With one million British SMEs having women at the helm and the UK having been voted the best place in Europe to start a business, there has never been a better time than now for women to start their own businesses.
Tired of the ‘politics’ and limitations posed on them, increasing numbers of women are exiting the corporate world to start out on their own.
Having the flexibility to choose how you work, when you work and where you work AND do work that you love is very appealing, but some of these women start out full of enthusiasm then give up as soon as the going gets tough.
Starting a business is no easy feat but if you plan properly and are able to ride out the challenges of getting going, it can be very rewarding and fulfilling.
Here are 7 common mistakes that I see women make when starting out in business and what you can do to avoid them if you are starting out too.
1. Not having a plan
Fail to plan, plan to fail – there is a lot of truth in this age old saying. Building a website, printing business cards and thane starting to network is NOT all that you need to do to get your business going. But it is surprising the amount of woman who do just this.
They want to earn a comparable salary (or more) to when they were in employment but they haven’t worked out how they are going to achieve this. You need to have a plan.
Research shows that businesses that have a plan grow faster than those that don’t. For some women writing a business plan is overwhelming because they’ve never had to do anything like it before. But your plan doesn’t have to be all singing, all dancing and if you’re not applying for funding or finance, it is purely for your benefit.
Having a business plan will help you to gain clarity on why you’re starting your business, what you want the business to look like and how you’re going to make it work.
2. Running a business with an employee mindset
Running your own business requires a shift in mindset. Not only do you become CEO, you may also be CFO, COO, CMO and all the other members of the C-Suite in one AND have to do all the other activities that are necessary to make the business work. When your computer crashes and doesn’t work, you can’t pick up the phone to the I.T. department and get it sorted. You have to arrange to get it sorted yourself.
No one will be breathing down your neck if things don’t get done. If you have always worked in a performance focused environment with structure and clear processes, going out on your own can seem a bit of a free for all at first. You may even feel like you’re running around like a headless chicken and not getting anywhere.
Implement structure, implement processes and find ways to keep the motivation going even when business is slow.
3. Not knowing your customer
Not being clear on who your customers are can cause you wasted time and effort targeting your services at the wrong people. Then when no one is buying from you, it can leave you feeling insecure, feeling rejected and believing that you’re not good enough.
Doing your market research as part of your business planning will help you to be clear about who your customer is, what they want and how and where you will find them.
It also enables you to target your marketing messages so that they attract the people that you want to buy what you have to offer.
4. Procrastination
Constantly putting things off and allowing yourself to be distracted is stealing valuable time you should be spending on your business. When you procrastinate there is more than likely an underlying cause. This could be overwhelm about the enormity of what needs to be done. It could be not knowing where to start or how to go about doing things. It could even be that you’re a perfectionist and feel insecure about putting yourself out there.
If you find yourself procrastinating, deal with the underlying cause. If the task is overwhelming, break it down in to baby steps. Get support, get training, get coaching to help you overcome any fears and insecurities that you have. Eliminate distractions and identify time wasters.
5. Not knowing how to network, where to network or why you need to do it
Going to networking events armed with a wad of business cards, thrusting them in peoples’ faces isn’t going to go down well. Sadly, this is something I have seen many women do. They don’t do this because they are obnoxious, they do it because they have the wrong concept of what networking is.
Also, networking in the wrong places can cost you a lot of money. Identify what you want to gain from it then find the places that will enable you to achieve that objective.
Don’t go there with the sole intention of selling. Go to make connections and build relationships. People buy from people they know, like and trust. It is only by building relationships that allows this to happen.
If you’re nervous about networking or lacking confidence, find out how to overcome it here.
6. A lack of resilience
There are going to be many knock backs on your journey but it is how you adapt to them that will determine your future success.
When you have been told no several times, it can be discouraging and disheartening and the fear of rejection can prevent you from proactively trying again. Things might not go as planned, you might not make money straight away, but are you going to give up or are you going to revisit your strategy and try a different approach?
Don’t let the fear of rejection get the better of you. It is ok to make mistakes. Learn from the mistakes, learn from the failures, pick yourself up and carry on.
Have a plan B if necessary that enables you to generate income whilst your business is growing. This could be renting out a spare bedroom or utilising your skills to do private tutoring. It could even be getting a part time job if you have to so that you can continue to pay the bills until the money starts coming in.
Develop your resilience so that you are able to adapt to the adversities that may come your way.
7. Thinking you can do it all by yourself
One of the beauties of having your own business is that you get to be creative and utilise the skills and talents you are good at and enjoy. The downside is that if you’re in it on your own and you also have to do the things you’re not good at and that you don’t enjoy.
But you don’t have to do it all alone and you don’t have to run yourself ragged. Get support where you can. Although you may think you can’t afford any support, have you actually sat down and worked out how much it is costing you spending time on things you don’t know how to do or that you don’t enjoy? Could that time be better spent doing the things you love and that you are good at? Things that generate the income you need.
Paying someone to do the things you don’t know how to do or don’t have time for may actually be more cost effective once you’re clear on your hourly rate and how much it will cost to pay someone else to do those things.
Get a coach to challenge your thinking, help you gain clarity about what you want, what you need to do to achieve it and to hold you accountable. Develop a support network with other business owners because it can be lonely when you’re doing it on your own. Surround yourself with entrepreneurs who are further along than you so that you can learn from them.
No man (or woman) is an island and you don’t have to do it on your own.
If you are starting out in business, can you relate to any of these mistakes? What lessons have you learnt on your journey?
Originally Published on LinkedIn.
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