Being authentic. It’s become a buzzword in business circles. I have always been who I am. What you see is what you get. Being authentic is nothing new to me, nor in my business. You can grow your business by being authentic, but it needs to be honest as well as authentic. If you’re sharing a story, just to share a story or you’re trying to fit in because you’re now sharing a story — you’re not being authentic.
Why do people try to fit in rather than be themselves and be authentic, even if it means standing out?
We want to be accepted. We don’t want to be shunned for being “different.” Society pressures people to believe that conforming is the way to go.
If everyone thought the same way would we have seen the advances in technology and science that we have? Probably not. There might not be any significant differences or any people who stand out because they were afraid of being called “different.” It is those people who stand alone and stand up for their ideas and ideals that open our minds to possibilities!
Being authentic and unique is a personal goal of mine. Am I an introvert? Yes. Do I suffer from ADD — yes. I thrive on research and devour data. I spend a lot of time in introspection and it is then that I come up with my best ideas. I am empathetic to the emotions of others and that makes it uncomfortable for me to be in large group settings.
Grow Your Business By Being Authentic
I know myself well enough to be authentic while still being able to function and grow many thriving businesses. I speak at conferences many times a year and am out of my element, but I have enough information and knowledge to share and am my authentic self while doing so that my stage fright is negligible.
After I’ve been on stage or surrounded by people, I get away and hike through the mountains, I go sailing, I walk in the desert.
Being authentic means you’re authentic in business and in life.
If you’re like most of us, you grabbed your online name for social media sites, added a bio, set it then forgot it, right? When did you set up your bios? Has it been more than a few years? Have you changed since then? Have the goods and services you offer changed? Have you earned new certifications? Are your online bios current? If you’re not sure, check them out today.
Add to that, when did you last update your professional photograph? Did you set up your accounts with a selfie you’d taken? If that’s still the case or if you still have the “egg” for your profile pic, now is the time to get some professional headshots taken. This is an investment in yourself that just might pay off.
Are Your Online Bios Current?
Add to your to-do list this week: check and update online professional bios. Check all of the sites in which you have a presence. Make certain that all of the bios have the same information. You don’t necessarily need to have them all be the same word-for-word, but you don’t want to leave off a vital piece of information.
Here are the reasons to update your bios today!
Readers want the most important information and they want it quickly. Put, what you believe is the most important information, at the beginning of your bios. Use keywords and short, punchy text.
Look at your bios with a critical eye. If a potential client saw that, what would his or her first impression be? Remember, this could be the first impression someone has of you — make it stellar.
Don’t be coy or use clever titles on your profiles. You want to let a potential client know exactly what you do, you don’t want them to guess whether you’re a fit for a project they have.
Once you’ve updated your online profiles. Ask a trusted client or two to give it a look over and see if they feel it accurately represents you and the services and goods you provide.
For some individuals, the idea that they are an entrepreneur is something they always knew. For others, they wonder if they simply don’t want to work with a boss and wonder if that makes them an entrepreneur or simply someone who can’t work with others. We have come up with 7 signs you might be an entrepreneur. There are many others, but these will help you determine whether you’re ready to ditch the 9-5 and own your own business.
7 Signs You Might Be An Entrepreneur
I knew from an early age that I was going to be an entrepreneur. Those children who run a lemonade stand in the front yard will typically grow up to run their own businesses. The entrepreneurial gene hits some folks early. For other people, dissatisfaction with a job or a downsizing leads them to entrepreneurship.
No matter your reasons, if you’re still struggling with whether you’re an entrepreneur, here is a fun list.
Your family has run its own business. When this happens children are either drawn to running a business or they’ve seen how much work it is and will run the other say and gather a paycheck.
You’ve got confidence to spare. Being an entrepreneur is not for the meek. When you strike out on your own, you need to be able to sell yourself, sell your products and services and build community. Being an entrepreneur is not easy if you’re a shrinking flower.
Passion is your middle name. Entrepreneurs need to be passionate about their self-employment and the product and/or service they produce.
You want to work in your fuzzy slippers and the only traffic jam you want to deal with is from family and pets!
You have a competitive nature. If you look at something and think, “I could do that better or faster!” you might be an entrepreneur.
You’re not afraid of hard work. As an entrepreneur, you don’t earn money unless you produce. It is much easier to work 9-5 and pick up the paycheck on Friday — regardless of how much work you did.
You see opportunities everywhere. Where others see a problem, you see a challenge and a problem to be solved. You don’t even think about all of the opportunities — they are just there!
Are you an entrepreneur? Are you constantly seeking opportunities? Do you want to be an entrepreneur, but don’t know where to start? We can help! Leave us a comment or contact Rex.
Business owners probably lose more sleep worrying about money than the average person. Where is your money going? It’s a question that an entrepreneur needs to be able to answer with clarity. Knowing where your money is going will also help you sleep at night and will help you realize whether you need to make changes, where and how quickly.
Businss owners need to understand income and expenses. You may not need to do all of your own bookkeeping, but you do need to know your profit margins and you need to know the bottom line on income and expenses. You should never be clueless as to how well — or how poorly — your business is doing.
Where Is Your Money Going?
You need to be fiscally knowledgeable. Ask your bookkeeper or accountant to explain your business finances to you and understand it — even if only on a surface level.
Here are items you need to know inside out to be a successful entrepreneur.
Who is responsible for your finances? Have you spoken with your bookkeeper or accountant recently? If not, you should make a plan to do that as soon as possible. You need to know who has his or her hands in your bank accounts, what is going on, who is being paid, who is paying you and whether you’re profitable.
Do you have a financial cushion? If you suffered an income shortfall, could you bounce back? Do you have the financial resiliency necessary to continue forward in a difficult month or two? Do you have a financial advisor who will alert you if you need to course correct in the event of a financial crisis? How will you keep the lights on?
Spend time monthly reflecting on the previous month’s income and expenses. What is your cash flow? Do you need to drop prices or increase prices to keep up with increases in costs from your vendors? Is your budget too tight for comfort? If one bad month will lead to your business’s demise, you need to make some changes as soon as possible. Your budget is a living, breathing entity into which you need to have clear insight.
Bottom line: You are responsible for your business and its success and its income and expenses. This means you need to know what is going on. Don’t shut your eyes to your financial responsibilities.
Have you ever imagined how great it would be to run your business with someone? Or to kick off a new business endeavor with someone so you don’t have to go it alone? That might not be a bad option, but how to have a successful business collaboration is something you need to put a lot of up front thought into before you sign on the dotted line with a new business partner.
Two brains are better than one, right? Four hands will make the work move along more quickly and smoothly, right? Maybe. Maybe not. Choosing a business partner with whom to work is as important as choosing your life partner. If you’re in business with someone they can make or break the business and they can make or break your psyche.
How To Have A Successful Business Collaboration
Get it in writing. What should you get in writing? Everything. From who will do what tasks. To who will answer the phone, take the mail, dump the garbage cans and perform maintenance and upkeep on computer and technology, who can spend what money and when? The items you will want to get in writing may be obvious, but they may arise during the course of a phone call, or a day int he office together, on a business trip or at a networking event. Toss out any and all items you think will go into running the business together, write it down and decide who will do what.
How will you communicate? Text? Phone? Email? Instant chat or a messenger app? Video chat? How often will you communicate? About what will you communicate when you’re talking so you make the best use of your time. When wlll you talk and how often do you need to be available? Will you talk on the weekends or are the weekends off limits and kept for family time?
How will you measure success? You need to measure success in how well you’re collaborating and how well the business is doing financially.
Addressing disagreements. If there is something bothering you, can you talk with your business partner or do you walk on eggshells not wanting to “rock the boat”? If you’re walking on egg shells, get out now. Better yet, don’t go into business with this person. You need to have a way to bring issues to the table and work through them together — if you can’t the partnership will not work and neither will the business.
Start out slowly. Make all decisions together until you determine who works best in which situation and who wants to tackle certain issues. There are many successful partnerships, but they all started slowly and with the partnership strategy in writing.
It is still pretty much a fact of life that female entrepreneurs who are also moms do take on more family-centric roles, especially when they work from home. How female entrepreneurs can thrive in biz and life is something we talk with our coaching clients about. It is easy for any work from home entrepreneur to be drawn into non business growing activities like mowing the lawn, doing the laundry, running the children to activities, cooking dinner… you get the idea.
Juggling motherhood (and fatherhood) and a business while working from home can be challenging. We have some tips for helping entrepreneurs thrive in business and in life because what is the sense of “having it all” if you can’t enjoy it all?
How Female Entrepreneurs Can Thrive In Biz And Life
What are you committed to doing for your business? Focus on the commitments you’ve made and the commitments you have to fulfill. Don’t focus on motivating yourself to fulfill those commitments — motivation can be fleeting. You need to focus on your long term goals and how you will meet them. If you’re not motivated, you may not thrive as an entrepreneur. Your commitment will drive your motivation.
Are you keeping up on your personal and professional development? It is easy to work from home and lose touch with the outside world and even current trends in your niche. You need to focus on your personal and your professional development and your business results will follow. Schedule time for personal and professional development.
“I just can’t do it/have it all.” If you think that you will live that. Don’t hold onto limiting beliefs. If you want to have it all and you plan to have it all and you ask for help, you just might be able to have it all.
Be creative. You may need to have more flexibility with time and resources when you’re working from home. Be creative and learn to go with the flow. Your home office may not be perfect or have a room with a view, but believe you will get there eventually and be creative with your current space.
Don’t give into distractions. If there is someone there with the kids, close your office door. Let the children know that you’re working and cannot be disturbed. If the kids are at school, but the floor needs to be mopped or the lawn mowed, close the door or pull the blinds. Don’t be distracted by chores during your working hours. If you simply can’t let it go, give into your distractions on your lunch hour.
Have fun. If you’re not having fun as an entrepreneur, why are you doing it? Sure, there are times when being a business owner simply is not a great time, but those bad times will pass. Remember why you’re doing what you’re doing and the fun may just flow back into your day.
Don’t forget to practice self care. You cannot run your business and care for your family and give no thought to yourself and your self care. If you get ill or burned out, who will run your business and your life? The time you take to go to the gym, walk the dogs, lift weights or run on the treadmill is time well spent!
What are your limiting beliefs? What is holding you back in your entrepreneurial endeavors?
