What would you change about your business?
Do you see a pattern here?
I’m in a Facebook group that’s run by a high-ticket sales coach. In a recent poll of the solopreneur members, I saw an interesting pattern I wanted to share. The question was, “If you could change anything about your business right now, what would it be?” Without sharing all of the exact responses, the pattern I noticed in what was wanted was this:
A clear, repeatable strategy to get new clients
What I love about this is that it’s exactly what my prospective clients want as well. Yes, they sometimes come with a tactic already in mind, such as “I need a signature program,” or, “I need to update my website,” or however they’re trying to get to a solution. But check this out: what is really at the basis of this desire? Explore this with me.
A clear, repeatable strategy to get new clients is an important component of my KISS Marketing Map, and one of the first things I assess when looking at a new client’s business marketing and communications. So, let’s say you develop a clear, repeatable strategy to get new clients and implement that strategy. What happens? You either get new clients or you don’t. Or, you get some mix of getting clients but they are not the right fit—they have no budget, they’re high maintenance or some other form of inappropriate fit. So you tweak the strategy. Again, and again, and again. This is often the cycle of business development for solopreneurs.
What if you look at this desire differently. What is the real end game? Walk through this with me.
You get the strategy
You get new clients
You deliver value to the clients
You get paid by the clients
You take that money and do what?
Full stop. So clients = revenue. Yes. That’s why we’re in business, I get it. “Duh, Terry, what’s your point?” My point is this: what do you do with the money? What does the increased revenue make possible? If your desire is to grow the business to a certain income figure, why do you want to get to that income figure? If your desire is to have a financial cushion so you don’t have to work so hard, or whatever is generating that desire for more revenue in your business, why is that important to you?
Let’s say that you get the revenue. You’ve got x dollars in the bank, the x factor being your ideal figure (btw, how did you arrive at that figure?), regardless of what you want to do with that income. Bolster retirement, grow the business, buy the boat, travel, put a child through college—whatever it is, it’s your goal and it’s fine.
Next, look at the final FINAL outcome of your end game and why you want that desire for more revenue/income. Your retirement is all set and you could retire tomorrow if you wanted. Your business has access to capital to build a team, grow, invest or whatever you need to scale so you can get to the next level you’re reaching for. You put a deposit down on a 34’ SeaRay Sundancer and bought a slip at a nearby marina for $120K. You’ve got that two-week trip to Europe and Ireland all planned and paid for and you leave on the 30th. You’ve freed your child from the burden of a student loan so when they graduate they have financial freedom to move forward with their life’s ambitions.
As you read through those “end game” statements, what is the predominant emotion you sense? For me, it’s RELIEF. Feeling good, happy, satisfied. Being eager, excited and confident. Feeling accomplished. Relaxed.
So here’s the kicker and why I dragged you through all of this unpacking. If what you want to change in your business is really an end game of feeling good, you have access to feeling good right now. You don’t need to do one darn thing other than putting your thoughts and attention into a state of appreciation. There are so many things around that can be easily appreciated.
The next time you are giving your attention to a business challenge and trying to solve it, take yourself all the way to the end game. What is the real reason you want to achieve or change/fix that thing in your business? Or in your life? It’s about improving how you feel—improving your emotional state. When you know that, you can immediately access that state through appreciation.
Watch what happens
When you shift your attention to that which you appreciate and reduce your attention and the “hand-wringing” around the thing you want to change or fix, you will be amazed at what starts showing up in your business. Doors open. Opportunities show up. People cross your path with a perfect solution. The challenge may even resolve on its own. All the while, as you’re staying in appreciation, you can relax and watch in amazement at how the universe works on your behalf.
For you:
What you give your attention to gets bigger. If you’re giving your attention to a problem or challenge in your business, it’s going to stick around and may even get bigger. Try this exercise and envision your end game. Appreciate all that IS going well, even if it’s only one little thing, and make it a habit that becomes part of who you are.
If you need more direction on this exercise, reach out to me and I’ll hear your story and give you some guidance.
