Resilience: A vital life success key
Bootstrap: To get yourself to a new or improved state utilizing existing resources. To make your own way through resourcefulness, creativity, and innovative thinking.
When I left home in the middle of the night with nothing more than a backpack, an indomitable spirit, and the naive belief that I'd make it no matter what - if for no other reason than to prove my mother wrong - I honestly didn't know for sure...
But I certainly was determined!
The good news: I succeeded.
The incredible news: That leap, while risky, and fraught with unforeseen challenges, taught me invaluable lessons that have served me unfailingly - both in my life and in my business too.
Being singularly focused and dedicated to success, coupled with a willingness to take calculated risks along the way later led to leaving the safe and secure corporate world of insurance.
That JOB included a regular paycheck and benefits, complete with RRSP contributions in exchange for a 3-4 hour a day commute, my time, my life as well as my soul.
Making the leap into entrepreneurship was terrifying, but trading in all that commute and slavery time for my creative and consulting business has been worth every shred of uncertainty.
Here are the exact strategies I followed (and teach) to create a business that'll provide you with freedom of choice, and the ability to create the life you absolutely love too.
1. Know Your Numbers
As much as I've never been a numbers person (words, and their beautiful arrangement, are my passion) the first hurdle to jump if you're thinking of becoming an entrepreneur is to have a crystal clear sense of what your survival basics are BEFORE launching your business.
What does it cost for you, AND your family - if you're not on your own, to live from one month to the next?
- Shelter
- Utilities
- Food
- Transportation
- Clothing
- Technology
Knowing exactly where you stand from a financial perspective - and understanding what it'll take to survive, is a wise starting point.
And it's vitally important too.
If you're considering making a leap into business ownership - and leaving the security of a regular paycheck and benefits behind, you'll need some savings in your account first since your business likely won't be profitable just out of the starting gate.
The perfect scenario to make this transition seamlessly would be to develop your business part-time, in your spare time, until the revenue from your business replaces the income from your job.
When that's impossible, the next best thing is to have at least 6 months of living expenses saved to provide a bit of a cushion and some time for you to get the foundations of your business built and in place.
Launching a business from zero takes courage, something that's marketable, strategic planning, and a 'Do-Whatever-It-Takes' resolve. It also takes a strong foundation upon which to build it. Ask me what 'foundational stones' are - that's a whole other conversation. Hint: it's not joining a zillion groups and posting daily on your socials.
Sound mentorship along the way helps.
So does a supportive partner.
The good news about being in business for yourself is that it's all up to you. No boss, no commute, no rules to follow. You get to make them all up for yourself.
The not-so-good news: it literally IS ALL up to you.
And that means everything from Zero to Launch:
- Initial concepts and vision
- Brand development and positioning in the marketplace
- Systems and process development
- Creation of offers, products, and services that'll actually generate revenue
- Sales and marketing
- Client relationship cultivation, not to mention
- Tech support, administration, and accounting
There is a LOT involved and sure - eventually, you'll want to add to your 'Team' and delegate some of those tasks but until your business is generating enough profit for you to take a regular paycheck AND pay team members, it'll be up to you for a time.
2. Become Crystal Clear
This step is more than just knowing what services you'd like to offer, or what products you'd like to sell.
It involves getting introspective and figuring out what it is that you have to offer, in a unique way, that'll make a difference for others and solve the problems they're having.
- What is it that you can offer?
- What expertise do you have to share?
- What unique value do you bring?
- What solutions can you provide to help people save time, money or avoid heartache or pain?
Once you have an idea about what products or services you'll offer, consider who you want to work with - think about the clients you'll have. What experience you want them to have when they work with you?
3. Understand Your Audience
Chances are, you've heard that it's important to create a client avatar - and get to know your potential ideal client as if she's your very best friend. There are countless exercises out there to help you nail it down.
It's a critical step and often one that business-building entrepreneurs often skip through, or only look at the surface level just to 'get it done.'
Truly understanding who you best serve, however, isn't a matter of ticking off a bunch of boxes on a checklist. Going deeper into this area allows you to become intimately familiar with the problems your sweet-spot clients encounter and gives you invaluable insight into where and how you can help them.
Knowing this information is what will lead you to create a memorable, outstanding brand, to find the words that'll resonate with your premium clients, and allow you to develop irresistible offers that will actually sell and write copy that will compel them to book in with you - helping you gain clients and make more money.
If this is where you are in your business, and would like some help clarifying this foundational piece, let me know, I have a step-by-step resource for you. See below for a special offer from me.
4. Build Your Audience = Customers
While you may have big plans for your business - and I do recommend 'Thinking Big' when it comes to creating a vision for it, the very best way to start making a profit quickly is to do something that can generate revenue immediately - even if it's tiny.
But first - you'll need an audience.
Building an audience of raving fans, however, takes time, and a systematic, persistent effort to grow. And you won't be able to skip this step because, without an audience, you won't have a business.
It's that simple.
Without people listening to or reading what you have to say, you won't have anyone willing to purchase what you have to sell.
Audience-building is not an overnight affair.
There are plenty of ways to build an audience and utilizing social media effectively will make this process much faster.
For clients who work with me privately, we develop a full Client Journey and then create a stepping-stone pathway, utilizing pieces of that journey, to create multiple offers that meet the needs of their ideal clients - every step of the way.
It's a highly strategic enrollment process.
If you're at the point in your business where you're developing your offers, building a signature program, or designing your tools and resources, I can help there too and would be delighted to chat. See below for a special offer from me.
5. Learn Everything You Can
There are no rules to entrepreneurship. Having a successful business will require all of your natural talents, skills you've learned and developed over the years, and plenty more you'll need to pick up along the way.
The fantastic news is that everything you could possibly need to know has been written about in books, blogged about on the internet, is the topic of hundreds of thousands of podcasts, and YouTubed about excessively too.
Fortunately, we don't have to hike to the local library, and hunt down antiquated books, periodicals, and encyclopedias to find the information we need - it's all at your fingertips and Google is your best friend.
Embrace learning enthusiastically because your entire entrepreneurial journey will involve up-leveling your skills and adding to your knowledge base and expertise.
Think creatively about how to get your business off the ground.
- You may find that your current skills will need some upgrading
- You may find you'll have to invest in a course here or there or pick up a certification
- You may find you'll have to divert some of your time to 'learning' what it is you need to know about what you'll need to do to create a business that's profitable
- You may find you'd like some guidance or mentorship along the way to make it all faster, less challenging and more effective
The not-so-good news is that it can take literally months to sift through mountains of information to piece together everything you'll need to launch a business from zero - and make it profitable.
I know this to be true, because I'm a passionate researcher, an avid reader, and an enthusiastic student that began my entrepreneurial journey with a 'Can Do and No Fail' attitude, and it still took me eighteen months.
My 2 best suggestions for entrepreneurs at this stage (aside from learning what you can from available information) are to
- Speak with a mentor or someone you know who's had success in the area you're looking to develop your business. Ask for their suggestions and advice. Many successful people are happy to mentor others coming along behind them and this one strategy will save you time as well as the pain of their past errors.
- Hire a coach or business strategist who teaches proven strategies for success in the areas you're needing to uplevel your skills.
Either of these actions will save you months, or even years of a frustrating, (and dangerous - if you don't have unlimited funds available to finance your new venture. And who does really?) wilderness experience.
6. Start With Free Resources
While your first inclination may be to run out and hire a web designer to build a sweet-looking website with all the bells and whistles, jump into every tech platform possible for organizing your time and schedule, build a funnel, hire a VA, an accountant, and an appointment setter too - and then take a whole bunch of pictures of you 'Livin' The Dream' for your socials and announce that you're open for business... DON'T.
Take a deep breath and a step back.
I know you're excited to get started and THAT is awesome - but you also want to be strategic. Having a successful business isn't just about doing what you love and making money.
It's also about being smart with the resources you have and keeping more of your money as well.
There are plenty of free tools and resources available to help you get your business launched and off the ground. I always recommend starting there and upgrading the tools and platforms along the way - as necessary - once revenue starts flowing in.
Many entrepreneurs don't even realize how their money is flowing out of their accounts and figure that their business will eventually 'make it back,' so it doesn't matter to keep track or figure out where the holes in the boat are that's letting all the money out.
Do that first.
Evaluate each business-related expenditure and determine if it's a worthwhile expense. If you are paying for something, can you shift to the free version to save the difference until you're turning a regular profit each month?
Here are my all-time favourite FREE tools to help you get started:
- Brand Development & Visuals - Canva - the free version is all you'll need to get started and there are tutorials right on the platform to become proficient at creating graphics for your business. Graphics are necessary if you want to stop people from scrolling past your message. Visuals are also necessary as part of your marketing material: your website, your newsletter, your social media platforms, your blog - anything forward facing and outward reaching will need branded material.
- Resource Creation - Canva - for customized, fully branded pdfs and e-books
- E-Mail List Building - MailChimp - the free version allows up to 2,000 subscribers
- Community - Audience Building - Facebook Groups - still the very best strategy for building an audience because you'll have the opportunity to cultivate relationships - and no one purchases anything from those they don't know, like, or trust.
- Business Success Tracking - A simple Excel spreadsheet will do
When you're building a business from the ground up, becoming profitable is the first milestone, but your business resources aren't just the money you spend to get it going, and the money you take in from sales.
It also matters how much money you keep.
Be frugal with your resources. Make calculated investments of your time and your money. There are things you can do to ensure you get a return on your investment or to stack the odds of success in your favor.
Cautionary words BEFORE building your website:
- Become crystal clear about who your best clients are, and
- Understand the experience you'd like them to have by working with you
- Get some guidance about writing effective websites
Websites are pricey. Once you've got it written, put together, and kicking live, you'll likely be into a few bucks. Making changes once it's up, will cost more too - unless you're building it yourself or have access to it to make the changes yourself - so it is important to nail this all first.
Your business will evolve over time as you grow and become more clear about your offerings. The website you first put up, likely won't be the same one you'd love to have a couple of years later, so plan for that growth and evolution.
My recommendation here: Hold off on building a website until you've got a clearer idea of how you want to develop your business.
Think BIG. Start Small (with free tools and resources) and then Scale Up as you need to and as profits allow.
If you've got a website currently and it's not quite doing what you'd like it to do - as in attracting your ideal clients - and would like a website audit, let me know.
If you don't yet have a website and are thinking of having one built or are building one yourself and would like some help with the copywriting, let me know.
Website writing and design are things I'm passionate about.
If you have a Facebook Group that's not helping you fill your business - let's chat about that too. Facebook Group building is also an area of expertise.
See below for a special offer from me.
7. Know the Value of Your Time
Your time is an investment - and there's a value to that.
Be militant about how you spend it.
For scheduling, I still utilize simple blank calendar sheets printed from the internet. I want to be able to literally SEE the entire month in front of me to do this planning.
Once I've blocked out my time and charted my schedule for the month (based on priorities), I load the time blocks into my digital schedule and set any alerts if necessary - just for good measure and to keep me on track.
If you're looking for a tool to help with getting the MOST from your time as an entrepreneur - let me know. I have just the resource for you, my Slay Your Time Dragon E-Book is free.
8. Expect a Roller Coaster Ride
Entrepreneurship can be a challenge because plenty of factors make it unpredictable and uncertain. Business ownership is a wild ride.
One month can be incredibly profitable and elating when everything is moving along splendidly:
- Your content is flowing
- You're being productive and positive
- Clients are jumping on board and signing up, and
- People are opening your newsletters, reading your blogs, listening to your podcasts, &
- Engaging in your group is skyrocketing
- You're getting invites to talk or contribute to collaborations from potential partners
Your hands are up in the air. You're high-fiving and fist-pumping and shouting WooHoo.
You're loving life and SO ecstatic about being a bonified corporate refugee - absolutely 100% sure that building a business of your own was the very best choice you've ever made.
Life couldn't get much better.
Until the next month.
That incredible month might just be followed by a couple of lean ones that have the potential to crush that indomitable spirit:
- Your client work dries up
- People unsubscribe from your newsletter
- Engagement in your group takes a downturn and new people are slower to join in
- You have to dig deeper and deeper to get the creative juices flowing
- Content creation slows to a virtual standstill
And no one can book new clients from that place - ever.
Even the toughest of us can begin to question. Our processes come into question, our numbers are reviewed and scrutinized, and we frantically try to figure out what's not working.
Resolve wavers and these questions echo clearly while you're cradling your head in your hands:
- Why on earth did I do this?
- Why isn't this working when it was all ticking along just FINE before?
- What the H*LL was I thinking leaving that regular paycheck behind?
The 'feast and famine' fluctuations will test the mettle of every entrepreneur - even the most seasoned of us. The best recommendation I have at this juncture is to recognize that the cyclical nature of business building is PART of the nature of this beast.
So be prepared for it...and PLAN your way out through those scenarios.
If you're experiencing one of these 'slumps' right now - don't wait, take advantage of the gift I have for you below. I know exactly how you feel. I've been right where you are and it was such a horrible place to be, I've put together a step-by-step process to help others get OUT of that toxic quicksand.
Bonus Tip: Forgive Yourself
You'll make mistakes too.
Since there are no rulebooks in entrepreneurship, and everyone's experience is unique to them, expect that you'll take some missteps along the way.
Some of them may even be costly.
Have the courage of a lion, and the determination too.
Treat yourself with grace.
Learn what you can from each scenario - the fails (do less of that) as well as the triumphs (do more of that) and keep pushing forward.
Once again, I can't stress enough the importance of a cushion of savings to sustain you and your family through those times when things don't go the way you'd like them to.
There will be those - I guarantee it.
The good news is: while entrepreneurship isn't for the faint of heart, the rewards are massive!
If you feel called to help others with your unique gifts, your expertise, or if you'd like to build a purpose-based business to make a significant difference in some way - now's the time to put it together - in a strategic 'safe' way.
If you're ready to take that leap and do something that nourishes your soul, empowers you to leave a legacy, and create the life you love - one full of freedom of choice, and you'd like some mentorship or guidance along the way, I'd be delighted to chat.
If you'd like some help getting your business up, launched, and profitable, I'd like to hear from you.
I've been through the jungle and summited that mountain. I can put the treasure map in your hand and guide you around the quicksand.
The view is stunning. Promise.
A Gift For You
Want to put the pieces of the puzzle of your business together in a way that makes it run like a well-oiled machine, I'd be delighted to chat.
I can help with clarity, brand development, simplification, process development, copywriting & editing, along with proven strategies for profitable business building at every step from Zero to Launch.
You're invited to contact me directly via e-mail at andrea@coachforlife.ca for your complimentary 'Zero to Launch' Free Strategy session.
By the end of it, you'll have a clear, concise Action Plan and some helpful resources too.
About The Author
Andrea Raco is a Certified Success & Life Enrichment Coach, a Business Strategist, and a Copywriter. She's also the Founder of Coach for Life & The Copy Doc and the Curator of Gold Key Club - a private Facebook community for women on a mission to make a difference in the world with their unique talents and gifts. She'd be delighted if you'd join her there.
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