Most of us keep a small part of ourselves back some of the time, whether it be energy or concentration, thinking too deeply about something or putting ourselves out there where others can see our real personalities. But when it comes to your business, what do you hold back that is keeping you from succeeding as much as you could and should?
Confidence
Do you have what it takes to go against the flow of other businesses? Does it bother you to be different or stand out in some way? If it does, you may not be confident that your business will succeed. Most very successful small businesses became that way when their owners stepped outside of the norm. They put into place business practises and came up with ideas that were different from their competitors.
Education
Does learning frighten you or do you not spend time upgrading your skills? Sticking to what you know can mean your business stagnates. Investing in education for yourself can help the growth of your business and it can also mean that you grow as a person. Decide what frightens you the most – learning new skills and having a business that grows beyond your control or feeling like you have failed because you wouldn’t try something new.
Hiring help
Know when you need help and know where to look for it. There are many small business owners who now work with virtual agents and teams. Business owners tend to look on hiring outside help as a loss of control but what it really means is sharing ideas and having someone else to do the work that you really don’t like or don’t excel at. It’s a win-win situation for both the business owner and the virtual team.
Hard work
After that first flush of success, when you see the possibilities for the future looming, do you pull back and instead of putting more effort into your business, do you coast along and do a little less work? This is a common factor in many small businesses, when the business owner decides that what’s good enough now will do for the future, instead of working a little harder and becoming even better at what they already know.
Your health
While this may not seem like a factor that’s important to business, taking care of yourself should be right up there at number one. You can’t give anything to anyone or to your business if you have nothing to give. Your first thought every morning should be what you can do for yourself today. Then think about your business.
The main thing is to realize these qualities in yourself, put a plan of action in place and move ahead step by step. While you may not overcome all of them, even learning a bit more about yourself and how you approach your business will open your eyes to what you need to do in order to succeed.
© Chris Draper, DemGen Inc 2013
