Being in the military, and serving in Afghanistan, has taught me many things. A key lesson was the value of endurance, and in my role as an empowering life coach, that also means business endurance… the kinds of resilience you develop and can use to strengthen yourself and your business.
Find your endurance for your business
To find your endurance it is important to set goals and priorities while providing balance. If you own your business then you should already have it in your mind and be ready for the grueling tasks of long hours and mental endurance. According to Bloomberg, 8 out of 10 entrepreneurs who start businesses fail within the first 18 months. A whopping 80% crash and burn. There are also financial reasons and planning issues; however burnout is right at the top.
You have to own your business like your life and your battle buddies life depends on it, therefore you cannot fail. You will often be tired and discouraged — but that’s when you need to remember why you started your business in the first place.
Help build your business endurance with networking
The first couple of years will be the hardest therefore it’s up to you to ensure that you take the time to plan multiple marketing strategies, network, network, NETWORK to get your name out there and build your brand.
Make contact with people who are successful at owning their own business. Talk to the people that own ‘mom and pop stores’ that have been there for years. It may not be the exact business that you do but they can give you an idea of how the process worked for them and the challenges –plus they will enjoy sharing their story.
Every night I try to connect with at least 20 people at a minimum via various social media venues. I send out individual warm letters with my goals and mission statement because I know I may hear nothing or get 1,000 “No’s” but it only takes one “Yes” to get things started. Worst case scenario: you may find yourself stepping outside your box and expanding on ideas for your business.
Endurance: what the military can teach you
Endure having to always strive for goals
If you are building your own business, you will have to keep setting and trying to meet higher and higher goals. Be prepared for that – and for taking advantage of the occasional ‘plateau’ to draw breath and take stock.
If you work for a corporation, it is necessary to ensure that you understand your bosses’ intent and goals so that you can plan your days. You should always have at least two courses of action in place to offer your boss or that you use to make decisions. Once you understand your bosses’ intent, if family is your number one priority then it is up to you to ensure that your day is productive. Pack your lunch so that you are able to work without utilizing your entire lunch break or if you can go in earlier and if possible, get feedback throughout the day to make sure you are headed in the right direction for the project that you are working on so that everything you just worked on does not become wasted time. Communicate with your spouse or partner, kids included age appropriate, so that they understand what you are doing at work and they can provide you feedback of what their needs are.
Build business endurance so you don’t burn out
Endurance does not mean that you have to burn yourself out, it means that you set priorities, make a plan on how you are going to achieve those priorities and communicate at home and the workplace then stick to it. Something will always come up, but from my experience in the military, plan B is not always an option — you have to find multiple ways to make plan A work therefore you have to fight through all the mishaps and keep going.
If you can take away one thing, remember you are not alone in your struggles and you have already succeeded because you believe and care enough about your business or career to hang in there through the hardest moments without quitting. Life is short so you want to go as long and hard as you can. Time waits for no one and in the end at least you tried to fulfill your goals and dreams because some people leave here not even trying.
Let’s get it!!!!
