Keys To Success
One of the questions I am most often asked is, "What does it take to be successful as a small business owner?" The answer is different for everyone, but even before attempting to answer, the first things that need to be addressed are: What does success mean to you and what do you want to accomplish? How can we know how to be successful unless we first know what success would mean to us? Having answered that question for yourself, there are three basic things that critical to success in small business, no matter what the goal is.
1. Bloom Where You Are Planted.
It may look to you like everything is working against you. You have little money to invest, and even less time because you are juggling motherhood and family. You are terrified because you may have never done anything like it before. You can't afford advertising and don't know much about marketing. You're not used to blowing your own horn and you're a little afraid that it won't work out. Yes, join the club. the first suggestion I have is to simply look around you at the assets you have. What is your passion? What keeps you awake at night thinking about how you can develop your passion into a commercial venture? Who are your friends and family members that will help you? You can't afford a fancy website? Start with a user-friendly, nicely designed 2-page website. You don't have 20 hours a week to spend on your business? Start by spending 5. Other people are doing it better than you? Do it to the best of your ability, not someone else's. Don't know what's involved? Attend a free business seminar provided by someone in your area (check local newspapers). Want to meet other moms who have taken what little they might have had and created a successful business? Tune into the Lifestyle CEO Radio Show on Mondays at 1:00pm EST on Global Talk Radio.com. Or come to the Lifestyle CEO Conference. Look around you at all of the things you have to help you get started. Work with what you have, and what you need will come.
2. Be Consistent.
I call this, "Putting the needle on the record." Create your infrastructure and your tools to get started one time, and than use them over and over and over again. Today, we can't get away from media reports on how the television shows of the fall season are faring in the marketplace. Remember when The Apprentice with Donald Trump was all the rage last year? Well, this year, NBC hoped that The Apprentice Martha Stewart would follow suit, but it did not. So, they are moving it to a different time slot in the hopes that it will find an audience. Meanwhile, ABC's mega-hit, Lost, which was popular last year, is even more popular this year. In both cases, the infrastructure was built (the shows were taped and advertised). In the first case, changes need to be made to make the infrastructure work. In the second case, the infrastructure works, so there's no need to change much. It's time to ride the wave. Small business is much the same way, on a smaller scale of course. Set it up the best way you can and then repeat the things that work and drop the things that don't work. Success breeds success so if something works, do it over and over again.
3. Help Other People.
Ah, the Golden Rule. Do unto others as you would have them do unto you. Help other people. When you help other people, you also help yourself. I have a friend whose business motto is, "How can I help you while also providing for my family's needs?" Translation: how can I help you and also make money? It's a fair question and one that should be asked by every small business owner.
So, there it is. Try it and let me know if it helps you.
