Case Study: I may have personal experience in this arena. Yes, me. I am a very organized person. I do a great amount of due diligence, practice run-throughs, post-work, what to expect, current research, etc. Even after all of that, I still manage to make mistakes from time to time. For example, recently, I was putting together an online workshop. I did all the right marketing prep, had an amazing entrepreneurial speaker who lives in another country, held a meeting to discuss the workshop, built an outline we both put our thoughts in, etc
On the day we’d arranged to do the workshop, he only had a set amount of time to present it with me. After that, he’d be packing up his house there and leaving for the United States. We did a practice run, which went well. We got the lighting just right and had native scenery in the background. We began the workshop and it went exceptionally well. Our conversations were in synch, relevant, interesting…the workshop was amazing. I got to the end, wrapped up with my business contact info, and then reached over to stop the recording. It was at this point I realized it had not recorded anything. The whole conference, gone.
Fast forward to today: I could have let that devastate me. I could have held onto the feeling I had about the conference and about my worth and ability to collaborate with amazing people. Instead, I decided to move forward and made plans to re-record again later on my own.
Business Owner’s Emotional Rollercoaster
Many times business owners go through what we call the “Business Owner’s Emotional Rollercoaster.” Business owners tend to go through hope, excitement, enthusiasm, despair, and regret quite frequently. The key is to realize that you are improving and learning and to stay consistent. I’ve outlined 5 Key Steps to Establishing Business Courage:
Confidence
This may not be hard for some of you. Great. You’re amazing. We know. I’m assuming the rest of you have experienced failure a time or two, taken it hard, personally, and wanted to throw your hands up in the air and quit. It’s important to take a look at the accomplishments you have made, realize you are doing something hard, realize that the cycle will be positive again soon, and take courage in continuing the plan you started. Remember that it usually feels uncomfortable when you are doing something others aren’t doing. One important key to business success actually IS having different ideas and having the courage to try them confidently.
Believe in Your Big Steps
It’s hard to make big steps with a new product or service. Many business owners can get lost in the idea that there are other businesses doing what you do better than you do it. It’s important to remember YOU have something amazing to offer. Your skills and business blend together in a way that no one else’s are going to. The way that you run or organize your company will be different because it has something that no other business has: YOU, your UNICORN of a product, and your ability to continue moving FORWARD despite the trials that come your way.
Make Changes
When an obstacle to your plan arises, make a turn not a stop. The obstacle doesn’t define your final destination; you do. There are always choices you can make. Maybe this will help you do the necessary research to try things a different way and create something no one else has thought of. No one knows a business’ plan but the owner. Feel free to make changes along the way.
Make the Failure Work for You
Winston Churchill said “Success is growing from failure to failure without loss of enthusiasm.” If a door is shut on the plan that you detailed, find a way to use what you created in a different way. When my workshop didn’t record, I decided to move on to re-record it on my own and call it a “How To” video. This rebranded it in a new way that appealed differently and I was able to use it for a social media tool instead. No one was the wiser, and many were grateful for the tips!
Consistency
The number one problem with small business success isn’t money or time (although those are probably 2 & 3). It’s consistency. So many times when business owners run into a snag or a roadblock, they either give up or say the whole plan didn’t work. Just because you needed to change a piece of a plan doesn’t make the whole plan worth throwing away to try something else. Consistency is the KEY ingredient for all business success. You can alter and tweak things along the way, but do not give up on the aspects you have a good gut feeling about.
This month, I CHALLENGE you to face your project fears head-on. Have confidence in your business decisions, BELIEVE in your big steps, make CHANGES when necessary, make the FAILURES WORK for you, and be CONSISTENT. I know you’ll find great success.
