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Is Your New Business Idea Sustainable?

How do you know if your new business idea is good enough to sustain itself?

In a nutshell, all the business training out there will suggest you do the research.

I’m sure you know that. It’s business 101.

So I won’t make this another post about ideal customer avatars and all of that.

If you want my take on this stuff, here’s a post about it.

But this post IS about ensuring your new business idea is sustainable.

Here's How

For clarity, we don’t REALLY know how great our new business is until AFTER the early adopters jump on board.And AFTER we’ve picked through the low hanging fruit.

If you’re anything like me, you get excited when people start giving you money for the new product, or business venture you’ve created.

Unless you’re really great at going out into COLD traffic and converting people who have no idea who you are or what you sell…

…I’m guessing you’re first sales are from the other end of the spectrum.

The other end I’m talking about are the people who know, like and trust you.

And perhaps, you have a few people to buy from you because they’re GOOD friends and feel kinda guilty if they don’t.

Nothin’ wrong with that.

However, this is where I would get messed up. Because I would think my new business idea is a success already from those sales.

Because I’ve “validated” the market, right?

Wrong.

I haven’t REALLY validated anything - especially my new business idea

All I did was prove I could sell my thing-a-ma-jig to people without really trying because they know and like me.

Really, how hard is it to get your aunt Wilma to buy something from your new business? 🙂

The REAL TRUTH about our new business idea is when we get past those first sales and put it in front of cold traffic.

This means you’re offering it to people who don’t necessarily know you.

And they certainly don’t know how you can help them (yet).

So this gives you the ultimate opportunity to TEST whether or not you have a good offer that is sustainable.

Because when strangers “vote” with their wallet, you’ve got something.

Can you see the difference?

Making a quick decision about the validity of your new business idea based on the early adopters and “lovers” of your business is probably not a great idea.

I’ve made this mistake many times in my businesses and I see coaching clients do this all the time too.

It’s human nature.

The advice I give them is always “hold on…we haven’t been through the second round of validation yet.”

So take your new business idea, service, or product and run it through AT LEAST both of these validation filters to see if it’s sustainable or not.

Hope this helps!!!

If it did, or even if you have questions or your own insight on this, I'd love to hear from you below!!!

Spark Entrepreneurship

[TEL Episode 0021] Standing on the Shoulders of Giants

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~begin transcript~

Another book arrived for my library today.

It’s Tim Ferriss’s Tools of Titans.

The reason I’m telling you this is because Tim has focused on ONE thing throughout his life, that’s made him pretty successful.

And I’ve done the same thing – not that I’m comparing my success to HIS – LOL.

Point is, you can focus on this ONE thing too.

Here it is:

Stand on the shoulders of giants.

It means more than likely, the path has already been paved to where you want to go.

You just have to follow it.

ALL of my life, I’ve done this.

When I’ve FAILED the most, it’s when I ignore the giants and sway from the path.

If you know anything about me, I’m an implementer. I’m not afraid to “fail.”

As long as I’m following the path laid before me, I know I’ll get to my destination.

Actually, “know” is a strong word. That’s what EVERYONE wants.

They want the “guarantee.”

So for me, it’s really about BELIEVING I’ll get there. And that’s key.

Because even though you’re following the “giants”, it doesn’t mean everything will be perfect all the time.

We HAVE to “fail.”

We NEED to experience hardship and adversity.

The universe TESTS us.

Because that’s the ONLY thing that will prove we’re committed.

Because I’ll tell you, from years of experience, there are MORE people interested in success than there are people who care committed to it.

I see it EVERY week.

Here’s the difference:

A committed person will do what it takes. Period.

That means they’re willing to do uncomfortable stuff…the stuff we don’t normally do.

When you’re interested, if it “fits” into your lifestyle, your calendar, whatever, you’ll give it a shot.

And whenever things get difficult, you move on to something else.

Like I said, I meet people like this every week.

But it’s not me.

And I’m hoping it’s not you either.

Because the whole point is to follow the leaders.

I’ve had many coaches in my life, and to this day I STILL pay coaches.

I constantly buy books and READ ‘EM (novel idea).

My hard drive is FILLED with home study programs and courses…and I LISTEN AND WATCH THEM. (go figure)

And here’s the really interesting part:

I go USE all that stuff!

I try it, I experiment, make mistakes, adjust, try again.

I go ask those giants if they can help me at the point I’m at…because they’ve been there. (OK, sometimes I can’t get through to Tony Robbins or Tim Ferris…LOL)

You get my drift right?

What Tim has done is made his life easier because he’s following others successes and avoiding their mistakes as humanly possible.

You can do the same thing.

It just takes commitment.

~end transcript~

Spark Entrepreneurship

[Podcast Episode 0021] Preparing for the Storm

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Here's the transcript from episode 0021 of the “Entrepreneur Life”

~ begin transcript~

Back once again for some inspiring business strategies and mindsets for you after a long hiatus…

In fact, this new episode was inspired by a new listener of mine April. Because she told me how she was listening to the earlier episodes and they were helping her – and, I realized that we never know who we are inspiring and when.

So, here I am – with today’s podcast episode called Prepare for the Storm

If there’s one thing I’m certain of in business, it’s this: there’s ANOTHER storm coming.

The storm is: pressure — fear — anxiety — adversity — and sometimes misfortune.

I’m also certain of another thing: that you and I can weather the storm with a unique mindset, in addition to the fundamentals of strategic business strategies.

Why do so many people say “mindset”, and what does it mean?

First off, how many people have you come across that discount the entire “positive thinking” culture because their lives just simply get worse?

Stick with me for a few minutes because what I’m going to teach you here are a few techniques I’ve learned over my several years with top entrepreneurs.

I’m referring to positive pressure because we, as entrepreneurs, are going to be faced with a LOT more pressure and stress than most others face in their daily lives.

We both know it.

What’s important for you to realize, right here, right now, is that the pressure and stress will NEVER stop.

You will ALWAYS be faced with some sort of pressure and be hit with some misfortune in your business…and in your life.

The MOST important thing is to:

• Accept that it’s going to happen, and

• decide how you’ll deal with it.

As a coach helping others build their lives and their business, I have noticed that MOST people run and hide when adversity strikes.

And adversity comes in many forms and is dealt with in many ways and described in more ways than one:

Some label it a dip, a low point, whatever.

However, the most successful people I know have GROWN by stepping into and accepting the positive pressure they’re faced with.

For me, it started with watching my father — and although it didn’t make sense to me when I was 12 years old, it does now.

As I continue to observe all the people I respect and model, they all have that same characteristic: being able to step into and accept positive pressure.

As Bill Phillips says, “…our character will never be fully tested until things are not going our way. Those who have the courage to succeed in spite of adversity become an inspiration.”

I believe they should be posted on everyone's wall.

Pay attention to the second part of the quote, “Those who have the courage to succeed in spite of adversity become an inspiration” which is really important.

Imagine being the inspiration to others, to your family, your colleagues, customers, and so on.

Once you tap into the inner belief of why you’re in business in the first place, you'll discover that you'll be able to overcome all adversity.

I’ve seen too many entrepreneurs give up on their dreams even though they know full well, DEEP down inside what they should do – but refuse to stick with it because things get too hard.

In other words, they don’t live up to the words and promises they tell themselves.

If you do that often enough, Bill also says, “…your self-trust — your confidence — will fade away.” What happens as a result is we self-doubt, we become anxious and angry.

How would you rather live life?

Angry or happy?

Now you know what to do.

~ end transcript~

[thrive_text_block color=”note” headline=”If you liked this episode, you'll love this one…”] The Cost of Entrepreneurship[/thrive_text_block]

Spark Entrepreneurship

Why 2017 New Year is Your Year!

My friend,

Here we are.

2017 New Year.

All I ask of you is this:

Be aware that your life will have UPs this year.

Things will turn around for you.

You will have many moments of pure joy and optimism.

You'll feel unstoppable.

And you'll also hit the wall.

Because that's what life brings. UPs and DOWNS.

Deal with it.

2016 (as many call it the worst ever) was just another year of those ups and downs.

Want me to prove it?

Go back and read your own posts from 2015 leading into 16.

Compare it to the ones leading into this 2017 New Year.

Perhaps 2016 was a bit tougher on you than the person beside you…I get it.

But they've had their fair share also.

We ALL have shit to deal with – EVERY year.

So here's the deal for your 2017 New Year and beyond

If you focus on the negative, the stuff you don't want, you'll just move closer towards that.

Do you think a pilot focuses on the ground when she's flying? Do you think she constantly asks herself “what if the engines shut down and we crash?”

No.

She's focused on where she has to go. When she hits turbulence, she adjusts the flight, the path, and deals with it.

Because there's too many people depending on her.d

Just like you.

Think about how many depend on you, and what you're doing all of this for.

When you look ahead to your blank canvas, look at ways of dealing with your own turbulence.

Because that's what's going to happen.

I'm not a mentalist, or have a super power to predict the future.

But I'm dang sure about this because it happens every year.

Look, I truly believe that MOST of your 2017 New Year is going to kick ass.

But some of it will suck. That's what makes you human. It keeps you going. It builds your character.

It makes you who you are.

You're a fighter. A winner. You know that right?

Otherwise you wouldn't be reading this and you probably wouldn't be a part of my tribe.

You're not like the people who are the same every year, no matter what.

The ones who never adjust or face turbulence in a winning way.

They have a “woe is me” attitude.

Two years ago, my 50th was supposed to be MY year.

For so many reasons.

Instead, it kicked my ass.

I COULD have said “see? Nothing ever works out for me”

But two years later (in fact even 1 year later) everything changed for me. BECAUSE of that ass kicking.

Perspective.

At the end of the day, you DO have the power to decide if 2016 was a “good” year or not.

Most of all, you'll have the same power to decide how 2017 is rolling out for you.

It's all perspective.

Happy New Year my friend.

You've got this.

BTW…if you want a cool way to be more productive and stay on track this year, here's a cool article I wrote: How to Have a Better New Year with ONE Exercise

Hey, did you like this? Didn't like it? Let's start a conversation below!!!

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How to have a better New Year with ONE exercise

If you want to know how to have a better new year, I want to share the ONE exercise I use all the time.

I’ll also throw in a “BONUS” you can use to prioritize your day.

But we’ll get to that later.

Truth is, this ONE exercise has 4-simple questions. And they work ALL year.

It just happens this post is on the last day of the year. So it’s camouflaged as a “resolution” post.

But it’s not.

Because I don’t believe in resolutions.

We bail on them. Well, MOST of us do anyway.

In my mind, if you have to wait for the turn of the calendar, the clock, the month or whatever other timeline you choose to make a change in your life…

You ain’t ready my friend.

So what I’m about to share with you is a simple 4 step question exercise that I totally stole from Brendon Burchard.

I use it with my coaching clients from the moment we start working together.

It doesn’t matter if it’s January or July.

Here it is.

1. What do I need to START doing
2. What do I need to STOP doing
3. What do I need to do MORE of?
4. What do I need to do LESS of?

Simple right?

That’s how to have a better new year. Because simplicity works.

– If you want to stop smoking so you can live longer and see your children grow up.
– If you want to start working out so you can lose that belly fat and avoid a heart attack.
– If you want to do more advertising so you can get more customers, and make more money so you can invest in other assets to build a future nest egg or take an extra vacation
– If you want to work less hours so you can spend more quality time with your family

The list goes on and on.

We ALREADY KNOW how to answer those questions. So give it a shot and see what comes to mind.

Don't spend a day on this. In fact, you should be able to complete this in less than 30 minutes. Even that's too long.

Because whatever you can come up with in 2 days, you can come up with in 2 minutes.

Whatever comes immediately to mind is what really counts.

Now let’s drill this down to a daily priority so you have a better new year

Gary Keller says it best in The ONE Thing

Ask yourself, every day, “What is the ONE thing I can do such that by doing it everything else will be easier or unnecessary?”

The book is fantastic if you want to read it – but my job is to take away all the overwhelm.

So it basically boils down to knowing what you want (read: the first 4 questions) and then asking Gary’s question every day.

For example. If you’re stopping smoking, then your ONE thing today might be “throw away all your cigarettes.”

Tomorrow it could be “take a 5 minute walk around the block.”

And for the record, that ONE thing (in this example of walking around the block) could be repeated. Because it IS helping you make things better, isn’t it?

Perhaps next week that ONE thing amplifies to 2-5 minute walks around the block.

I’m sure you get where this is going.

My point is, you can begin to change your life for the better at ANY moment you choose just by asking those 4 questions – and then using the ONE thing question every day!

Here's to a better New Year!

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