Do you want to be a better entrepreneur?
Do you want to make more money?
Here's how you can do it in 6 steps.
1. Take a break
Just for a moment, sit back and relax. Before you dive back into your work you need to figure out where you are financially in life. One of the main reasons you are going into business is because you want to make more money. So the main question that should come to your mind is:
How much money do you want to make?
You don't need a billion dollars and the odds of you making anywhere near that are slim to none. So what's your number?
Chances are the amount you want to make is far more than you'll actually need. Sit down and take a moment to write down everything you want to buy and how much money you'll need to make to buy it all. Maybe a fancy house, some exotic cars, and enough cash where you don't have to worry about working. If you add up the total of everything you want, it shouldn't run you more than a few million dollars and if you break it down into yearly income it probably won't be more than a few hundred thousand dollars.
If this isn't the case, then you are smoking crack. You don't need tons of toys to be happy. If you think you do, you will have a tough time making all of that money because it is really unlikely that you will make a few million dollars a year or sell your company for a hundred million dollars if you haven't even made a few hundred grand first.
So stop swinging for the fences, especially if you haven't hit a single yet!
2. Stop innovating and start copying
Now that you know that you don't have to make millions of dollars a year, you have to come up with a business that will help you make a decent amount of money. It doesn't have to be an innovative business that solves a pain in the market place; it just has to be a business that can turn a healthy profit every year.
A good way to find one of these businesses is by talking to friends and family. You'll be amazed on how many basic businesses like plumbing (I am not saying you should be a plumber) make a decent amount of money. Find something that you'll enjoy and start the business. Just don't pick something that requires millions of dollars to start.
If you already have a business analyze how you are currently doing and see what tweaks you can make to it, so that it fits your financial objectives.
3. Time isn't on your side
Nothing has to be perfect. What you may see as faulty might look perfect to your customers. It doesn't matter what you want, it matters what your customers want.
This is why you don't want to make any big decisions because if something goes wrong you'll end up wasting a lot of time. Break that big decision into a few small decisions. Then survey your customers or potential customers to get their opinion; this should help you determine what route to take.
Even after you talk to your customers you are still going to make mistakes. Just make sure you are agile enough to adapt quickly. It is all about testing small things instead of taking months to roll out changes in your business.
4. Work hard, play hard
If you work 12-hour days, you are going to get burned out. It doesn't matter if you love what you are doing you need to take breaks.
- Don't work longer than a few hours without taking a break. Taking small breaks throughout your day will make you more efficient and cause you to accomplish more.
- Every week you should do something that is out of the ordinary. It doesn't have to be expensive, it could be as simple as going to the park and having a picnic with your family. Just do something that will take your mind away from work and reduce your stress level.
- Create a work environment that you want to be in. Small things like having plants in your workspace, putting up motivational posters, and having a window to look out of can do wonders for you. If your work environment is dark and boring you'll be forcing yourself to work everyday.
5. Stop deviating
New business opportunities are going to come your way and you will want to jump on them. But all of these things are going to be distractions. They'll cause you to deviate from your path to success and it will take longer for you to reach your ultimate goal.
You to have to resist the temptation.
If you happen to take any of these opportunities you'll soon find out that you will be increasing your risk intake. The more things you do, especially ones outside of your skill set, the higher the chance that something is going to fail.
Plus, the more things you do, the more spread out you will be. Once you spread yourself too thin you won't be able to spend enough time on any of your businesses and you'll notice that they will all suffer.
6. Never stop learning
The most important and last thing you should know is that you should never stop learning. No matter how successful you are, there is going to be someone out there who has accomplished more than you.
So instead of being arrogant, take every opportunity you get to learn new things. Whether it is from an experienced entrepreneur who has been around the block, or a 16-year-old kid, everyone can teach you something. You just have to learn what to take away from a conversation because there are going to be some things that are going to benefit you and others that won't.
Conclusion
As an entrepreneur you have learned a few other things that I didn't include in this blog post. Would you mind leaving a comment with some tips that would help others become a better entrepreneur in the next 30 minutes?
