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Avoid the Most Deadly Mistake Most Business Owners Often Make
By Tatiana Velitchkov ' 2002
You're a business owner, and of course you'll do ANYTHING to
make your business succeed.
After all, you don't just believe your idea/product/service
will work -- you also know you're the ONLY PERSON in the
world who can make it work, because you're simply PASSIONATE
about it.
But sometimes -- sometimes -- this business owner's passion
and conviction turn out to be the very same things that can
bring about failure.
All because of a common mistake that too many
well-intentioned business owners often make...
What IS This Mistake'
....And how do you avoid it'
Before we get to these questions, let me ask you to think
about a few people first:
Dentists. Doctors. Teachers. Parents.
What do these people have in common' What do you remember
most about them when you were a child'
Most likely you started out hating these people, because
they always seemed to be making you do things you didn't
like. Horrible stuff like root canals, flu shots, research
papers, and eating leafy green vegetables.
But as you grew older you probably looked back on your
relationship with them, and you realized you had more
reason to love them than anyone else. Because during those
times when they told you those horrible things were "for
your own good" -- they were actually telling the truth!
Now, we think we're all grown up and we know all about that.
But there is ONE IMPORTANT LESSON that we mature business
owners can learn from this juvenile mistake:
No matter how old you get, you still can't always recognize
the things you REALLY NEED.
My Head Hurts... I Should Buy A Car!
This is a hard truth, and we all need to learn it.
Although we like to think we're in total control of every
aspect of ourselves & our business, there WILL be times when
it's best to consult the experts.
Let's take "marketing," for instance.
Marketing gurus have always advised you to put yourself in
the mindset of your customer. And at first glance, this
seems too easy. After all, no one knows your product better
than you.
But then you watch your marketing efforts flop over & over
again, and you start blaming the ezine & website owners
(where you place your ads) or your ad distributors (for not
doing their jobs).
You overlook the part where you probably made your first
mistake: When you failed to REALLY put yourself in your
client's shoes.
And it's not really surprising, or anything to be ashamed
of. Simply because you are NOT your client.
You're the business owner, the product developer, the
service provider. You know too much, have gone too far,
and it's really hard for you to teach the concept of a
simple star to a first grader when your mind is already
filled with relativity and nuclear propulsion.
So what DO you do to succeed' How DO you reach the
imagination of a "first grader," when you're already a
Doctorate Degree holder'
Simple: You ask for the help of a first grade teacher!
Ask The Experts, And DO What They Say!
Again this sounds so simple, but many floundering businesses
today prove it is not.
Branding expert Rob Frankel even laments that there are 2
kinds of business owners that are beyond anyone's help:
- The first kind believes in his own style of
marketing so much, he doesn't think he'll ever
need the advice of a marketing specialist.
- The second kind acknowledges his need for a
marketing specialist, but after spending time
& money to engage the services of one, he lets
office politics, pride, or his own preconceived
notions take over... in the end simply dismissing
the specialist's suggestions.
(Of course there's the third kind -- the business owner who
brings in the specialist and actually acts on his
suggestions -- but these types are too few to mention, as
evidenced by the too-few outstanding brands on the Internet
today.)
But Maybe You're The Fourth Type...
That is, you KNOW you need a specialist for many of your
important business functions, but you just can't afford
them right now. What can you do in the meantime'
You can do as I do, and try these 3 simple steps:
ASK!
Sooner or later you'll be needing services outside of your
expertise. And once you accept these services, you'll be
opening yourself up to new opportunities!
For instance, you can maximize your interaction with your
service providers by making them your sort-of consultants
as well. They're bound to be authorities in their field,
after all, and you're already in a business relationship
together.
Ask them questions (no matter how stupid they sound), and
seek their guidance (no matter how stupid you'll seem to
look).
As long as you make it clear that you just want help in
deciding what's best for you, and as long as they're sincere
about helping their clients (like you!) succeed, then they
shouldn't mind your requests.
Truth is, I personally WISH that more clients would ask more
questions about the packages I offer at Guaranteed-Hits.Com.
Although I already give them easy-to-choose-from packages
on my site, I could help clients so much more if they would
just ASK me questions. If they told me EXACTLY what they
needed, then I could more easily SOLVE all the non-traffic
problems they have.
After all, the guaranteed hits service may have a price --
but consultation with me is always FREE.
(And now that you know that, remember to ask me your
questions via email at TatianaV@chello.nl)
=)
Next...
LISTEN!
Remember: there will always be times when the advice you
hear won't SEEM like such good advice at all (like root
canals and broccoli soup).
But if they truly come from the experts (and will ideally
be supported by others in the field) then the best thing
you can do is to believe them and TRY.
LEARN!
Finally, keep in mind that all of life (and all of business)
is a learning process.
Everyday we keep trying things, and we observe whether they
create positive or negative effects.
Then we either do them again (if the effect was positive) or
change strategies (if the effect was negative).
Either way, we always need to re-asses where we are at each
point in our lives, and then take the necessary steps to
move forward.
Success and failure, after all, are not definitions for this
person or that. They are simply places we all visit from
time to time, giving us the endless choice of where we
really want to stay.
P.S.
"But wait a minute!" you say, "You haven't told me the
biggest-mistake-I'm-supposed-to-avoid yet!"
Well actually, I already HAVE.
The mistake is "not asking." Because not asking means "not
listening," and not listening means "not learning" -- and
ultimately never finding out what's best for you and your
business.
I hope you listened and learned from that.
And by the way, thank you for asking. =)
' Tatiana Velitchkov
About the Author Tatiana is the publisher of: www.TheFortunesEzine.com,
the FortunesEzineWeekly at www.TakeYourFortune.com,
and owner of the traffic-solution slam advertising
sites www.Guaranteed-Hits.com and www.Guaranteed-Hits.net
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