About a year ago, I did an informal survey on a business networking site and asked the question – “What do you know now that you wish you’d known then?” There were the normal responses having to do with organizational issues, work/life balance, time management and capital issues. However, I was surprised to find the overwhelming number of responses that were related to “head” issues – confidence, focus, overcoming fear, and staying positive.

It makes me think of the old cartoons where the character would have a little devil on one shoulder telling him to do the bad thing and a little angel on the other shoulder urging him to do what’s right. Some days I feel like I have little distracting gremlins on my shoulder pulling me away from what I need to be doing. They’re especially persuasive every time I get ready to do something new or approach a new client prospect. Do you ever hear them too? They try to put thoughts in our head of how we’re too short. Or too tall. Or too old. Or too young. Or lacking the proper credentials. Or in over our heads. And on and on and on.

Ever heard the saying “You’re your own worst enemy”? Too often we are the architects of our own downfall. There is an old text that talks about taking our thoughts captive and renewing our mind. That’s a smart thing to do when you’re in business. There are hundreds, if not thousands, of messages every day giving us reasons why we’re “less than” the other guy but when those messages start to creep in, you need to take them captive. Filter through them. Sometimes they may, indeed, point out some area you need to improve upon. However, most of the time they’re just trash talk.

One of the best ways I’ve found to keep them in check is to renew my mind. I do that through a healthy dose of motivation. I read a lot of books, but lately I’ve been downloading mp3 books and rather than frittering away time just listening to the radio, I use my driving time for input from folks like the late Jim Rohn (my all time favorite) or Larry Winget (love his point blank style) or John Maxwell or the great Les Brown. There are plenty of them out there, but these are some of my favorites.

You’re not alone when those thoughts start rolling through your brain; it’s something we all have to deal with as was evidenced by feedback from small business people across the country. Just because they’re there, you don’t have to believe what they’re telling you. Take control of your thoughts and don’t let them steal your promise.

I was on Facebook the other day with a friend from High School and she was telling me some exciting news about an article that had been written about her for a local business journal. Turns out, she has turned into an ace inventor.

Here in Oklahoma, we have very interesting weather – tornadoes, ice storms, hail storms, you name it, we’ve probably got it. My friend was living in an apartment complex where they didn’t offer covered parking. One year we had a significant amount of hail storms and she was bound and determined to not let her car get all dinged up. She came up with a solution that worked and then the light bulb came on. She began creating prototypes from her jury rigged solution and is now creating a catalog, seeking investors and taking it to market. She’s also come up with ideas for companion products during the process.

Frustration to solution to business owner.

I remember seeing a story about a gal who was frustrated by trying to get the dust ruffle back onto her king sized bed after cleaning it. She struggled to lift the mattress and slide the ruffle back into place. She got the kids involved and the ensuing story reminded me of a Three Stooges routine. She thought to herself, “There’s got to be a better way” and proceeded to create the Zip-a-ruffle that’s now sold on QVC.

Someone had to think up and create the Snuggie® and as silly as it may seem to some of us, it’s a million dollar product and there are a lot of folks that are a whole lot warmer for it.

Back to the original question – Are you frustrated about something? Instead of just being frustrated and going on, stop and take another look and see if you’re missing a solution. Chances are, if you’re frustrated, millions of other people are, too.

I received an email the other day from someone I didn’t know very well so I set out to get to know a little more about them. This person went from telling me about a marathon trip they’d just finished where they were looking at antique guitars and scoping out some business opportunities. Well, of course, that piqued my interest! When I asked about what type of business opportunities, it was like I’d flipped a switch. What started out as a pleasant conversation turned to a rant on how we’re headed to Hades in a hand basket and how we’re headed to a devastating global depression of apocalyptic levels. Trade all your money for gold and start excavating for a bunker in the back yard as soon as possible.

Wow.

I politely stated my opinion in return and quickly ended the conversation because it was apparent that they were just getting started and determined to “enlighten” me to their truth whereas I’m perfectly happy to agree to disagree.

I’m no Polly Anna. I know the statistics – high unemployment, record foreclosures continue, gas prices continue to climb, depressed wages, consumers struggling with high debt, and it goes on and on. However, I also see opportunity all around us.

Is the world changing? Yes. It changes all the time. Is our US economy changing? Absolutely. Again, it changes all the time. We seem to forget our history so easily. Things change; our economy is cyclical. It goes up and it goes down. Change can be scary for a lot of people. I find it exciting, but I can totally understand that most folks don’t.

Maybe it’s because I grew up “without”. I’ve lived the hard life and made it through just fine. I’ve been broke, so broke doesn’t scare me so much. I’ve lived in the muck and I know that when you’re there, down deep and up to your eyeballs in troubles, it’s hard to see anything but. And when you’re focused on the muck, hope seems far away. I want to encourage you to look up and see the stars. Even astronomers sometimes need a telescope, and even in the most difficult of times, there are opportunities.

Take a look around, change your focus…see that little twinkle?

He has also been the recipient of a lot of good intentions. Teachers and other leaders in his life that try to suggest what they think he might be good at. That’s not typically my methodology. As we’ve talked, I’ve mostly tried to listen but there is one key point I’ve tried to drive home – Quit thinking in terms of a “job,” but think about something that you love to do and see if there is a way to make it valuable in the marketplace.

Creating value around something you love will make your “work” day feel more like a play day. Every day.

We seem to have forgotten that the economy has been bad before and we’ve survived. There has been an ebb and flow to the cycles of business for as long as there has been exchange of goods in the marketplace. It goes up and it goes down. Around and around. Season after season.

We seem to have forgotten that in the scope of history, it wasn’t that long ago that people left their home country to reach a new world of opportunity. They blazed trails into the wilderness. Instead of focusing on how bad it was or how there wasn’t a governmental agency out there prepared to underwrite their endeavors and make everything OK, or extended unemployment benefits, they pulled up their boots, focused on the positive and the possibilities and got to work. They made a way when there seemed like there was no way.

We seem to have forgotten that it was only about 100 years ago that the majority of the population was self employed. They didn’t wait for someone else to assign their value to a salary and a desk; they looked for the needs in the marketplace and came up with creative ways to fill them.

I think it’s pretty obvious that “things” will never go back to where they were 5 years ago. But rather than let the newspapers and pundits write your story for you, take control of your life and write your own story. Don’t you think you’d do a better job than some corporate CEO whose focus is his own company’s bottom line?

Once upon a time, there was you. Where are you going from here?

Lose 100 lbs in four months.

Make a million dollars in a week.

You get the idea.

Is it possible? Sure.

If you’ve ever watched The Biggest Loser you’ve seen people lose 100 lbs in four months.

But they have put their entire lives on hold to focus on that one area of their lives.

I personally know folks that have made a million dollars in a week.

But they didn’t start out making that kind of money. Nope, most took about 10 years to grow to that point.

Is going big the only way to go? I don’t think so.

I think that too often we get it in our heads that unless we’re able to “Go Big” we shouldn’t even try. Or we try to “Go Big” and get overwhelmed.

Why can’t we just “Go?”

I’m of the opinion that any progress is good. Sometimes it’s small steps but at least we’re moving forward. Actually, I believe that compounded small steps add up to BIG change. Not only big change, but LASTING change.

You might not lose 100 lbs in 4 months, but you might lose 20 lbs in those 4 months just by eating a few less bites and moving a few minutes more each day.

You might not make 1 million dollars in a week, but by focusing on your business consistently and making small steps of progress, you might make an additional $10,000 this year.

I don’t know about you, but 20 lbs less and $10,000 more is better than finding myself in the exact same place in a year. Or even worse, 20 lbs heavier and $10,000 more in debt because I tried to make some huge effort and failed…and gave up.

So, as you look to 2010 and start picturing what you want to accomplish I encourage you to DREAM BIG, but break it down into small, realistic steps.

Just go.

“Keep moving forward!”

That’s one of the many messages of the movie, but it’s my favorite. In the movie, Lewis wants to give up when his experiments don’t work out the way he wants them to. Then he meets a family that helps him understand that failure is useful and should be celebrated as a learning experience rather than a reason to give up.

I’d been frustrated because I hadn’t been able to allocate my time the way I wanted and development of a product I’m working on kept getting pushed to the background. I always try to make the best of any situation, but I was fighting the urge to be a little whiney and wallow in the frustration.

Do you ever feel frustrated when your plans get waylayed? Tired of pushing, especially when it doesn’t look like you’re making a whole lot of progress? In the beginning it can look like that a lot. And in the middle. And 10 years down the road.

It can feel that way, but Keep Moving Forward. Even if it’s baby steps. Those baby steps will add up to ground covered and eventually position you to take the leaps when the opportunity appears.

Happy Entrepreneuring!

Katherine

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Happy Entrepreneuring!!

Katherine

For the most part, the input was excellent. But there was one response that surprised me.

“If at first you don’t succeed, quit.”

I know, right? I mean, I had to read it a couple of times to make sure I read it right.

Perhaps he was just being facetious. Perhaps not.

As entrepreneurs…or really even as human beings…we’re going to come up against obstacles. We can either use the obstacle as a convenient reason to quit. Or we can see them for what obstacles really are – opportunities.

Opportunities for growth.

Not all obstacles can be overcome, but they still provide room for growth. Just as a poker player analyzes the table to decide whether they should stay the course, raise the stakes or fold, we need to analyze what lies in our path instead of reacting by immediately throwing in the towel.

The following are some sources for funds that can be used for your business needs:

1. Personal savings – Many start ups rely on savings to finance their business. This is the most cost effective source of funding but you need to use wisdom. Don’t put your family’s future in jeopardy by blowing through your life’s savings.

2. Bootstrapping – This is a method of self reliance that is also very cost effective. Money produced is poured back into the company to avoid the need for outside funding. This also means that growth has to be controlled so that costs can be controlled, which in my view, is a good thing. Uncontrolled growth can create a whole host of problems.

3. Family and Friends – Oftentimes, loved ones can provide funds for a start up entrepreneur. However, proceed with caution; these relationships are the most important in your life.

4. Small Business Administration – The Small Business Administration has a loan guarantee program where, if you’re approved, they will guarantee a portion of your small business loan.

5. Bank Loans – This is a more traditional form of financing. Bank requirements have become quite stringent and you may have to supply personal assets as collateral.

6. Investors – Securing funds from an investor is difficult, but not impossible. An investor will provide funds, either their own (angel investor) or those from a managed fund (venture capitalist), for your business. In return, they often expect not only debt repayment but also ownership equity in your business.

Happy Entrepreneuring!

Katherine