click here for audio SURVIVING
What are the ingredients involved for a small business to be successful, and stay successful long term? I'm going to make a very profound statement. One I want you to remember always. The statement is ‘THINGS THAT BEGIN RIGHT, WILL USUALLY CONTINUE RIGHT,
I want you to answer these four important questions. When you, have had time, to think about this. You may email us and give us your answers.
Question number 1: Do you have now, or did you have then, a sufficient knowledge of that business.
Question number 2: Do you have now, or did you have then, sufficient capital to go into business and sustain yourself and your business; until enough income is generated to carry that business.
Question number 3: Do you now, or did you have at that time, the mental toughness to withstand the self-doubt, and the mental stamina to handle the extreme mental and physical pressures.
Question number 4: Are you willing now, and were you willing then to put in the hours which are absolutely necessary to make your business go.
No. 1, Sufficient Knowledge
You cannot learn on the job unless you're getting a franchise, which can cost hundreds of thousands, or even a million dollars or more to start. If so, you are paying dearly for your learning experience. If you are a franchise, then this information would not concern you. This is for the hundreds of thousands of people who want to go into business for themselves or are already in business for themselves, and don't have the hundreds of thousands or a million dollars. You should have a good working knowledge and understanding of the business you are going into. Best case scenario, you worked for someone else in the same business and want to be your own boss. It is very difficult to start or sustain a business without a strong working knowledge, or experience in that business. The learning curve can be very steep. The time it takes to learn a business of which you do not have a working knowledge, or is foreign to you, can be, fatal to that business.
No 2, Sufficient Capital
This is one situation you must analyze very carefully. Do I have enough money to sustain this business for six months or more, with little or no income from the business? If you cannot answer this question in the affirmative, then the answer to the next question is even more important. That question is. Do I have a second source of funding; if the initial source of funding is used up? Remember, money's relationship to business, is like gasoline to a car, just as a car won't run without gasoline, and neither will your business without money.
No 3, Mental Toughness.
Do you have the mental toughness to withstand the slings and arrows, that are surely to come? I think it's important for all of us to have a degree, of mental toughness, just to deal with the normal ups and downs of everyday life. In business, mental toughness is one of the essential building blocks for success, for going into business and staying in business, successfully for years. You may ask, how, does one acquire that mental, psychological, and emotional toughness, along with the insatiable desire to succeed? We have the answers to that question. There is a separate discussion on that most important topic.
No 4, Time For Business.
How much time am I expected to give to my business to be successful? Meaning, how many hours will I have to work? The answer is, as many hours as necessary to make your business successful. If it takes 60 hours a week. You do it. If it takes 70 or 80 hours a week, You do it. You must understand, no one forced you to go into business. You did so, on your own free will and accord; because you sincerely believed you could do it. It is up to you to make it happen.
"When You Win, We Win"