We’re entering the second week of February which has big implications for any business goals you may have set for 2015. Many of us set these goals at the start of the year and are full of enthusiasm for them. However, as the weeks go on we tend to get less and less interested, and by now almost a third of us have given up completely.
If this sounds like you, don’t worry. There are plenty of ways that you can refocus your business goals for the year and get them back on track.
Choose one to focus on
When it comes to improving your business, it can be very tempting to set a whole list of goals. I have no doubt there are dozens of changes you’d like to make, but trying to work on them all at once is unlikely to get results. Instead, channel your energy into working on one priority. That way you’re much more likely to succeed.
Make your goal specific
The more specific your big business goal is the more likely you are to achieve it. Instead of ‘increase profit this year’ try turning your goal into ‘increase profit by X%”. Immediately you have a more concrete aim to work towards and it will be much easier to recognise when you’ve achieved it.
Break your goal down into small steps
Almost all business goals look scary when you only look at the end result. Instead, try breaking your goal up into a series of smaller steps. If your goal is to launch a new service, the steps might be carrying out market research, finalising your offerings, creating resources, building a new page on your website and publicising the new service to your mailing list. Once you’ve broken your goal down, you’ll find that it seems far less scary and far more actionable.
Find an accountability partner
One of the best ways to stay on track with a goal is to find an accountability partner to talk about it with. Choose someone you trust who is likely to understand some of the challenges involved in what you’re trying to do. This could be a friend, a fellow business owner, a colleague or even a coach. The important thing is to set regular time aside to talk about how you’re working towards your goal and how it’s going.
The start of the year is a natural time for us to set goals, but it doesn’t have to be the only time. Whenever you choose to start work on a new business goal, these tips will help you stay on track.
Whether you’re in business with your spouse, partner, parent or sibling, working with a family member can be tricky to manage. There can be some really great aspects of this kind of business, but there can also be challenges and complicated dynamics.
I work with a wide range of families and couples who are in business together. Though every case is unique, there are a few challenges I see coming up over and over again. Here they are:
Relationship issues leaking into the business
In my experience, there is no such thing as the perfect relationship. Every relationship has it’s frictions, and it’s important to be open and honest about these frictions in order to move past them. If there are issues between you and your family member/business partner that get out of control, these issues will find their way into your business. Very few humans are able to successfully compartmentalise our emotions, and something you are struggling to deal with at home is bound to colour your dealings with your business partner at the office.
Struggle with ‘role behaviours’
In most cases, we will use a different type of behaviour when we interact with our spouse than we would with our parent or sibling. Equally, the way we act with business associates and colleagues tends to be different than the way we act when we’re at home. However, if you are working with a family member, the lines between these different role behaviours become blurred and it can be hard to know how to behave. This dynamic can become a problem when family or couple businesses take on employees. The type of parent-child or husband-wife role behaviour you are used to at home may no longer be appropriate within a more professional environment.
Blindness to strengths or weaknesses
When you work with someone you love, it can be difficult to be impartial. Some of us find it difficult to accept and address the weaknesses of our family members. Equally, within some family relationships it can be tricky to recognise that family members have particular strengths and expertise. Whichever way this issue plays itself out, it can be a problem within business. If you are blind to your business partner’s strengths or weaknesses, it can make it difficult to properly allocate work and make the most of resources.
Difficulty stepping away from work
When you work with the person you live with, it can be very difficult to leave work at the end of the day. It can be tempting to discuss what’s going on at the office over the dinner table or during family time. Though this is undoubtedly convenient, over time it can put a real strain on your relationship outside of the business. It’s important to remember that you are family as well as business partners.
Of course, though these dynamics can be particularly difficult for families and couples to navigate, solopreneurs can struggle with these too, especially if they seek business advice from family members.
If you’re struggling with any of these dynamics, you’re not alone! Running a successful business is difficult enough without these added strains and many family businesses consider them to be stumbling blocks. Why not set aside some time to sit down with your loved one and discuss what you might be able to do to work towards overcoming them?
This article was originally posted as a guest post on Business Quarter
Quitting the 9-5 and becoming an entrepreneur is a dream for many of us. There are many benefits to self employment, and these are often spoken about at length in the media: total working freedom, the ability to choose your own opportunities, the space to make your own decisions and take greater control of your working hours.
However, there are also some less beneficial sides to being an entrepreneur. Those brave people who make the break and dive head first into entrepreneurship often discover that it can be very lonely on the other side.
What’s lonely about being an entrepreneur?
Entrepreneurship often involves long stretches of being on your own. This can be a shock, especially if you’ve moved from a more structured office-based career. Before entrepreneurship, many of us were surrounded by colleagues, and most of our decisions were made within meetings after discussions and collaborations. Once you’re working on your own, well, you’re really on your own.
Of course, not all entrepreneurs work on their own. Many manage a team of staff and/or work in close contact with clients and suppliers. However, this doesn’t necessarily mean that the threat of loneliness is averted. When you’re the boss it can be difficult to cross boundaries and discuss business matters with employees, clients or suppliers. These can be difficult relationships to navigate, and you may discover that you have just as few people to discuss business decisions with as the entrepreneur who works from home with their computer. Many entrepreneurs discover that it’s actually very lonely at the top.
The kind of meetings and networking events that entrepreneurs attend will certainly bring you into contact with plenty of other people, but they don’t necessarily help guard against entrepreneurial loneliness. It can be difficult to know who you can trust and who should be treated as competitors or customers. Often there can be just as many boundaries to respect as there are among your own staff.
What effect can this have?
Loneliness might not seem like a huge problem to begin with, but it can certainly become an issue for you and your business over time. Our state of mind has a huge impact on how effective we are as individuals. The real risk here is that your loneliness could turn into isolation and could make you less effective as a professional.
Isolation is particularly dangerous in business as it can stop you from taking a measured view of your business and your market and can lead instead to blinkered vision. When you spend all your time thinking about your business without any outside influence, you’ll likely find that you have little new inspiration. Instead you may find yourself falling into a pattern of doing the same things over and over again. No matter how much you hope for different results in these cases: repeating the same behaviour over a period of months and years will pretty much guarantee that you won’t be moving forwards.
If your mindset becomes inverted, it can also affect the way you deal with employees, clients and suppliers. This is problematic as your judgement could be impaired, and you may be prevented from portraying your business in the right way.
Of course, it’s not just your business that can suffer because of entrepreneurial loneliness: your personal life can also be affected. Human beings are not generally able to successfully compartmentalise their dissatisfaction with one area of their lives, and if you’re having difficulty in your work it’s likely that dissatisfaction will leak out and cause problems within your social and family lives too.
What can you do to prevent loneliness?
As a general rule, entrepreneurial loneliness can be prevented by surrounding yourself with individuals you trust and speaking to them regularly about your business. However, finding these individuals isn’t as straight-forward as it might sound.
Entrepreneurs often turn to family members and friends in these cases. This can be helpful as these people will know you well and you’ll probably feel most comfortable talking to them. In most cases, though, friends and family members won’t have specialist business knowledge and may find it difficult to challenge you. The advice given by this kind of confidante can also come with a vested interest.
Another natural ally might be other entrepreneurs. These people are likely to understand the challenges you face as an entrepreneur, and they’ll also have the business knowledge and expertise to make valuable suggestions. Of course, it can take a great deal of time to build up a mutually honest relationship with someone who could potentially be a competitor or a client. You may find that you aren’t able to be totally open with another entrepreneur. Our egos often get in the way, and it might feel more natural to tell entrepreneur contacts that everything is going brilliantly, even when it isn’t.
Luckily, there is a third option. Developing a relationship with a professional business coach can be extremely beneficial for entrepreneurs. Coaches can support entrepreneurs in ways that other business owners, friends and family often aren’t able to.
They offer confidentiality and a totally impartial ear
They have specialist business knowledge and will be able to give worthwhile advice
They have no vested interest in your business, either as a personal contact, a competitor or a client
They offer a professional service, which means they won’t require a favour in return
Loneliness is often considered a necessary evil for those who are self-employed. However, it can become a threat to your personal and your business’ wellbeing if it’s not addressed. Taking the time to speak to family, friends and other business contacts can certainly help to reduce loneliness, but these kinds of conversations often don’t produce the same productive, actionable results as speaking with a professional business coach.
One of the biggest reasons why businesses fail to thrive is a lack of quality impartial advice. Building a professional relationship with a coach can help to counteract this, and can be a valuable asset both to your business’ success and your personal wellbeing.
