Are you suffering from “Entrepreneuritis”?
Today a client introduced me to a new term, “entrepreneuritis”. Since I hadn’t heard the term, I asked her what it was. She said it’s that syndrome that says “I can do it all myself; I want to do it all myself, I have to do it all myself. These are all my ideas, my way of doing things and no one else can do it as well. And I’m feeling overwhelmed because I need to grow my business but I’m so busy doing everything myself, I don’t have enough time to do the things that bring in business.”
Being curious, I decided to do some research myself. There seem to be varying definitions of entrepreneuritis. Robert Sher in his blog article, The Path between Entrepreneuritis and Myopia. says “Entrepreneuritis is where you can’t stop yourself from jumping on every new business idea that pops into your head. Having a clear definition of your business will aid you in steering the course between entrepreneuritis and myopia”. He also warns, “avoid being too rigid in your niche. If you’re not growing your business in some way you’re in trouble”.
The Blue Jeans Virtual Assistant in her blog article, Do You Have Entrepreneuritis? says, “As a small business owner I must learn how to do everything myself (spending countless hours learning it sometimes) and must grab on to each new idea that comes my way or through my inbox, learn it and move on to the next thing. As a result most likely I have a list of unfinished projects on paper, in an idea journal or on the computer.”
Donna Maria calls it Entrepreneur’s ADD and defines it as 1) too many ideas at one time, no execution of any; 2) can’t think what to do with an idea. In her article, 3-Step Cure for Entrepreneur’s ADD, she actually offers some tactics she used to cure herself.
I think all entrepreneurs occasionally have bouts with entrepreneuritis, even if they didn’t know what to call it. Of course, when it becomes chronic, it can become a problem and really hold back your business. Part of the argument I often hear is “I can’t afford to hire someone to do other tasks”. They don’t have the money to pay someone else now, so they just keep doing it themselves. Bottom line: you can’t grow your business until you can begin to hand off tasks. It’s like the chicken and the egg.
I remember the first time I hired someone to help with my e-mail communications. I didn’t really have the money to pay her, but I decided to make the investment in my business. I quickly learned how valuable it was to be able to hand off tasks that had taken me hours to do. Now I had more time to spend on what only I could do in the business.
For some alternatives to doing it all yourself, read my article, Delegation and Teamwork, for some ideas and examples of how to start letting go a little bit and giving yourself the solid support you need to grow. If you’re really serious about getting your business to the next level, don’t let entrepreneuritis keep you down.
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One of the great ways you can hand off tasks is by finding others with whom you can create a mutually beneficial alliance, joint venture or partnership. Learn how to put this to work in your business in the forthcoming Successful Partnership Workshop, which starts October 14th. In 4 weeks you will incorporate the principles of successful partnerships and have your growth-oriented partnership plan working.
Successful Partnerships: Are You Ready?
I had record-breaking attendance at last week’s, “Successful Partnerships Tele-class!” where I shared a ton of valuable information on “how to turn your business into a fast-track growth machine”.
The response to this call was amazing, so I know using partnerships for growth is a topic many people want to learn more about.
If you were interested but couldn’t be on the call, not to worry. Click here to listen to the tele-class.
At the end of the call I made a Special Offer to everyone on the call. I’m leading a brand new rich-in-content 4-week tele-series, “Six Strategies to Turn Your Business Into a Fast-Track Growth Machine!” starting in October to reinforce what you learned in the tele-class, go into more depth, AND to provide you the tools and guidance to help you structure a growth-oriented partnership.
The Special Offer for the 4-week tele-series is a Savings of $50 if you sign up by midnight, Wednesday, September 30th. Use discount code BIZPC50 to capture the savings when you register. After September 30th, it’s goes back to the regular fee of $197.
With the response I’ve received so far, I expect to fill this program very quickly. I don’t want you to miss out, so I invite you to take advantage of this limited time Special Offer now.
Follow this link for details and to sign-up.
I hope you’ll be joining me for the tele-series starting on October 14th.
Strategies to Prepare for Recovery
No matter our circumstances, we all have been affected by the deepest recession in our lifetime. This summer seems to be even tougher than usual for many small businesses.
Now is a great time to take a hard look at the realities that exist, get help where needed and rethink our business strategy in preparation for recovery.
Here are seven strategies that will help.
1. Open a dialog with those you know. Mutually beneficial relationships are now, and always have been, a key to success. Reconnect with former customers, former prospects, business colleagues and friends. Ask about their plans and their challenges. How have things changed for them and what do they need now?
2. Identify your personal value and offer to give that on the terms of your choosing. Incorporate your personal values into your business. Support programs you believe in. Join selected organizations and find a way to contribute your personal value.
3. Expand your network. Seek to connect with those who are either in your target market or do business within it. Be sure to have a follow-up plan for all new connections. Limit time on social media and networking activities to only those that produce results for you. The volume of information and interactions in online networking can be overwhelming, so be ruthless with sticking to your strategies and plans.
4. Consider alliances, joint ventures and partnerships with those already in your network. These are typically low cost, high return arrangements if structured to the benefit of all parties. Such business relationships can provide flexibility, new resources and stability in a sea of chaos. For more information on growing your business using partnerships review my recent webcast,
5. Make informed decisions and take calculated risks. Before making any decisions gather all pertinent information from your business, your market, your community and the economy in general. Take calculated risks based on all the pertinent information you have gathered and analyzed. Consider the risk vs. reward relationship. You’re bound to come up with new options. As some doors close; new ones will open.
6. Remain flexible. Test your ideas on a small scale. Adjust and modify based on what you learn. Make small investments in new ideas. Set very short term goals and determine early what works and what doesn’t. Innovative ideas that prove themselves now could position you to lead in a recovery.
7. Provide yourself with ongoing support. Create a small, close network to help provide perspective. Get feedback on your ideas and concerns. Find out what others are doing that is proving successful. Ask for what you want and need.
These are actually good business strategies for building a strong business in any economy, but they are especially important in maintaining and growing a healthy business now. It’s how many small businesses are taking the lead in creating a recovery for themselves and the economy.
To learn more about business success strategies and actually apply them to your business check out the Business Success System Course. It’s the Prime Strategies self-study program that walks you through the fundamentals of building a strong and profitable business.