3 Things That Are Keeping Your Small Business From Succeeding
By Andrew Patricio
April 30, 2018
Small Business & Entrepreneurship
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Try as you might, you can’t seem to get over a hump in your business. Maybe you launched it to great fanfare, but now, a few years down the road, you’re simply churning your wheels. You’d like to grow. You’d like to be able to afford help. But something seems to be keeping you in place.
Here are a few things that might be preventing you from moving forward.
You created a business plan before you launched your company, but you haven’t touched it since. The problem is: your business may have changed a little or a lot since you first started.
Your business plan needs to be a living, breathing entity that evolves as your business does. You may have started in one direction initially, but since then you may have changed directions, so make sure your plan follows suit.
Having an updated business plan gives you a map of where you want to go. If you want to boost revenues and sell your company in five years, you need an aggressive plan that will allow you to do that.
When you opened your business, you did it all, and that was okay. But now...you’re still the only employee, and you’re feeling overwhelmed. Still, you don’t want to spend the money hiring anyone because you think you can’t afford it.
Unfortunately, you can’t afford not to hire help. Your time is valuable as the business owner, and your time is better spent strategizing about how to grow than it is licking stamps. So hire someone — even if it’s just for five hours a week — so that you free yourself up to focus on more important aspects of your business.
Your income varies month to month, and it’s stressing you out. What would happen if your computer died and you suddenly needed a new one? Could you even afford it?
Having financial insecurity is a major block of moving forward, but fortunately, it just takes a little planning to remedy it.
First, pay yourself, even if it’s a tiny amount. Set yourself up as an employee and give yourself a regular paycheck. Next, put money in savings. Yes, it’s tempting to take all the profit and put it in your personal bank account, but you need a nest egg to help with those unforeseen expenses. Additionally, put 20% or so aside to invest in marketing and other things that will help grow your company.
Often not moving ahead is a mental block. Make sure you really assess what you want for your business and be ready to commit to getting it, even if it means working longer hours for a while.
Here are a few things that might be preventing you from moving forward.
- You Haven’t Updated Your Business Plan
You created a business plan before you launched your company, but you haven’t touched it since. The problem is: your business may have changed a little or a lot since you first started.
Your business plan needs to be a living, breathing entity that evolves as your business does. You may have started in one direction initially, but since then you may have changed directions, so make sure your plan follows suit.
Having an updated business plan gives you a map of where you want to go. If you want to boost revenues and sell your company in five years, you need an aggressive plan that will allow you to do that.
- You’re Still Trying to Do It All Yourself
When you opened your business, you did it all, and that was okay. But now...you’re still the only employee, and you’re feeling overwhelmed. Still, you don’t want to spend the money hiring anyone because you think you can’t afford it.
Unfortunately, you can’t afford not to hire help. Your time is valuable as the business owner, and your time is better spent strategizing about how to grow than it is licking stamps. So hire someone — even if it’s just for five hours a week — so that you free yourself up to focus on more important aspects of your business.
- You’re Bumping Along Financially
Your income varies month to month, and it’s stressing you out. What would happen if your computer died and you suddenly needed a new one? Could you even afford it?
Having financial insecurity is a major block of moving forward, but fortunately, it just takes a little planning to remedy it.
First, pay yourself, even if it’s a tiny amount. Set yourself up as an employee and give yourself a regular paycheck. Next, put money in savings. Yes, it’s tempting to take all the profit and put it in your personal bank account, but you need a nest egg to help with those unforeseen expenses. Additionally, put 20% or so aside to invest in marketing and other things that will help grow your company.
Often not moving ahead is a mental block. Make sure you really assess what you want for your business and be ready to commit to getting it, even if it means working longer hours for a while.