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Nowadays, we see a lot of social media ads that promise 10 x business and 20 x business increases. Never-ending top 10 tips that will transform your business overnight, the 20 things you need to know to be a super entrepreneur with ninja skills and super abilities, and the lists go on endlessly. More money ends up going to the content maker than what finally ends up in your pocket. In some way or the other where there is a money transaction involved it means that probably everyone ends up with some money except YOU!
Let me explain; the social media ad is a paid-for ad. Now think about it, the advert will probably have a number with six figures under the views section in the bottom corner. Now if the post is titled the no one secret to 10 x your business than it probably isn’t a secret anymore! Let’s not mention the author or the company that is providing you with that content. They are making money out of it too. So where does that leave YOU? Now I am sure and if you purchased any of these get rich schemes like I have done way too many times you will most probably tell me they sounded so good! They had so many positive comments! The content was innovative and fresh and made sense. So why didn’t I succeed?
For starters, let’s make things straight; no one gets rich overnight unless they win the lottery. For someone like me, who does not buy tickets, it is statistically impossible to win a lottery. If you are like me, then you need to revisit a bit of your situation and think, what is different between me and others in similar situations and why have they been successful, and I have not. Probabilities and differences are endless. There is one constant though in all these points that is different, and that does make the difference that my friend is the one thing, the one secret to building a successful business. Want to know what that is? Are you taking notes? Then sit down and enjoy the ride because this is going to be mind-blowing!

In every single scenario, the primary reason for business failure is the founder/owner. You are probably thinking, “this is not worth reading further” right? Well, think again because here comes the exciting part. There is no successful business without a good businessman or woman behind it leading it. Sounds easy right? You will probably think “I am good”, “I can lead a business”, “I can be successful and 10x my business”. Well, then, why aren’t you? Let me add another secret to why you are not building a successful business, you are looking for a lot of crap on how to 10x your business and be successful, and you are not focusing on your business and how to make it successful. Really and truly have you ever asked yourself “why do I want to be successful?”? Have you? If you have, what was the true answer? Was it because you want to drive the supercar that guy on the advert is driving, or have a private jet or have a huge house in a sweet luxurious location?

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Really and truly have you ever asked yourself “why do I want to be successful?”

 

Most of these videos have one intention to make you want the end-result because that is what triggers a sale, emotion. The point is that emotion for material pleasures, and things are not the driving factor behind success, but at times it is a driving force behind a quick rash decision. It is not what keeps you going. Do not be fooled, money is a by-product, but it is not the driving factor.

Let me explain what I mean by all of this, the secret is YOU because you need to work on yourself before you work on your business and when you start working on your business the driving factor and motivation need to be much more than a nice car. It must be a passion that keeps you motivated during the good times and especially during the bad times. Now if you are new to the entrepreneurial game, please note that there will be more bad times than good times in the first years. No matter if you are funded, or if like I did many times, you are bootstrapping. Your business, (If you are new to the term bootstrapping, bootstrapping a business means building a business with no funding) both scenarios have their own challenges, and no matter what happens you have to be the anchor for your business. You need to be the focal point, the energy, the vibe from where it all starts and unless you can keep up the energy, the resilience, the hunger for success and the positivity to keep going even through the tough times, then you will be amongst that 95 % of business startups that fail on their first year.

My point is I have been where you are now. Scared maybe, feeling stuck, good heavens at times I feel stuck even now that I have been more than a decade into this adventure that is business and have had my fair share of failures and successes. I am also sure I will get stuck again, and I am also sure that I will soar again. Business is not different from life, and one bad decision throws you back at the starting line again (“do not pass go, do not collect 200” – The Monopoly fans will know what I mean with this quote). Yet unless you have a proper WHY, a driving factor that is so strong and motivating that it keeps you going, then you will probably give up after the first few hiccups or lack of results.

So, going back to my point about YOU being the one secret on building a successful business, I see many people rushing into it. Not having a clear focus and direction as to why they want to be in business. Not researching things before they throw money at an idea. Losing money and time simply because they don’t first work on themselves before they try to work on their ideas. Many of the starting entrepreneurs I coach ask me always the same question. “But if the idea I have is brilliant and people are urging me to pursue it because it is great and innovative, why should I listen to you and find the time to first work on myself before I pursue it?”. My answer is always the same,

And this is the problem with many business start-ups, they might know the product, but they have no clue on how to sell it, or they know how to sell, but the product is crap. In some cases, the homework on the whole business is off. They make mistakes when calculating costs and profits, and this can run even the best-funded businesses to the ground. And what do you think is the main reason for almost 90% of these failures? Well by now you probably have this figured out, don’t you? The main cause is YOU! So, work on yourself first, emotionally and mentally, work on why you are doing it and really focus on that. Find the driving motivation that ignites your soul into going above and beyond to make your dream happen. Do your research, figure out things first, learn a something or two about what makes businesses tick, work on your numbers and make sure that your number one resource, (YOU) is well taken care of before venturing into a business head-on. If you already own a business and maybe it is not doing that well, and you are desperately looking in every direction to find a solution to your problems, then maybe you should stop looking outside and start looking inside. You might be surprised by what you find and with the strength and resolve that this brings with it to get you to fight another day.
One last thing, many will tell you “you have to fail to learn” they will also reiterate that this is good for you. From experience, I did my fair share of mistakes that have cost me dearly, and I have learned a lot from them but let me also add my take on mistakes. I could have been much more prepared; I could have worked on myself and on why I was doing certain things. I could have done so much more with so much less and in the end, had I been more trained and had I focused more on bettering myself before working on my business, I would have achieved so much more. The difference between those that take risks and succeed and those that take risks and fail miserably is more often than not, information. The more information you have about all the chess pieces on the board, the more calculated a risk will be. The problem is that if you rush into decisions, the chances are that you will fail and depending on the mistake, your business might recover or not. So, for the last time, the one secret to building a successful business is YOU! Invest in yourself, and you will not regret it.
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