Certified Professional & Executive Life-Coach

When it comes to established business owners, sometimes they can experience a little complacency. It’s not that they have stopped working hard, it’s just that they have learned a thing or two and don’t want to change what they’re doing if it’s been working well so far. Unfortunately this spells D O O M for a plethora of business owners and operators, so, to avoid these mistakes, don’t find yourselves falling into any of the following excuses commonly proclaimed by the biz “greats:”

“If it works, then leave it be.”

Or in other words if it ain’t broke, then don’t fix it. This is a common misconception in the realm of business, where we are lead to believe that just because business seems to be going pretty good right now, we should just let it continue without exerting ourselves by looking for further avenues for improvement. This is incredibly misguided, as business is exactly the opposite: it’s important to always look for new ideas, ways of improving yourself and ways to increase profitability and productivity. Of all the research I’ve done, there are a lot of great books, articles and blogs about the reasons as to why businesses fail. The one that relates to leaving things be is that most businesses look to build short term profits rather than long term value.

“Make something better than the other guys and you’ll be flooded with customers.”

This may well be true for a small minority, but in a world of instant copycats and discounted fakes, you as the great inventor must be cautious when believing this statement. Just because you make something that you personally find amazing doesn’t mean it actually is, nor does it mean that it will automatically overwhelm you with new customers. I may think that I’m a really great coach, but there are a lot of great coaches out there beside myself. What is unique about me is my life experiences, who I am as a person and how I coach my clients is personal to me. But it doesn’t serve me to think that I am the best coach out there and that I could be the best coach for everyone. Like the product or service you are offering, it may indeed be better than what’s available on the marketplace today, but if it’s more expensive or not well advertised (amongst dozens of other potential problems), then it may be time to rethink your business approach or the types of customers you are trying to attract. There is definitely a time/value trade off, as well as a risk factor involved, so make your decisions wisely.

“Do whatever you can to get the business.”

When you’re first starting out in business, it may be tempting to take every job offer that comes your way, no matter how little it may pay you. Why? Because work is work and making money is all that matters. Well, not exactly. The sign of a true business-savvy individual is that he or she is able to turn down assignments or projects they find not worth their time when comparing time spent and income earned.

I made this mistake for many months when I first started out as a coach. I undercharged for the value I was providing, and even though I kept raising my prices, I still kept hearing from mentors and other successful coaches that I wasn’t charging enough. I wasn’t new to coaching as I’ve been doing this technically since I was in seventh grade. But I was new as a coach who was trying to make a living at it. So over time as potential clients would negotiate me down in price, regardless of how much or little I was charging, it felt good to just start saying something in the realm of “when you’re ready I’ll be here to support you.” I didn’t know I could do that.What I finally got was that it wasn’t always about price, sometimes they are just not ready. So just because the ball may be in your court doesn’t mean you have to swing every time. It’s okay to let it pass you if it’s not worth the effort.

“Details, details, details!”

As a business owner, you’re going to drive yourself insane if you’re so focused on the minute details that you barely have enough time for the day-to-day operations. That’s the beauty of owning a business or being an entrepreneur; you can outsource some things and focus on the overall picture: keeping your company in business. Details are certainly important, but it’s too easy to get caught up in them and fail to see the big picture (which is what the owner should be focusing on in order to pursue success in the most productive, least time-consuming way).

As the visionary and the creator of a product or service, it’s important to keep site on the long term vision so you always see where you’re going. And believe me, now that I have an incredible team that includes a VA (virtual assistant), a graphic designer, a website developer, a ghost writer to help me with Marketing, a bookkeeper, and a coach to hold me accountable to what I say I’m going to do, then the fun part for me is I get to do what I do best – Coach, be an idea machine, write, and of course talk about how much I love to do what I do.

So, when you hear all of these sayings from fellow business owners, don’t forget to take a step back and truly examine them for what they’re worth. Just because it’s a common saying doesn’t make it mean it’s true for you, or for the next entrepreneur you talk to. So be flexible and have an open-minded approach to business. Only this will bring success and your success is really up to you.

Did you know that your level of optimism at work can completely your determine both job satisfaction and productivity? It’s true! Studies have proven that people who have generally positive outlooks- both on life and at work- tend to be much happier in their jobs, whether they’re lawyers, plumbers, teachers, or journalists.

So what does this mean? There are three types of workers: those that are in jobs they hate but do it in order to get by financially, those that don’t love it but maintain a positive mental attitude to make the day less sufferable, and those that absolutely love their jobs and can’t wait to wake up in the morning to go to work. Take a look at those three categories and ask yourself: which one do I fall under?

Now take a look at your motivational drive. Are you working in your current job solely to make a lot of money and get great benefits such as medical, dental, and a 401K? Are you doing it because it is something you enjoy so much that you’d almost be willing to do it for free? Or are you doing it so that you may see improvement, not only in yourself and your workplace, but even on a global scale? By examining these possible motivations, or what I like to call inspirations, it will be easier to target where your problem areas are, as well as where your strengths lie. Once you understand these things, you will be able to better contribute to your company as an employee (or become more inspired as an employer), which leads to a higher quality system of organization and more inspiration to achieve for all.

The final factor in regards to positivity in the workplace is that of happiness itself. If you hate your job, it’s not likely that you’re too happy in or out of the workplace. By going in with a positive attitude each day and focusing on aspects that make your position worth staying in, you will gradually notice a change in your feelings for your job. It’s true that not all optimists are much happier than their pessimistic counterparts, but the perception of being happy in their shoes more than makes up for the lack of actual happiness. As the saying goes, “perception is everything.” Also: “you get out of it what you put into it.” If you treat your job like a daily chore, then that’s how it’s going to feel, day in and day out. But if you approach it with an attitude of excitement and continuously seek out new opportunities, then you are more likely to attract exactly that.

What would it be like for you to look for reasons as to why you like what you do, or why you love your job vs. why you don’t?  If you’re new at this, or just out of practice, start small and pick something that might be obvious. Then work your way to those things that may require a little more thought. Before you know, while positivity may not be the answer for everything in life, it can definitely improve your outlook on both life and your career.

Creating a business from scratch can be difficult, but maintaining it doesn’t need to be as difficult as new entrepreneurs would believe. Trust me I know. The desperate months of little to no cash flow, hours upon hours of overtime with little to show for it, and headache-inducing obstacles can all be avoided if you simply start and continue with the right mindset. When looking to create a business that not only provides a decent income but is able to effectively “run itself” as well, there are many things to keep in mind as you go along:

First, you must build the business to be self-sustaining from the very beginning. All too often, people decided they’ll do all the work for a wile, at least until the business can “afford” to be outsourced to other helpers. With this mentality, it’s possible that that day will never come and you will be a slave to your company for as long as you own and operate it. But if you go into it with the solid goal of automation, then you’re already light years ahead of other entrepreneurs around you.

Next, know (and be willing to admit) your weaknesses, as well as your strengths. Entrepreneurs just getting started often fall into the trap of wanting to have complete control over everything. Okay, but at what cost? Working eighteen-hour days on a part-time salary for the first few years is enough to drive anyone to quit the business. Good entrepreneurs work smart by focusing on their strengths and delegating things they’re not so good at to others who can achieve the caliber of results they desire.

Also, don’t forget to experiment with new technologies or programs. This can be the fastest track to business automation, as adding more of these programs offer you more and more free time while still retaining the same quality and quantity of results as before (when you were doing everything yourself). Plus, everything you spend your money on that’s related to your business is a potential tax write-off, so what do you honestly have to lose?

Bringing in amazing people is also crucial. Few highly successful companies are 100% automated, which means you’ll need some living, breathing help to get you through the rocky beginning phases as well as the continued development and improvement stages after you’ve cemented your place in your given industry. If you don’t find people with a good work ethic or the same vision for the business that you have, then automation will not be easy, if even possible. So again, right from the get go, set some intentions about surrounding yourself with hard workers who also share a passion for quality production from your business.

So, if you’re trying to “succeed in business without really trying” per se, the key is self-sufficiency and have your business be in essence self sustainable. You’re not going to want to be overseeing every tiny little detail over the life of the business, so the best way to give yourself more breathing space and free up more time is to learn to spread out your work through means of outsourcing to other qualified people, and using the latest technologies to take the tough stuff off of your plate. If you can imagine that happening, then just imagine what you would do with your time as you choose? I bet you have.

We all struggle for attention in life. We all want to be powerful, wealthy, and well liked amongst our peers. Becoming an expert in something most often means to a lot of people that you’ve gotten to that point and that you have achieved it. So why is becoming an expert in anthing important to you? Well what is important to understand is that if you ever reach an expert status, it is not a onetime deal. It’s an ongoing process.

So how does one become an expert? Here are some simple steps to get three:

Believe in yourself. If you believe you can do something, then you can. Set a list of goals that you want to achieve in your new job or anything else for that matter, stay inspired to continue the course and then well….just get it done. Nike had it right when they say “just do it!”  Keep a list of standards, your standards, and remember to always tell yourself that you can. Positive self reinforcement is always an excellent tool in helping to keep yourself on track.

The next major step is to consistently check in with yourself as to how you think you are doing in trying to achieve your goals, and adjust your behavior and actions accordingly. During this experimental stage, if you feel as though you aren’t doing something right, simply change the behavior slightly, or majorly, depending on the behavior, before it becomes a habit. Keeping yourself on track by continually assessing your performance will ensure that you are doing everything right that you possibly can.

The final step which is really an understanding, is that you can’t expect to have expert status instantly. You can, however, expect minor set backs and some struggle along the way. If you start to notice yourself becoming frustrated, instead just stay the course and work through it remembering the end goal: to become an expert. The best thing to realize is that no one can be an expert at something without doing the work and taking action. That just makes logical sense, doesn’t it?

So while it may be discouraging at first to have to start over and work towards expert status from the beginning, especially if you are doing something new or starting a new career and profession, just be patient with yourself and you’ll experience being back on top. I can imagine that once you do, you’ll feel great!