The challenges that come when you decide to grow your business are very different to those of starting up.
When you start up, you are excited, energised and empowered to go out there, doing what you want, what you’re good at, making your idea take shape as you establish yourself in the business world. It’s a time to work hard, become established and treat your customers so well that they tell others how phenomenal you are.
Then, one day you wake up to find that nothing seems to fit anymore. What worked yesterday doesn’t work today. You’re overwhelmed, over worked and unsure what to do to get you out of this daily grind. It’s no longer the work you love to do, it’s the work of running a business, and who knows how to do that?
At this point, you have a fairly straight forward choice: do nothing and stay stuck in this energy sucking situation or take a look at your business with a view to transitioning it into something bigger and better.
If you choose the latter, your business will certainly change. It will demand different things from you; you will need to think differently, act differently, plan and organise yourself differently.
One of the bigger differences when growing your business vs. starting up, is that you need others to help you; to do the work you need to let go of, to do the work you’re not great at, to give you time to build rather than keep doing what you were doing.
And here’s where I think your thinking needs to shift, so you can begin transforming your business into something that once again works for you:
1. Become Aware of the Need for Change
Becoming aware that things are not working well anymore is massively important; awareness is the first stage to making something different happen. Too often we carry on hoping that it will be ok. Instead, take stock of what you’ve learned thus far; look at what you’re good at, what other people have said you’re good at and where you have fallen short of the mark. Be grateful for the lessons you have learned and prepare to move on.
2. Reassess your Business Intentions
Remind yourself why you started in the first place and what your vision was for your business back then, and then think about what it looks like now. One of the biggest shifts you need to make is in where you focus your thinking – up till now, it has probably been on the daily tasks but now you need to be linking them with your future vision.
3. Make a Plan
With a clear idea of your future business, think about your first goal on that road and write it down in a plan. Things are going to change, life happens, so keep a flexible approach to your journey, and plan it one step at a time. Too many become overwhelmed by planning the whole journey and then give up because it seems too big, too far away.
4. Recruit Others to Help You
Now the thinking is done, it’s time to take action. Start looking for the people best suited to do the tasks you can delegate. Recruit different skill sets so your team gets stronger as they work together. Share your vision with them so they understand what’s expected of them and the business. Invest in them; spend time training and developing them for your future success.
5. Enjoy the Journey
Earl Nightingale said “Anyone who is on course toward a worthy goal is successful.” so celebrate and remember too, “Laughter is great medicine”. Enjoy the process, have fun building a bigger, better business, get more people involved, make it so you love what you do and get great reward from it.
And there you have it, the realization the things need to change brings the need for a reassessment of where you are and where you want to be. Recognising that you can’t do it all by yourself transforms your thinking from a one man band to a real business, bringing structure, growth and new thinking for a brighter business tomorrow.
5 Tips to Grow Your Business
When you start up, you are excited, energised and empowered to go out there, doing what you want, what you’re good at, making your idea take shape as you establish yourself in the business world. It’s a time to work hard, become established and treat your customers so well that they tell others how phenomenal you are.
Then, one day you wake up to find that nothing seems to fit anymore. What worked yesterday doesn’t work today. You’re overwhelmed, over worked and unsure what to do to get you out of this daily grind. It’s no longer the work you love to do, it’s the work of running a business, and who knows how to do that?
At this point, you have a fairly straight forward choice: do nothing and stay stuck in this energy sucking situation or take a look at your business with a view to transitioning it into something bigger and better.
If you choose the latter, your business will certainly change. It will demand different things from you; you will need to think differently, act differently, plan and organise yourself differently.
One of the bigger differences when growing your business vs. starting up, is that you need others to help you; to do the work you need to let go of, to do the work you’re not great at, to give you time to build rather than keep doing what you were doing.
And here’s where I think your thinking needs to shift, so you can begin transforming your business into something that once again works for you:
1. Become Aware of the Need for Change
Becoming aware that things are not working well anymore is massively important; awareness is the first stage to making something different happen. Too often we carry on hoping that it will be ok. Instead, take stock of what you’ve learned thus far; look at what you’re good at, what other people have said you’re good at and where you have fallen short of the mark. Be grateful for the lessons you have learned and prepare to move on.
2. Reassess your Business Intentions
Remind yourself why you started in the first place and what your vision was for your business back then, and then think about what it looks like now. One of the biggest shifts you need to make is in where you focus your thinking – up till now, it has probably been on the daily tasks but now you need to be linking them with your future vision.
3. Make a Plan
With a clear idea of your future business, think about your first goal on that road and write it down in a plan. Things are going to change, life happens, so keep a flexible approach to your journey, and plan it one step at a time. Too many become overwhelmed by planning the whole journey and then give up because it seems too big, too far away.
4. Recruit Others to Help You
Now the thinking is done, it’s time to take action. Start looking for the people best suited to do the tasks you can delegate. Recruit different skill sets so your team gets stronger as they work together. Share your vision with them so they understand what’s expected of them and the business. Invest in them; spend time training and developing them for your future success.
5. Enjoy the Journey
Earl Nightingale said “Anyone who is on course toward a worthy goal is successful.” so celebrate and remember too, “Laughter is great medicine”. Enjoy the process, have fun building a bigger, better business, get more people involved, make it so you love what you do and get great reward from it.
And there you have it, the realization the things need to change brings the need for a reassessment of where you are and where you want to be. Recognising that you can’t do it all by yourself transforms your thinking from a one man band to a real business, bringing structure, growth and new thinking for a brighter business tomorrow.
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