As a Solo Entrepreneur, you are the CEO of your own business and you will be confronted with many problems. In fact, business owners go into business to solve problems that are presented in the market place. Your ability for you to think accurately and solve the problems you are confronted with will determine your business success and your business failure.
So how do you solve a problem if you don't know what the problem actually is?
Answer: You can't, obviously.
Consider the two most common problems that most Solo Entrepreneurs have:
Problem 1:Not earning enough money
Problem 2: Being too busy and not have enough time to enjoy the money that you have.
Now the common approach to solving these problems is trying to find ways to earn more money and create more time.
On one level this may seem like the most logical approach. However if you were to truly look deeper you would discover that this is not dealing with the problem but only the symptoms of the problem. It's like having heart surgery and continuing to smoke and eat unhealthy foods thinking that everything is going to be okay.
What we tend to do is to look at what is happening in our business and in our life and we try to fix the causes of the problem (get booked in for surgery) without addressing the root of the pattern that has created the problem.
How can you be certain of this? Simply have a look at your history. For example if not having enough time is your issue right now, I would wager that this has been a repeating pattern all your life. Is it the case that before you got into business for yourself, you were totally organized and your life ran like clockwork? I don't think so! Please contact me and let me know if I am wrong.
As a CEO of my own enterprise with time being an issue, I looked at how I might be more time efficient. Istreamlined my business systems, I started taking my son to nursery on my bike to get some exercise in without taking up any of my core time, I committed to reading articles like this at specific times rather than when the moment they arrived in my inbox. I made catch up calls with my friends while I was travelling in the car on my way to rowing training. All these actions helped for a short time but more things kept on filling the gaps that I had created. I was dealing with the Symptom and Not the Cause.
I'll venture you've done the same thing. I'll venture you spend your time fixing the effects of the problem not identifying the cause. Doing this will get some brief respite from time to time and it might even appear as if we are flourishing. However the pattern ends up repeating itself again and again. Simply look at your history.
So what are your repeating patterns? Are they financial? Do you have a boom or bust cycle? Is it a series of failed relationships? Is it a series of careers and opportunities that have promised so much and failed to deliver? Is it not finding enough time to exercise and eat well? Is it not finding enough time to spend with friends and to relax and unwind?
What are YOUR patterns? And more importantly, what are the root "Causes" of those patterns?
How do you go about finding out what the root of the problem is? It is almost impossible to do by yourself. As Shakespeare said "An eye sees not itself but by reflection or some other means". To translate, we need someone or something to reflect back to us what we are doing because just like the eye, we cannot see ourselves accurately.
As a CEO the most important person you need to have on your team is the person who will hold that mirror up for you so that you can see what is being reflected back to you. Surrounding yourself with "Yes" people is death to a company. We need people to tell us the truth, even when it hurts. Some of you may be fortunate enough to have someone who understands your business and is prepared to be PAINFULLY HONEST with you and remain emotionally detached from the situation and who you are prepared to listen to. However, based on experience, most people do not have this type of resource in their lives. And if they do have it, the person often can't see broadly enough to provide the type of feedback that is necessary to make the changes needed.
If you don't have a person who meets the above criteria, you are going to need to find a good Coach who can help you. There are many Coaches out there make sure you choose someone who is walking the talk and is not afraid to make you feel uncomfortable. Most people tell you what you want to hear and not what you need to hear. You need a real coach, not a patsy coach. You'll discover that this person is the most valuable person and resource in your life.
