prosperity Archives | Solopreneur Solutions

Attacked by Falcons | Ready for Prosperity?

Donna Amos — Sat, 06 Dec 2014 19:35:44 +0000

Okay so I was not really attacked by falcons, but Thanksgiving evening after a full day I developed the stomach flu and it put me out of commission for 4 days and 2 more days to recover. I think I may have felt a little bit how the Owl swimming in Lake Michigan after he was attacked by two Falcons must have felt. But it reminded me how resilent solopreneurs must be, just like the Owl…Resilent and determined. Read the entire story. To survive as a successful solopreneurs takes the ability to go through things that resemble being beat up by two Falcons, and come out on the other side ready to fight again for what we really want. Never deterred!
Photo by Steve Spitzer

Are you ready for prosperity in 2015?

How to Start or Re-energize a Profitable Business

Making a decision to create a successful business is not something to take lightly. Your decision should not be spurred by idle curiosity or a passing interest. You must be committed to it. If you are simply interested, you will do what is easy; when you are fully committed, you will do whatever it takes. You absolutely must decide to create a successful business. I believe your potential to achieve whatever you want is unlimited. You set goals with your conscious mind but you achieve them with your subconscious mind, that is, that part of yourself that exists below the surface of your waking life. (For more information about this invigorating concept, I highly recommend the timeless Napoleon Hill classic Think and Grow Rich.)
One of the biggest obstacles a solopreneur faces is whether she truly believes she can achieve her goals. In other words, if your belief (at the subconscious level) is not just as strong as your decision and passion, you will never reach your goals. Use tools such as affirmations, future letters, vision statements, and dream boards to send the right messages to your subconscious mind and begin to change your non-supporting habits.
The Law of Attraction illustrates how to plant your seeds and allow them to germinate. However, your work is not complete; you must then embrace the Law of Action. Sitting and waiting for your dreams to fall into your lap can result in a trip to the poor house. Using a gardening metaphor, once you plant the seeds, you then have to nurture the plants with water, sunlight, fertilizer, and regular weeding. It’s the same with your business. You must take action. It does not have to be perfect action; you will adjust as you get feedback. Just as plants will wither and die without the proper conditions, without action, you will not move forward.

Two Obstacles to Acknowledge and Act On

#1 Obstacle is not having a big enough WHY
You may be starting a new business for several reasons: financial reasons, for freedom, to be your own boss, to provide a service. Whatever, your reason you must be passionate about the business you are entering. That passion will help you to move forward when you run into challenges and think about giving up.
Without a big WHY it is difficult to continue to overcome those challenges, and don’t think you won’t have them; it is a part of business. So check your WHY and make certain it is strong enough to carry you through to success.
#2 Obstacle is the Fear of Selling
The second biggest obstacle I have seen put business owners out of business is the fear of selling. You started your business to provide and excellent service or product that you are excellent at providing. But don’t believe in the notion that “if you build it they will come”, it is not going to happen.
You are in business to make a profit and that is the bottom-line. This means that you must learn how to love sales and marketing or hire someone who can perform these tasks.
You can recognize that you are falling into the staying busy trap confusing effort with results if you are constantly doing activities that you enjoy but they are not necessarily bring in money.
You must believe that you are providing something of value and you must share it to help your potential customers/clients.
Become an excellent story teller around your service or product. Good stories engage your prospects and help turn them into buyers. I recommend an excellent book Integrity Selling by Ron Willingham. It can help you discover how to sell in a way that is safe for both you and your prospects.
The take away here is to make a decision to succeed, believe you can achieve success and take the right actions to turn your dreams into reality.

As a holiday gift to all of my readers I have created a list of resources to assist with a profitable 2015.

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Top Three Mistakes for a Solopreneur Start-Up

Donna Amos — Tue, 24 Jun 2008 18:29:03 +0000

You have decided to hang your shingle out and start your own business. You are so excited, you ordered business cards and stationary, maybe even put up your first website. Then you placed your first ad on the internet or your local newspaper and you waited for your customers to beat down the door. And in a perfect world that is exactly what would happen. But we don’t live in a perfect world and if you continue to sit there and wait for your customers to show up, you will be out of business in no time. Set yourself up for success and don’t commit the three mistakes most new start ups do.
1. Failing to structure your day to keep you in action. And you are saying ,”I am starting this business so I can be in control of my time.” I am telling you that if you don’t start out working a full day and putting the structure in place you will never have a consistent income. What do I mean by structure? Schedule your day and create good habits early on. Most importantly you must have time everyday that you are prospecting for new business and in the beginning the more hours spent prospecting the more successful your business. Prospecting can look different for many businesses but for most it means creating opportunities for you to have a conversation with someone in your target market. If the thought of prospecting makes you ill, remember it is a vital part of a successful business and you may want to reconsider self employment.
2. Not putting systems in place. Systems for everything in your business. Especially your sales and marketing, but also customer service, follow-up and delivery of your service or product. It is impossible to measure how effective you are in a certain area of your business and tweak the system if you don’t have a system established. I know your thinking well it is just me and I know what to do. If you put a step by step system in place and document it, then you can measure the results and make adjustments in the step that is not generating the results you want. A system also prevents you from recreating everytime you must do something, which means you can save yourself time and energy.
3. Target market or not. I have watched many new business owners refuse to get really focused on the ideal target market. Their fear that they will miss some business by being too targeted has actually cost them tremendously. It is very difficult to create a great marketing message that attracts clients when your message is too broad. Would you like to be a very small fish in the ocean or a very big fish in a pond? Believe me you will attract must more business when you are clear about and focused on your target market.
Run your business like a business. Focus on prospecting often (what else do you have to do) to a very defined target market;. And always measure your results and make adjustments when warranted. Follow those simply rules and you will prosper.

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Create More "Yes" Moments in Your Life

Donna Amos — Mon, 04 Feb 2008 16:00:46 +0000

When was the last time something happened – you reacted, and then later when you were evaluating the situation you said to yourself “Why did I act that way?” or “I wish I had not said that”. We can develop new ways of responding instead of reacting to those daily occurrences that can make us all a little crazy.

When we become more aware of our automatic reactions, we can make choices and learn to respond instead of react.

Our beliefs will move us forward or hold us back. If you dream of a peaceful prosperous life, but you don’t believe it is possible then you will prove yourself right. Our belief system determines our reactions to every situation we encounter. Our beliefs determine our automatic response; that we may or may not be aware of. Becoming aware and then being able to push ourselves forward in spite of our beliefs, those are the moments that we grow beyond who we think we are. Those are what I like to call “Yes” moments.

Begin paying attention to the subconscious sabotages and self talk. Be willing to talk back by saying, “I hear you, thank you for sharing.” And then push beyond. It is possible we may never change our beliefs, so the best we can do is be aware and exercise some power over them.

How are you letting your beliefs stop you? You must trust yourself, your abilities and take action. Practice re-framing how you are looking at your circumstances; learn to ask different questions, not the same old ones that feed your automatic responses. What can you do now, today and tomorrow to create that “Yes”?

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