Are you preparing for financial success or financial failure? Of course, you think you are preparing for success. What kind of a question is that? Well, I used to think the same thing, and then I realized that this was not the case. I have always been very good at preparing for the “just in case.” I have an emergency fund, employee insurance for the mortgage payments, and several “b plans” for everything and anything. And if you consider all those things, their main objective is to prepare for failure, not for success.
Now I have some questions for you: how much would you like to grow your business this year? What do you need to prepare before arriving there? Will you need to get some more staff? A better email server? Do you think that you’d rather grow first and prepare later? Or, as so many people that I know, you would rather keep your business or practice small so you can control everything?
No, of course that is not you, right? Well, maybe it is… you’d rather do your numbers than pay for an accounting service or clean up by yourself instead of paying for a cleaning service because ‘it’s not that much work.’ How much could you grow your business if you used that time to grow it and get new clients? How much time would you like to spend with your family (and not around your family on the phone, totally absent and stressing out because the kids are playing)? And this part is crucial, or you will have a nice self-employment and not a business, nor a life.
Have I got your attention now? So, how can you prepare for success?
Be really clear on what you love to do.
Get clear on what you love and what is so easy for you to do that you think that anyone can do it. Not what you need to do, not what worries you the most. Chances are that those things are those that will give you the most money and the most success.
Who is better than you and how can you include them in your business? And you don’t have to have a big staff beforehand, but maybe you have a friend who loves talking to people and he will share everything you do for the sheer joy of it. Or you can get an intern who is amazing at social networks and can broadcast you and your business in a breeze.
Be willing to change.
It is not about faking it until you make it or about working hard. It’s about working smart. If something is not working, ask: what do I have to add here? What do I have to change here? And then do it. And a crazy proposition: ask your business what it needs. If you knew what your business needs, what would that be? Be willing to be weird and try it… you might be surprised.
Step on the shoulders of giants.
Well, maybe not giants. Find people that inspire you, those who are great at something you want to explore, take them for a drink and ask them questions! Most people will be thrilled to tell you about their experiences creating a business, what has created more for them and what hasn’t and then try these ideas.
Acknowledge when you are getting what you asked for and ask for more.
I used to think I wanted to make a specific quantity of money, and suddenly my business stagnated. I started getting crazy trying to figure out what was happening, and I realized I was already making the money I was hoping for. Then I asked for more and started creating it again.
Be gentle to yourself.
If what you choose doesn’t get the result you want, don’t think of that as a failure, and above all, don’t judge or criticize yourself. Ask what was the decision that created that result and choose something different. And choose again.
So, please consider all these issues and ask yourself, what would a successful life look like to you? And how would your business fit into that? Are you willing to be so successful that people think that you are just lucky?
With over 20 years of experience in executive roles within world class corporations, Elena Blanco is a skilled communicator and negotiator. She has created and lead high-performing teams and successful business strategies both in the public and private sectors. She is an entrepreneur, with an international practice where she coaches others on how to change their lives for the better. She is a Wealth Creators Anonymous facilitator, a special program of Access Consciousness, and a business coach with an MSc. in Economics. Her unique combination of corporate experience, coaching and entrepreneurship, along with her passion for creating a greater world, gives her the capabilities to empower others to create more in their lives and businesses.