In the course of building your business, issues may come up where you may not actually be sure of what next steps to take or even what questions to ask. I help entrepreneurs with business development and small business funding support and coaching and these are the very questions I hear from clients during our first meeting. I'd like to shed some light on these issues and especially to let you know that you're not alone. When you have clarity in all of these areas, you will naturally become more attractive to potential investors and those who may want to support you or do business with you.
1. You have several options of what direction to take your business but just can't decide? If you ever find yourself faced with a decision you can't quite seem to make or take action on, the best thing to do is NOTHING. This is the time to slow down and: a) observe how you are feeling about the choices you think you need to make--- your heart could be slowing you down for a reason and all the signs should be there if you pay attention; b) you should absolutely seek out the advice of qualified people who have had specific experience with your situation. You don't want to make decisions without qualified information and neither should you ever feel pressured about making just any decision. Time is irrelevant here--- making a decision that doesn't support you could "cost" you more time in the long run.
2. Having trouble making sense of or communicating all your ideas? Start the business planning process as soon as possible to help keep you on track. Moving forward in your business with just a bunch of ideas swirling around in your head is not the same as having them committed to paper. Organizing your thoughts in a structured fashion gives you instant clarity, your ideas start coming to life, people now have a better understanding of how to support you, and the resources you'll need can start showing up. It will also allow you to play out different scenarios. Your plan will be constantly evolving and growing as you move forward so there will never really be a finished document nor will it ever be perfect. However, just starting the process can sometimes help you get unstuck. I recommend using an existing software program that walks you through some of the steps by asking a series of questions. I have my favorites but no matter what program you use, make sure you personalize it to your circumstances and industry.
3. You may have limited operating capital initially and you feel pressured to invest in resources and services that should help you grow your business. So what resources should you invest your money in? That all depends on exactly what stage you're at in the "sequencing" of your business. If you buy or commit to resources before you're ready for them, it may just take you down a dead end if you're really not prepared to work with them: a) If you are working on your business plan, you should be GATHERING information about sales, marketing, PR, etc. You should not necessarily be investing in these services at this stage; b) If you are just starting out and about to raise investor money, only invest in those resources that will absolutely bring you capital; c) don't invest or get committed to product manufacturing before you've developed your infrastructure or understand your markets; d) don't engage in activities that will create a demand for products and services you haven't developed yet unless you are just about ready to launch.
4. You have a great idea but not really sure what it looks like as a business. Very often, people have great ideas and start focusing on one way they think it should be launched. This could be in the form of a retail store, an online experience, a book, a game, a service, etc. If you find that you're focusing on one "expression" that could take much longer or cost more than it seems worth it, start opening yourself up to other ways your idea can get out there. Look for the lowest hanging fruit --- what is the fastest, most cost effective way you can get your idea out to the most people and bring you the most profit in the shortest period of times (if that's your goal). For instance a retail chain of stores is a huge undertaking. If your goal is to help one million people access your resources in the shortest timeframe, then what about taking the service aspect of your business and launching it as a national service company with primarily an online presence and do away with all the real estate and operational costs? You could serve a bigger slice of the population in half the time and a fraction of the cost by using a franchise model. If you can remain open to exploring new opportunities, they will show up for you.
5. How far should you go to prove out your concept? This could be something brand new for you and you haven't fully allocated resources to the project but want to make sure you have a market for your goods and services. Initially do things that do not require a big investment or ongoing maintenance (storage issues, insurance, license fees, etc). For instance take surveys, conduct market research, acquire trend reports, "dry test" and then "beta test" with a prototype, get validation from experts, and build a mailing list of people who would be interested in your product down the road. These are just a few. I recommend doing small manufacturing runs with a product to test in a certain regional area but don't try to "launch" nationally before you have all the necessary resources in place.
6. Are you having resistance to moving forward with your business? Wondering if it will ever get done or if you're the person to do it? Do feelings of fear, isolation, and overwhelm seem to permeate your thoughts? Stop for a bit and be still as this isn't a cue for you to work harder. It means you need to do some internal work on YOU, not your business. There are plenty of great programs and people I frequently recommend that can support you here. Feelings of not feeling good enough are old tapes that should be eliminated. Issues around money, success, or receiving support shouldn't rule your life. If you're doing anything business related you're not passionate about which will require a huge investment of time, it's not worth doing. This is all about YOU not about business. Every successful entrepreneur takes the time to do breakthrough internal work on themselves. Best quote I heard recently "Making my first million was easy--- but it took me 37 years to allow myself to do it." So get your heart in alignment with your head, know you deserve it and that you're not alone . . . and then get out of your way.
7. You have limited financial resources and lots of deadlines you've imposed on yourself---should you just keep plodding along and do as much as you can on your own to get it done and make your deadlines? First, when you're building a business, I recommend not using TIME as a milestone if possible because it puts too much undue pressure on yourself and oftentimes you won't be able to commit to the deadline because of all the other variables involved. "In six months I will have raised $1 million" or "in 3 months I will be signing a lease so I better have the resources in place by then". How do you know? You're better off using financial milestones if you're raising capital---like, for instance, "when I raise my first million, then I can do xyz"--- or something OTHER than time. Shifting your thinking like this will give you new perspective, alleviate stress and allow you to focus on getting the necessary resources to hire the people you need to get the jobs done. You can try to do it all yourself without the necessary resources just to meet your self-imposed deadline but it begs the question, "why do that to yourself"?
8. You feel unable to proceed because you have no money? It's not the money that you need--- it's determination, passion and having the right people around you. If you ever get stuck on this one, check in to see which one it is. Having the right people around you will always attract money, so take the time to build a support team and let them open doors for you. Your determination will always lead you to the next step if you're paying attention--- it could be money or another resource that's even better. If you don't have passion for what you're doing, you may want to check in to see if this is what you really want. Always, and only, do what you love.
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