers, losing clients, and falling short on revenue? Owning that you are all in will allow you a different state of mind to break through those barriers and enjoy what’s on the other side. When you are having those tough days, remind yourself that there is no turning back, you CAN make it happen, and keep pressing forward.
Join me and five experts at The Grow Grid Intensive, November 3-4, 2016 and get the tools you need to succeed in your business. Learn more and register today!
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