Today’s blog is a continuation of a series:
Why people fail at business.
Reason #1 was they don’t have a motivating enough WHY.
Reason #2 was they quit too soon.
Reason #3 is they rely on others way too much.
Reason #4 is they actually want a hobby, not a business.
Reason #5 is: Focusing on the wrong activities.
One of the most common things I see people do is put the cart before the horse.
They spend their time and energy on things they have no business doing yet. And they don’t spend the time and energy on the most crucial activities that would guarantee success out of the gate.
❌ Getting business cards made
❌ Forming an LLC
❌ Getting a business license (yes, I’m serious. If you haven’t even sold $10,000 yet – you don’t have a business yet, it’s only a garage sale at this point)
❌ Worrying about anything legal: trademarks, patents
❌ Business insurance
❌ Expensive website design
❌ Shiny apps, bells, and whistles for the website
❌ Advertising (depending on the objective)
❌ Putting money into ANYTHING that is not “minimum viable”.
Every entrepreneur, at some stage, is guilty of this. Even where I’m at in my career I am constantly re-evaluating my tasks and activities to make TRIPLE sure that I’m actually doing the right things.
Here’s something you might not have heard someone say before:
Until you’re at the million-dollar mark, you have not proven your business concept.
The million-dollar mark is simply the end of the validation stage.
You have now shown that you have something the market wants that might be scalable.
So, until you hit the million-dollar mark, every single task and effort you put toward your business should only have one goal:
BRING IN REVENUE AND MAKE IT PROFITABLE.
Sear the word “MARGINS” into your forehead.
That means every single task that doesn’t contribute directly or indirectly to revenue gets set aside for later.
It all begins with asking good questions.
Here are five:
🎯 What’s the first step toward moving my business forward?
🎯 Can I identify the next three steps after that?
🎯 Are these tasks actually necessary to hit my next revenue goal?
🎯 Why, how, and where’s the data to prove it?
🎯 Which of these tasks DIRECTLY contributes to creating revenue?
If they don’t contribute directly to revenue, cut them… for now.
Examples of tasks that directly contribute to revenue:
✅ Testing different selling methods
✅ Testing different offers
✅ Testing different sales channels: social media, in-person, markets, word of mouth, advertising, influencers, etc.
✅ Testing different price points
✅ Talking to potential customers about their wants/needs
✅ Talking to first customers and getting their HONEST feedback
✅ Collecting as much pre and post-purchase data through surveys and polls
✅ Testing ways to increase your average order value
And on and on it goes.
Writing this list of things only took me a few minutes to type and my fingers couldn’t keep up with my brain because I EAT SLEEP AND BREATHE this stuff every day.
One day you will too.
That doesn’t mean you don’t have a life outside of business, btw. But it does mean you sacrifice a lot of other things in order to be better than everyone else. And yeah, you do have to do things others aren’t willing to do.
But it’s FUN. You should have a GREAT time in the process of it all.
So… the end of the year is approaching us.
Where did you end up?
Did you accomplish what you set out to last January?
Did you get sidetracked by busy work that felt like you were being productive, but actually didn’t help you accomplish anything??
Are you frustrated yet?!
If so, I want to invite you to let me help you on this journey.
In 2023, each month I’m going to focus on teaching you ONE BIG LEVER that will transform your business.
It’s a wholistic approach.
January… is starting with Branding.
Everything that startups need to know to create an incredible brand.
Everything you need to know to elevate your existing brand so you can charge more.
From choosing a logo, color scheme, and vibe for your entire business that will SET YOU APART from your competition and make people buy from you instead of someone else.
Every month I will cover the other “moat” topics that will transform your business and get you results — including customer experience, my proven sales method, Shopify best practices, and a lot more.
We’re just getting started. And I can hardly contain my excitement!
