Working too hard? Been there. Done that!
When you first start to build your own coaching or consulting practice – no mater if it's offline or online – you find yourself responsible for every little detail of getting off the ground. It can be a huge investment of time. But at some point, you need to take a step back and work smarter instead of “only” working hard.
Granted, when you’re in the day-to-day grind, it’s hard to make smart decisions that will keep your business growing. But just take a moment to consider why you're putting in all this effort – like your family and loved ones, or creating more time freedom in your life – and then, maybe you'll see the value in reprioritizing a few things.
Here are a few ways to change things up for the better:
Track What’s Working
Start by taking a look at what’s working well for you. Put all the tracking and analytics in place to make sure you know where your customers come from and what parts of your business (or what products) are the most profitable.
Once you've got the data, map out where you want to take your business next.
• What strategies do you want to implement over the next six months to attract more clients?
• What new products do you want to launch (or is it finally time to launch that first one)?
• What is your audience looking for and how can you serve them even better?
Make a plan and figure out what needs to be done to implement it.
Remove The Bottleneck
Every business has bottlenecks – those spots in your process that are slowing you down. Maybe you've been stuck launching a digital product because you're not sure how to set up the shopping cart system; Or it could be the that you've not yet created cover graphics for your latest project because the new software is too hard to figure out; Or maybe you have a great idea for an ebook, but not enough quiet, focused time to get the writing done.
Somewhere in your process is a bottleneck that’s holding you back.
Your job as a business owner is to find it and then do whatever it takes to remove it. That may mean hiring some part time help. Or it could be outsourcing a few details to someone with better design or software skills. You get the idea.
Once you get past the bottleneck, you should see things moving along and profits increasing … until you encounter the next one, that is. Rinse and repeat, and keep your growth on track.
Build Your Team
One of the best ways to eliminate bottlenecks along the way and continue to make more money while working less is to put a good team in place. You can’t do it all on your own, and why should you? There are wonderful people out there with great skillsets that can help you serve your customers better.
Start small by outsourcing some tasks here and there. As you come across good people, and it makes financial sense, outsource more and more of what you’ve been doing to them. Before you know it, you’ll have your team in place, money coming in and are able to stop working so hard.
Get The Support You Need
Having the right set of tools to grow and knowing how to use them can be tremendously helpful in making you more efficient with your time (and money). So can the support of your peers. That's exactly what the Social Marketing Mastermind is all about – training and community to help you grow and prosper in the online elements of your business. And all it takes is a dollar and a dream to get started.
