Anyone who has ventured into becoming a business owner has most likely run into a rough spot in their time. For some it might be in the form of lost revenue, canceled clients or even replacing team members.
Others may have experienced just the lack of momentum from the moment they started their business. These types of situations can all be very draining to your mental state as well as your wallet.
If this sounds like something you are going through, you are not alone. Even the most successful entrepreneur can have moments where they want to throw in the towel due to frustrating situations.
We all have been through a few rounds of these types of scenarios, but I’m here to give you my thoughts on how to deal with them. It’s a three step process.
Make Changes
Once you have determined that something is broken or needs fixed, immediately make a change. Do not wait on this step. Fix whatever is not working as fast as you can.
All fixes will not work immediately. You might need to split test a few options until you find something that works. Regardless, work on changes because this is what will help you to gain momentum.
Stack Your Wins
When you are at your wits end with a situation, you need to have some sense of progress. It most likely will not come in the form of large improvements all at once. Quite honestly, it will probably come with small incremental improvements.
When coaching others, I like to refer to these small incremental improvements as Stacking the WIns. Every day you need to look at the changes you have made and find some sort of positive movement. Positive movement = Wins.
A win can be something as simple as improved progress on a campaign you have been working on or a testimonial from a client. Maybe your sales team closed another deal. This for sure is a win.
Whatever your wins are, be big or small, you need to consistently stack them so you can continue to push through the rough spots. Stacked wins will ease your mind and create the clarity you need to think clearly on other decisions.
Never Quit
Finally, never ever quit.
I know it’s going to be hard to do this in some situations, but you have to convince yourself to give it one more try. When you do so, you will give yourself the opportunity to fix the issue you’re dealing with. If you quit trying to stack your wins, you have already lost.
I don’t know about you, but I don’t like to lose. I never want to be the guy that is asked, “Didn’t you own that business that did ____” and have to say yes, but I quit.
This is the absolute worst thing you can do. I can assure you that there are people out there that are in far worse of a situation than you are in. At times, I thought I was at the lowest point a person could be in while building a business, but then I would hear an inspirational story of how somebody was so in debt that they needed to come up with as much cash in 30 days as I would make in a year. That was all I needed to hear to not quit.
Look for inspirational stories of how other entrepreneurs overcame incredible hurdles to dig themselves out of a hole. I guarantee this will help you to get back to work in solving your problem.
When I was writing this article I was thinking of a very specific time when I was struggling. That is a story for another time, but here is my point. When you are having a tough time, focus on the problem you are experiencing and hack away at solving it. When you do, you will gain confidence that will help you in other situations down the road. You will be thankful you stuck with it until you succeeded!