Getting Off the Hamster Wheel
I was watching my 2-year-old son playing this afternoon. For almost 10 minutes he just ran around in a circle. It wasn’t even a particularly big circle – but round and round he went – showing absolutely no evidence of boredom. In fact, he really seemed to be enjoying himself.
It got me thinking about how often as adults – especially as solo entrepreneurs – that we feel like we’re just running round and round in circles. The problem for us is that it certainly isn’t fun. When we feel like our businesses have stopped growing and like all our hard work is no longer moving us forward, it’s easy to get exhausted and discouraged.
Over the years, I’ve found 3 places I look first when trying to pull myself and my business out of a “rut.”
1. Business plan
Traditional business plans generally include things like an executive summary, mission statement, description of products & services, company vision, goals & objectives, and an overall financial plan. All of these things are important, and if you don’t have them on paper – you should. However, what I’m talking about here is a detailed model that lays out clearly how you intend to achieve your target revenue goals.
Each January, you should decide how much you would like your business to earn for the year. Then, map out precisely what it will take to reach that number. Itemize the different products and services you currently offer as well as those you will be introducing. What are the prices of each product and service? How many of each will have to be sold for you to earn the amount you want?
This process will firmly direct the daily, weekly and monthly tasks and activities you will have to implement to achieve your revenue targets. Each month, you will want to evaluate your progress to determine if you are on track or if changes need to be made for you to reach your goals. Achieving this clarity of purpose goes a long way towards staying on the path of progress.
2. Marketing, marketing, marketing!
Show me a company that isn’t marketing their business in multiple ways and constantly introducing new and fresh marketing ideas – and I’ll show you a business that is stuck.
Draw a circle on a piece of paper and divide it into 8 slices like a pie. Now fill in each slice with a different way you are currently marketing your business. Some examples might include: advertising, articles, joint ventures, networking groups, etc. Many of us will find we can only fill in a few slices. To achieve constant and lasting growth we need to be able to fill in the entire pie – and that’s at a minimum! Adding additional marketing sources that you use on a regular, consistent basis will help your business take a leap forward.
3. Delegating
Let’s face it – there’s a lot that needs to get done to run a small business. Success comes faster to those of us solo entrepreneurs who realize that we simply cannot do all of it ourselves. My virtual assistant is one of the best additions I made to my company 6 years ago and now I cannot imagine life without her. Assess the work you have to do and figure out what other people can help you with. Find individuals you trust who understand the message of the company. Delegating can be one of the hardest things to do for a small business owner who is used to running the show. Being able to hand over the reigns and trust that things will get done the right way, is a big accomplishment.
Consider developing an operations manual and task descriptions to create a smooth transition. Knowing what you want people to do and having them understand their responsibilities as it pertains to the job, makes for a much better run business.
The next time you find yourself running in circles it should be because – like my son – you really want to! At Abundance Bound, we teach small business owners and solo entrepreneurs how to effectively focus on the areas that will give your business the healthy kick start it needs to get you moving in the right direction. Visit http://www.AbundanceBoundSystem.com for the support that will put you on the path to success with your small business.
