6 Essential Tips To Think Big As A Small Business Owner
When you are an employee of a company you probably go to work for forty (or more) hours a week and collect a paycheque once or twice a month in exchange for your time. This gives you a sense of security: you know that you have some type of money coming in, at least for the next two weeks. In my book about Happiness at work I separated time, money and location as the three pillars of building wealth. As long as two (or more) of the three pillars are connected, you’re not really free. Simply said: renting yourself out for the rest of your life isn’t necessarily going to bring you the freedom you’re looking for.
Don’t Quit Your Job
So should you quit your job? No. The mindset isn’t all that bad. There is nothing wrong with being comfortable with the knowledge that you will have money coming in to pay the bills next week. Please take care of yourself and your family. The popular recommendation to quit your job and follow the dream is beyond irresponsible. The all-or-nothing approach isn’t necessarily the mindset you need to build a successful business.
Add Something Good
If you’re “still” an employee somewhere, let me tell you something you don’t hear a lot these days: that’s fine. In my happiness book, I challenged the common belief that we’re all “wantrepreneurs” who someday hope to break free from being a slave to our steady paycheque. The steady paycheque is fine. The goal is not to replace the paycheque, but to add to it. Most diets fail because we cut stuff out (literally) cold-turkey. Diet, lifestyle, and business success doesn’t come from removing what you may think is bad, but from adding something good. My advice is to start a side hustle: do something you love.
Stand Out From The Crowd
With the many coaches, authors, teachers, consultants, [fill in your title] out there, how do you stand out from the crowd? The prospects you engage with for your “business” are more concerned about your trustworthiness than they may be with the product you are pitching. Are they dealing with an subject matter expert or an employee-like, commission based sales person? These new business owners are still thinking like employees instead of entrepreneurs. This is why so many creative entrepreneurs are unable to turn their startup into a profitable business. Remember the story about my friend who didn’t believe in the need to build a personal brand?
Take The Long Road
The long road is often more scenic. It may take a little longer to build a sustainable income when you build a business from a side hustle, organically. This holds especially true if you don’t have much (or any) experience in internet marketing. That’s ok. You don’t need to reinvent the wheel, and there’s a lot of help and information available from people who did exactly what you’re trying to accomplish. Besides, a true entrepreneur knows there’s no shortcut to success. It is going to take a little while before your new venture becomes profitable. You’re in it for the long run.
Set Specific Business Goals
The entrepreneurial mindset starts with setting specific goals for your business, and working towards achieving them. For my books and online courses, I’ve interviewed and worked with many successful entrepreneurs of our time. I’ve asked all of them whether or not it was worth the trouble, and you can guess the answer.
Take Control Of Your Time And Resources
Whatever you do next, remind yourself of your goals, think like an entrepreneur, and never give up on your dreams. Building on that principle, my Millionaire Mindset online course is based on the idea of adding what’s good to your life. Many people are looking for financial freedom, but don’t truly understand money and how financial systems work. Most people have a love / hate relationship with money. You might be one of them. It’s time to change that. It’s time to take control of your financial life. Free up your time and resources to do those things you love most. Add something good for yourself today.