This blog piece is not meant to be a full 10,000 word synopsis of who you need to become to build that successful business. It should however help you on your success journey.
My time of building businesses for 20+ years and working with successful entrepreneurs has revealed some common themes. All entrepreneurs work hard and are often highly opposed to the trap of 9-5 but in addition to that they all possess varying levels of the following skills;
Discipline
They do the things that need to be done even when they might not feel like it. They have engrained discipline to complete essential tasks so that choice has been removed from the equation
Focus
Every day they have new ideas and internal conversations that start with ‘this would be a good idea….why don’t we do that’. The more focussed an entrepreneur the more likely they are to build their business. One of the biggest opportunities entreperenurs face is not lack of opportunity, but excess of it. A man who tries to catch 2 rabbits catches none. The challenge is deciding what not to do.
Resilience
Inevitably on any business journey we face set backs and challenges. We get the response ‘no’ more than most. The ability to continually get up and keep taking steps further forward possibly when others feel you should just throw in the towel is strong amongst serious entrepreneurs
A strong and clear why
Money is a great goal at the start. When I was first starting out it was the classic material items, I wanted a nicer car, I wanted nicer things, etc. It took me some time to realise that although those may be nice they are not a strong enough why. The more compelling your why the more determined you will be to achieve it.
Kaizen mindset (continous improvement)
Small improvements every day will compound into something unimaginable. Its much easier to improve 1000 things by 1% than 1 thing by 1,000%. Every day aim to be that little bit better than the day before. It might be making a business system a little smoother, spending more time with a team member, making that extra call, spending more time with your family, working harder at the gym. Whatever it is adopt the continual improvement mindset and you are closer to achieving your goals
Standards
Successful entrepreneurs often operate to a higher level of standards. They arrive prepared, they return calls when they say they will, they have organised schedules. They are also committed to see things through. They realise that success is rarely due to one big breakthrough but more often maintaining standards consistently over time. Somebody with consistently rising standards will achieve great things in life.
If you build on the above skillset then your standards will improve and as a result you will achieve goals as the byproduct of your standards
Businesses rarely outperform the person leading them for long. As the owner develops stronger habits, clearer thinking, higher standards, and better decision-making, the business often improves alongside them.
Where Do You Go From Here?
Building a successful business is rarely about finding a secret strategy.
More often, it is about developing the discipline, standards, thinking, and decision-making required to operate at a higher level over a sustained period of time.
The reality is that every business eventually becomes a reflection of the person leading it.
If you are committed to improving how you think, decide, and execute, explore the pathways below.
Three Paths. One Standard.
Choose the path that best fits where you are today.
https://dervishdervish.com/work-with-me/
To your continued growth,
Sensei Dervish
Founder — Sensei in the Room
Entrepreneur | Author | 6th Degree Black Belt