Frustration and even worse, a Burnout, mostly happens, when the reality doesn´t meet your expectations and you are overwhelmed with what you need to do, to change it.
When you are starting and building a business it is always about making money, more money. You need to find a profitable way to provide value, that people are willing to pay money for it.
You have a great idea in mind, and you see a huge benefit for your clients and why they need your product or service. But there are so many things to work on: Marketing, Sales, Product & Service Delivery, Customer Care, etc. And there are so many opportunities, products and services available to build and improve these areas in your business. But where should you start and what could have the highest impact on increasing your revenue?
“If you don´t know, where you´re going, even running will not get you there faster”
There is an analogy, that building a business is not a sprint, it is like a marathon. But what distinguishes a marathon runner from an entrepreneur?
The marathon runner has a clear goal, even if it is 42 kilometers away. He clearly knows, what can help him reaching this goal so he can decide, which is the best coach for him, what is the best shoe or nutrition and on his way he also can clearly see, what is the right way to the finish line, because it is mapped out. So with his goal in mind, he can decide very easily while running, if an offer can get him there faster or if it will distract him. And he knows, if he runs too fast, he will not make it till the end.
What is the common entrepreneur doing? Most entrepreneurs have the goal to make more money. Most have not defined, how much. But let´s assume, he wants to make 10% more.
Who is the right coach to reach that goal? Is it a funnel coach? Is it a sales closing coach? Is it a product development coach? What exactly does the entrepreneur needs to make more money? Facebook Ads? LinkedIn Lead Generation? A Blog? An App? So whatever opportunity is coming along the way and it sounds pretty good, most entrepreneurs will jump on that opportunity, hoping it will generate boatloads of money.
Maybe the entrepreneur reaches his goal of increasing revenue by 10%. What´s next? Again increase by 10%? And then again? And again? What if you only increase your revenue by 5%? Or no increase at all? Is your business a failure?
If you have not a clearly defined goal for your business, this will definitely frustrate as an entrepreneur. And if you don´t know, what to do and what measure to take, then you will burn out because you will do everything, but probably not that thing that will have the highest impact. At least now it is time, to specify the goal, how your business should look like.
The best and easiest way to do that, is to think, how your business should look like, so that you can sell it. What are desirable and sellable assets that are attracting investors? Why should they buy and why should they pay more for your company than for another company in your industry?
Let me give you an example: If you want to have 1.000 more customers you can buy Facebook Ads, hoping that you will reach your goal without having to spend thousands of Dollars to Facebook. Or you can setup your business to be a perfect strategic fit and find a joint venture partner, who already has thousands of your ideal customers. The probability to get 1.000 new customers in a shorter timeframe is significantly higher, than with a Facebook ad campaign. And, your business is setup and ready to do joint ventures again and again and create rapid repeatable results, which is highly appealing to a possible investor.
Re-think your business and re-invent your growth. It will create clarity and prevent you from burning out through overwhelm and frustration.