Your Existing Support Base Views The World As An Employee
At any point in your life, you know everyone you know and no one that you don’t. (Amazingly insightful, right?!?) Unless you are an experienced entrepreneur or small business owner, your existing sphere of contacts likely reside in traditional jobs who possess a “normal” employee-like mindset. While your friends, family, and coworkers provide solid support and genuine interest in your success, their perspective on business emanates from the same environment that you seek to escape. Therefore, accepting advice that aligns with their perspectives may drive a career-long mindset of collecting a bi-weekly paycheck. Understand that traditional careers are noble pursuits to be admired. However, that’s not why you are reading this blog!
Seek Out Entrepreneurial And Business Owner Perspectives
As you start a new venture, seek out ideas, perspectives, and seasoned professionals with experience in creating, supporting, and sustaining businesses. Recognize the skill sets necessary to launch, build, and grow in your own endeavor. Proceeding alone may appear valiant, but beware, this path can be wrought with danger. Success is rarely an individual effort. It often takes a team and today the volume of solopreneurs and entrepreneurs have driven the growth of public and private small business incubators – a safe “nesting place” for new executives to brainstorm and pollinate the transfer of knowledge with like-minded, empowered individuals who may co-op and support a new entrepreneurial endeavor.
Seek Out Failure As Well As Success
What? Find people who failed in their attempts? Shouldn’t I seek out success stories? Think of past projects, personal and professional. Remember your successes? How about the failures? Ask your neighbor about the basement remodel that progressed without a hitch. Now, sit back and hear about the massive disaster project of the bathroom plumbing. Which story lasted longer and was more memorable? Business failures or missteps cost time and / or money. Why not learn from someone else’s lost time and money?
Certainly, success stories are more inspirational and provide better confidence boosts before casting off from the dock and sailing out into the big blue ocean.
So Who Are These Most Important People?
In your search for new perspectives you will need to meet people from many professions. Basic needs range from tax accountants, bankers, web developers, to business card printers. More advanced business pursuits add investors, business partners, and entrepreneurial mentors to your growing list. Well that should cover everything, right? What about CUSTOMERS??? Even if your product or service appeals to your original sphere of friends, family, and coworkers, sales will eventually plateau or decline when this micro market is saturated. Your message must be shouted from the rooftops and spread throughout the land to attract paying customers. Uncomfortable with sales, then add, sales, marketing, and business development to your “Get to Know” list.
Ultimately, be prepared to expand your rolodex and contact list for an entirely new set of people and professions tailored to promote your efforts to launch, build, and growth your dream!