6 tips to help you succeed in your business
Should I stay or should I go?
This is a question I pondered for a long time as I was building a vision of having my own venture on the side while working a full-time job. It was a tricky time; I needed a stable income, but also wanted to focus more time on my entrepreneurial dream.
So when I was finally able to quit my 9-to-5 job to pursue my passion, I never looked back. And there are many women out there like me, trying to find their own way, straying away from their roots and branching out high in the sky.For 10 years, I worked as high life finance professional. But that was only half the story. Increasingly, I realised that so many small businesses often do not get the kind of treatment they deserve, or respect that they should have only because no one takes women doing business from home seriously. Largely it is considered a way to hide cash income of their businessmen husbands. But QWEEN changed all that.
At our various networking events, workshops and seminars, and even on our websites, we offer an option for budding entrepreneurs to tell us about their entrepreneurial dream so our team could reach out and help them put foundations below it.
We have had a chance to speak with thousands of aspiring and seasoned business owners. Some want to start a fashion boutique or grow their photography hobby into a business. But they are too scared of the necessary time and commitment. We have spoken to many successful business women who want to drive their business further but are overwhelmed by switching to new technology, or maybe increase their marketing efforts online despite the significant benefits their business can achieve.
QWEEN keeps our huddle meets going on by pondering over these questions.
Why do women like them who took a bold step by making a move out of a cushy 9 to 5 job or came out of their homes to start their own venture become complacent?
Why do they settle for “one step forward –two steps back” approach? What can they do better?
Here are 6 tips to consider:
- Seek continual inspiration- Consider where you can find inspiration to take your idea to the next level, or reaffirm your commitment to serving your target customers. You must attend workshops, events, meets, and get constant inspiration to nurture your drive. The motivation which you will receive from these motley crowd who did just what you are doing, felt what you have been feeling and suffered as much or more as you are, will give you the necessary courage to surge ahead. You can make new partnerships and grow mutually. Keeping yourself involved in networks (once a week or a few times a month) and staying true to your entrepreneurial roots keeps you connected. With this grounding, you will never lose sight of why you built your venture in the first place.
- Find your labour of love- Starting your business really is a labour of love. You’ll be spending countless hours in building it so you have to enjoy what you do. Initially it may not be profitable, but whether it is profitable or not is beside the point, you first have to learn to love what you do before you actually start building it. Have a leap of faith!
- Reap the rewards of risk-taking -Starting a business is the biggest risk of all. But as it continues to grow, it’s important to take calculated risks to stay ahead of competitors. Whatever your goal is, create three separate plans towards achieving that goal, and then be prepared for at least two of those plans to fail. Things happen! So, set aside an allocated budget to take some chances on new initiatives and make peace with the fact that you might lose that investment but others may win big. If you plan correctly, that loss should not be detrimental. The important thing is that you’re taking chances and learning what it takes to run a business. Success today is achieved as a result of calculated risk, careful planning early on and due diligence to stay on track.
- Define your why-Ask yourself the reason you do what you do. Is it because you like doing it? What is your true “Why”? At QWEEN, our true WHY was to help small businesses succeed. When determining yours, think about the bigger picture and what motivates you to do your work.By imparting training, discussing ideas, and providing a platform to choose a variety of work-from-home options, we are helping women build and stay in their businesses and support them with the quality of life they want. So what is your why?
- Identify what success looks like-Once you’ve determined your why, it’s time to create measureable goals and define what success looks like for you.Does success mean turning a profit? Maybe it simply means having the best bakery in town. Whatever the case may be, the state of your business will fluctuate. So stop worrying about what the competition is doing and stop obsessing about the market. I’ve found that by focusing on the why, the money starts to come anyway. So success for us in general is great feedback and overwhelming responses to our workshops. The smile on the faces of QWEENs is icing on the cake!
- Practice patience-It’s no surprise that running a small business is a long journey, so it’s important to exercise patience through the whole process. As an entrepreneur you are the leader of your business. So take a note from the other entrepreneurs of the past and present, and practice as much patience as possible. You are going to have good days and bad days, sometimes very bad days. In order to have the great days, you should be taking risks and trying new things. If you aren’t, you really aren’t growing your business at all.
Whether you’ve been in your practice or business for six months or six years, it’s time to embrace the spirit of entrepreneurship. Building a business is a journey with numerous ups and downs. Like any great endeavour, it takes time to establish, but the benefits are well worth the hard work and risks!
Join us at India Entrepreneur’s meet; see your life turn around! Click here and register for the event now!
