Business Growth= Personal Growth

A great article by Sticky Ebooks.

Business Growth = Personal Growth

Chambered Nautilus Fossil ©2011 Hitchster

It recently occurred to me that when I thought about my business challenges or spoke about them with others, we were often discussing underlying issues of personal growth. 

Becoming an entrepreneur, you soon realize that you — your strengths, weaknesses, skills, fears, limitations — are intricately connected to the growth of your business.

Duh, right?

But here’s the thing, I think we’re pretty bad bosses sometimes. When it comes to business we seem to think we should Have It All Handled, Yesterday. Especially since there are bills to be paid.

Time to cut ourselves some slack!

Nothing challenges our assumptions and insecurities quite like the ambition to become successful on our own path, often in a role we’re inventing as we go.

Here are 5 simple truths I’ve discovered about the human nature of entrepreneurs.

As long as I can keep them in mind, I can have more fun with my business and not drive my only employee to a nervous breakdown. Take a deep breath, and remember:

1. You will never feel ready.

You know how people always say there’s no perfect time to have a child? Well there’s no perfect time to start a business, launch a product or try the next big thing you want to try. You will never have enough money, time or expertise to feel ready. And that’s perfectly fine, because stretching beyond our comfort zones is how we grow. It still sucks sometimes, but it’s worth it.

2. There is always room for another voice.

There is so much information available to us online it’s staggering, and it seems there’s always someone else who has said what we’re saying better or has a slicker website or gets better press. When service professionals go out on their own and begin to build a personal brand, we think that we’re under-qualified because we’re comparing ourselves to everyone in the world. You only need to know enough to help someone behind you on the path. Not only that, your voice is only yours — no one else has your perspective, your story, your personality. The world needs what you have to say.

3. You will always want someone to tell you what to do next.

The funny thing about being a human and an entrepreneur is that while we are creative, independent thinkers, on a biological level our brains are hardwired for safety. It’s human nature to want to feel secure, to want to know what’s around that bend in the road sooo badly. We also don’t want to feel embarrassment, ever. This leads to analysis paralysis: unread books and unused info products, workshops that don’t deliver the results we wanted because we’re waiting to know what is the absolutely right thing to do. It’s essential to take responsibility for getting where we want to go, and accept that the road is risky and uncertain.

4. You will never think IT is good enough.

Perfect is the enemy of good. So many times I’ve seen people start with a grand design of how they want everything to run — they want a bi-weekly newsletter, and a blog, and an eBook and to launch an eCourse, all in the first three months. It’s great to think big, but really we have to focus on what is enough for now. Don’t spend $10,000 getting a website designed before you’ve tested the market for your products and services. We want to build the Taj Mahal, but really we need to start with a little wooden stall in the marketplace. Take a lesson from the chambered nautilus, which grows its shell as it grows, expanding one chamber at a time. If we grow slowly and cultivate patience, eventually our thing, whatever we’re creating, will be big and beautiful.

5. You will consistently undervalue your services.

Charlie Gilkey told me this one. It’s true. That thing you do, you’ll always take for granted. If you get that feeling about your product or service, this is SO obvious/easy then beware — you are dismissing the value you bring to your clients and customers. Pricing is always tricky, but I advise charging 10-20% more than the price you feel totally comfortable with, and incrementally raising your prices as you grow more assured of the demand for the value you provide.

Growth only happens when you’re moving forward.

Bear with me if you’ve heard me tell this story before, but I just love it: my friend told me about the time she was learning to ride a horse. She was sitting on the horse and trying to get it to turn, and failing miserably. Her instructor said, “You can only turn a horse when it’s moving.”

Your business is like a horse, it’s easier to steer once you’ve set off in a specific direction.


A great article by Sticky Ebooks.