Category: Success Attitude

They say that nothing succeeds like success. There is definitely some truth in that. When one achieves a small success, it tends to raise their energy and enthusiasm, which in turn, gets poured into the next effort. That effort is more likely to be successful because of the added energy from the previous success. And the energy from the two successes makes a third even more likely. This is the virtuous cycle of success.

But what they don’t tell you is that nothing fails like success. Importing all that energy and excitement can backfire. When launching a business endeavor, what you need is a level head. Your emotions need to remain under control. Prior success can make you feel invulnerable, like you can do no wrong. It can make you reckless and far less risk-averse. It is a myth that success always breeds success. Here are a few other success myths you need to avoid if you ever want to achieve it:

Page One is No Big Deal

Some companies have convinced themselves that page one of search engine results is no big deal. They couldn’t be more wrong. Some industry experts have gone as far as to say that page 2 of Google search results is the best place to hide a dead body. That is because 95% of all search traffic happens on page one.

The truth of the matter is getting your business listed on page one is, at bottom, what national and local SEO is all about. With the Yellow Pages, you get on the first page in your section by paying the most money. Pay for placement is also the strategy for television and radio. The one who pays the most money gets the best spot.

Search results on the internet are not about who paid the most money. It is about relevance, and a number of other criteria that makes up the black box page rankings. You absolutely need an SEO consultant to help you navigate these waters. You don’t get to the first page by accident.

All You Need Is a Great Idea

If all you have is a great idea that will change the world, you’ve got nothing at all. Since the beginning of time, there have been people who have had great ideas that might have changed the world. You will never know what they are because it takes a lot more than a great idea to be successful.

What you need more than a great idea is a great plan and great execution. You can do this for a forgettable, mediocre idea, which is the stuff of most successful businesses.

That is not to say that you shouldn’t strive for better ideas. We need more businesses that strive for more than mediocrity. But you have to marry ideas with the stuff that really spells success, such as patience, financing, and the right thing. Every idea could be a great idea if the timing is right for it.

College Doesn’t Matter

The list always includes Steve Jobs. You know the list. It’s the list of successful people that didn’t finish college but were still insanely successful. The idea is that formal education does not matter. This usually comes from an underachiever who is looking for an excuse to skip, or drop out of college.

First, you cannot compare extraordinary people with the average. There are always exceptions. That does not change the rule. Second, no one, even extraordinary people, should be looking for excuses to shortcut the education process. In business, as with everything, knowledge is power.

True and lasting success is hard work. Most myths are born from the desire to make the process simpler and faster. The easy way produces a lot of myths. Avoid them at all costs. Placement is still extremely important. Great ideas are not enough. And knowledge is still power.

 

Understanding your strengths and weaknesses can help you in many areas of life, from your relationships to the way you approach learning. Entrepreneurs who take an interest in personal psychology can reap serious benefits.

A study into the psychology of entrepreneurship by Barclays Bank made clear that entrepreneurs are not a homogenous group. They are a pool of talented individuals with different personality types, experiences, skills and motivations. Thus some will be more self-actualized than others.

Whether you choose to explore your personal psychology with the help of a qualified professional or on your own, doing so can have a big impact on your entrepreneurial endeavours. Consider the championship winning poker player – he doesn’t just play cards but also dedicates time to self-reflection to understand his own personal poker psychology. This allows him to become a better player, anticipating how he will react in certain situations and respond to pressure.

In the entrepreneurial world, understanding how and why you respond to pressure in a certain way can be very important. If you make snap judgements when under pressure, recognising that can help you to pause for thought and ensure that you are making the right choice. If you tend to lose sight of the overall goal and focus on too many small details when the stakes are high, realising that you are doing so can help you to take a step back and refocus.

Understanding your own personal psychology can also have a positive impact on how you deal with others, as well as how you deal with yourself. According to MIT ombudsman Mary P. Rowe, negotiation includes “all interactions between two or more points of view; it’s possible to negotiate with yourself.”

Your principles and personality play a big part in how you negotiate. Understanding what might trigger certain responses in the way you think and behave means you have the chance to change those responses and alter them. This puts you in a much more powerful position, as the person you are negotiating with will find it harder to predict your approach.

Ultimately, understanding your personal psychology can make you a better entrepreneur. Do certain tasks always make you procrastinate? Find out what’s causing that procrastination and you can make changes that will lead to you completing the tasks faster and you using your time more efficiently. Do you dread meeting with the bank manager or your investors? Recognise what it is that’s making you nervous and you’ll have the key to conquering your nerves and presenting a more confident image of yourself.

It can be tempting to put off such self-reflection in favour of achieving operational goals. After all, entrepreneurs tend to have plenty of tasks to occupy their time. However, appreciating the nuances of your personal psychological makeup can mean that those goals can be achieved more efficiently and productively.

A personality type test is a great place to start, but it’s far from the only personal psychology test available. Resources exist to test how conscientious you are, how agreeable, neurotic, open, angry, stressed and plenty more. Use these resources to unlock the secrets of your personal psychology and discover how you can become a better entrepreneur. 

Sure, you know you have to create a solid business plan, market your business well, and stand out against competitors when you have are growing a startup. But, there are secrets that other entrepreneurs don’t share as much.

Why? Because they’re the true keys to success as a small business and, perhaps, learning all the secrets of successful small business owners will make you, their competition, a bit more successful. Good for you!

Take in these six secrets and use them to your advantage for true small business success.

Invest in Your Team

Your team is truly the heart of your company. If you don’t understand that quickly, your small business will soon be a failure. When you’re growing a business, it’s important to invest in your team, not just financially, but also with your time, pride, and trust.

Create an atmosphere your employees love and thrive on. Appreciate them, and make it known to more than just each individual. Actions speak much louder than words in this area.

Promote team members rather than hiring externally. Not only do these employees already know the most about your company, but they’re already invested in it almost as much as you are. Plus, it’s awesome for company morale!

Be a Corporate Event Guru

Just because you’re a small fish in a big sea at the moment doesn’t mean you can’t hang with the best of them at corporate events. Corporate events help you build, and foster, a community of your targeted audience and those involved in your company.

So, search out some corporate event ideas, like ways to volunteer in your neighborhood or holding retrospective meetings. Some should be more for business growth, such as retrospective meetings to re-hash some of the successes and failures of the previous work week.

However, others should be strictly for bonding and building team morale. Fun outings, like an evening paint class or a day at the amusement park, will surely gain you some respect and boost the company atmosphere.

And, when the public sees a business acting more like a group of friends than co-workers, it is sure to look at your company in a brand new light.

Take Risks, and Be Prepared to Fail

Without risks, you and your company will remain stagnant as both a business and a competitor of others in the industry. What entrepreneur wants to become stale?

Of course, with risks, sometimes comes failure. It’s important to be prepared for the possibility of failure. Prepare yourself to bounce back from failure and use it as motivation to move on to bigger and better things.

Have a crisis management plan in place, just in case something goes wrong. Your employees decide to quit abruptly, customers are becoming disgruntled with your service, or your social media manager inadvertently made a careless blunder on Twitter.

All are possible, even for a small business, especially when you take risks to move ahead. Knowing how to handle it if it does happen is what will set your company apart.

Connect With Industry Leaders on Social Media

You probably know the importance of having your own social media accounts for your business. Social media allows you to reach your target audience quicker than other forms of advertising, and opens the gateway for you to engage with your audience like never before.

But, did you know that by sharing the content of your own competitors, you’re actually helping yourself, too? When you share thoughtful, well-written, engaging content from industry leaders, you’re showing your audience that you are knowledgeable enough to know what’s important to them. Therefore, you can play with the best of them.

Find out who the leaders in your industry are. Search hashtags, look at what’s getting shared and commented on, and find trustworthy companies. These are the ones you want to focus on when finding content to share. Eventually, the favor will be returned.

Don’t Let Yourself Get Low-Balled

Just because you’re a startup doesn’t mean you deserve to be at the low end of the totem pole. If your clients decide to take the low road and give you low-ball offers that take advantage of your starting position, it may be time to cut them loose.

Having a few, excellent clients is better than having several disadvantageous clients. It’s okay to offer discounts to loyal clients. But, it’s not okay for them to expect special discounts that they wouldn’t ask other, more established businesses for. There’s a big difference.

Stand Behind Everything You Do

Want to know the reason Apple continues to be a world leader in technology products? Because Steve Jobs absolutely loved his company, and he expects everyone who works for him to understand it, and love it, too. In fact, Steve Jobs treated Apple like his baby and made sure his employees fell in love with Apple as much as he did.

The only way to make sure everyone else loves your business as much as you do is to believe in it, and stand behind it, even when things go wrong. You can make mistakes; all business owners do at one point or another. But, never back down in your love for your company, faults and all.

Make your employees and customers love your business as much as you do by putting your pride on display at all times. Failure doesn’t come from mistakes. It comes from getting caught up in mistakes and allowing them to lead you to a new direction.

Article Contributed by Mila Payton

It is not very difficult to undertake an unsuccessful business. Lack of devotion or abilities, as well as the factors out of your control can create a situation in which business success could be categorized as a miracle. In some other times, failure to spot and exploit a unique market opportunity can cost your business the success. In any case, I think we could all agree that the secret of unsuccessful entrepreneurial undertaking is not exactly something we are eager to find more about.

Surely, being a successful entrepreneur isn’t easy. Even though the oft-repeated claim that 9 out of 10 startups are destined for failure has been disputed as of late, the simple truth is that starting and maintaining a successful business isn’t a walk in the park, and that having a great idea does not guarantee a profit at the end of the day. By studying all the success stories of years past, however, you’ll be able to get a glimpse at what lies behind a truly successful undertaking, and possibly even find if there’s a way to apply these time-tested strategies to your own situation:

Be sure you have what it takes

There’s no denying the fact that the business world isn’t exactly the most forgiving industry. When money is on the line, people tend to give it their all, and occasionally the less savory aspects of mankind also pop to the surface. That’s why it’s essential that you have what it takes personality-wise, including traits such as self-discipline and the ability to separate feelings from reasoning. The people who are able to navigate the complicated landscape of the modern business environment are the ones that are ultimately destined to succeed.

Spend ample time on the planning stage

Each and every single company that exists in the world today started out as an idea in someone’s head. But an idea, no matter how brilliant or world-changing, can’t guarantee success all by itself. The importance of a well thought business plan is paramount to any company’s ultimate success, and too many would-be entrepreneurs unfortunately gloss over this step. A good business plan should be short and concise, but it should cover all the basic angles of your idea, including the products or services you’ll be offering and the customer base you hope to tap into.

Figure out your financing

With the advent of the Internet, many novice entrepreneurs have sought to establish the idea that you can start a business with little or no capital. While in some rare cases this might turn out to be true, as a rule of thumb starting a business will involve some initial costs. Whether these come in the form of an outside investment, a crowdfunding campaign or a bank loan is your choice, but always remember to take into account all the variables associated with each type of funding before you commit to any one of them.

Assemble a great team

The next step lies in finding like-minded people that share your goals and enthusiasm. Don’t automatically assume that just by paying someone you’ll be able to get the best out of them, as people are complex creatures driven by all sorts of factors aside from monetary compensation. In order to truly gain their trust and loyalty, you’ll have to inspire them and make them feel like your dream is also their dream. Of course, things like distributing a cut of the company profit or offering shares to particularly notable individuals can’t hurt either.

Learn from others

Especially in the early stages of setting up a company, good leadership can often be a real difference-maker. Most of the companies that rule the world today have benefited immensely from the visionaries that have helped put them on the course to success. But being a good leader isn’t something that you necessarily have to be born with – it’s something that can be acquired, just like any other skill. That’s why it can be quite useful to find a mentor, someone who is willing to show you the ins and outs of the trade before you jump head first into it.

Focus on your customers

Customers are the lifeblood of any industry, which means that every company that plans on sticking around for some time will need to develop a good relationship with the very people who are ultimately responsible for its continued existence. Now, contrary to the popular saying, customers are not always right, and it’s definitely true that you can’t possibly make everyone happy at the same time. But all successful companies take the time to listen to their clients and then make adjustments according to their wishes and suggestions.

Keep macroeconomic factors in mind

When first setting up a business venture, it can sometimes feel like the entire world revolves around your office. There are so many things to do and so many aspects to pay attention to, that it’s easy to lose track of what’s happening outside of it. Things like international trade agreements, business cycles, inflation and the occasional national disaster are bound to impact world economy in one way or another, which tends to have a trickle-down effect on everyone involved. To give just one recent example, the recent Brexit debacle in the UK has changed the game for local companies who are used to doing business with the EU. In order to prevent such events from blindsiding you, try to remain connected with the outside world, even if your attention sometimes feels like it’s being pulled in a million different directions at once.

Understand that failure is part of the process

Finally, most experienced business owners will tell you that running a company is a marathon, not a sprint, one that’s filled with plenty of ups and downs along the way. Failure in some form or another is to be expected, but that doesn’t mean you should give up at the slightest sign of turmoil. Instead, view every failure as a learning experience, something that you’ve successfully internalized in order to prevent it from happening again in the future.

Just looking at these strategies that are associated with successful entrepreneurial ventures, and which differentiate them from less fortunate undertakings make us realize that making business a success is far from easy. Nevertheless, always keep in mind that every situation is different, and that even the concept of “success” can vary quite a bit depending on each person’s own set of expectations and desires. So be patient and continue to follow your dreams, and sooner or later you’ll be able to reap the benefits of your work.

 

How many times you’ve considered to make a plan B while starting a new business?

Many of you might have done, right?

But what if you haven’t prepared any plan B?

First, you won’t have any option to survive if something goes wrong with your plan A.

And you’ll be more inclined to work your ass off on the plan A.

But, the fear will still remain as it is – The fear of failure.

And this fear distracts you from focusing on your plan.

The thoughts of how to avoid failure in business comes to your mind all the time.

And the problem is, you have no clue how you can avoid that failure in your plan.

You may just think that if you concentrate on your plan A completely, you’ll surely succeed.

That is why you haven’t prepared any plan B in the first place.

No matter how hard you try not to think about failure, it still comes back to haunt you. And all those goddamn ‘What If’ questions keep on repeating in your mind.

But, to avoid this to happen, you can do one thing – make sure there is no flaw in your plan A.

Here’s How:

Manage Your Cash Flow

Many businesses and Startups in the beginning struggle with the cash flow. But, you must be able to maintain a balance between getting cash through your sales and covering their expenses in order to survive.

And if your business experiences continuous negative cash flow, then its effects are same as that of a person who experience a blood flow loss. First lack of energy, then incapacitation, and lastly death.

The point is, a Startup or new business should do everything possible to bring in revenues to survive, along with managing the expenses.

Develop Business Plan

If you fail to plan, you plan to fail. – Benjamin Franklin

You have heard this famous quote, right?

Good, then you also must know it applies to businesses as well.

I know that no Entrepreneur and/or business owner plans for failure, but many of them start by failing to plan. And a strong business plan is necessary for success. Therefore, develop a business plan before you start putting any efforts.

Avoid High Debt

Credit cards, loans, and other sources of debt are like two-edged swords for any small business. Though many companies rely on some kind of credit to have the capital for the business, but too much of credit creates unwanted problems when the time to repay that loan arrives. And if you spend most of the cash repaying the debt, then you’ll not be able to expand your business, which will ultimately make it difficult to keep up with your competitors.

Build What is Needed

The world is already full of products that nobody wants. And the Entrepreneurs who fail are the makers of such products. The products, which people are willing to pay for, are what makes an Entrepreneur successful. Therefore, consult with a few experts, or hire mobile app development company to discuss your product idea. And before launching your product or starting your business, make sure to validate your product, whether it works with your customers or not.

Create a Sales & Marketing System

You just can’t scale your business effectively without a sales & marketing system. So if you do not create such system, then it is more likely your business won’t grow. The business needs to be able to meet with the prospect in order to generate sales. And if it doesn’t happen, then you’re either talking to the wrong people, or you’ve the wrong product, or wrong product price.

The bottom line is, if your plan can’t generate leads, it’s time you sit down, and identify the problem. And it’s also necessary that you create your own system to grow your business.

Take-Away Key Point

Most of the Entrepreneurs are afraid of failing, but still, it’s important that you take that leap to overcome the fear of failure.

And if you’re starting a new business, start by setting small goals, remove unnecessary things out of your business plan, and learn to evaluate the outcomes of different approaches to moving forward.