Here’s the deal. There’s no future in giving up. Setbacks are temporary. Defeat too. Giving up is what makes it permanent.
I’ve briefly mentioned this before and think it’s worth repeating, dear solopreneur: Consistency and persistence are important qualities to have. We’re all born with these and somehow along the line we lose our way.
Think you weren’t made that way? I beg to differ. You walk, right? Guess how you learned to do that? You kept trying till you were running. You tie your shoes too? You’ve probably had a failure or two along the way and still managed to handle the disappointment, get back on the horse, right? Of course! Those skills weren’t learned overnight. However, you kept trying until you mastered them.
It’s a lot like a hammer and a nail. One strike usually doesn’t drive the nail all the way home.
It’s easy to give up in your business. Entrepreneurs tend to look for that one magic bullet to send their businesses skyrocketing beyond the stratosphere. Of course we’d all like a shortcut and it’s unlike me to be a buzz kill, so here goes —- there is no magic bullet or one program or consultant or coach that will magically fix it all. Growing a business is a series of stepping stones. It’s a marathon. Not a sprint.
Running a business is tough, but so are you. Struggle can be a sign to not stop but keep going.
Let’s look at it on a bigger scale: Pepsi and Nike are huge companies. Yes they still work on their marketing strategy to keep bringing in new business every single day. I don’t know their exact marketing formula. What I do know is they’re active on social media and they have active blogs. Why? Because even as successful as they are, they know that they have to keep doing it to stay in the game.
On a smaller scale, there’s you, my savvy friend. I’m not asking you to reinvent the wheel here. I’m just suggesting you keep on keeping on. You can’t stop marketing when you get a few clients. Take a lesson from the big guys. Keep doing it. Forever. Even when you don’t think it’s making a difference.
Let me be very clear. Do not do things that don’t work. However, no effort at all is 100 percent guaranteed to get you nowhere. While it’s tempting, giving up because you don’t see immediate results* isn’t a winning strategy. Instead, if you’re not getting results, step back and take a look at what’s working and what’s not. Are you marketing to the right people? Is your message original and compelling? Are you marketing at the right times? You be surprised – if your intended audience is not home on a Monday but that’s when you’re sending your message, you’re probably not going to get very far. Sometimes the answer is really that simple, and it’s much easier for someone on the outside looking in to see.
That’s where your handy virtual assistant comes in. Your assistant can look at your business with fresh eyes and from a different vantage point. She can help you figure out what works and what doesn’t and where to pivot. The two of you can come up with a plan to consistently get your message out there, just like the “big guys” do. Whatever you do, don’t give up! If it is your dream, it matters.
Thanks for reading.
Until next time,
Angie
* A shout-out and thank you to technology and the expectancy of instant gratification.
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