Over the weekend, I had a chat with a new coaching client (I took on a few “undercover” clients in my new NOT RELEASED coaching program to iron out some of the bugs….) and, well, I may be off to a bad start…
This client is mid-launch, they’re about to open up their very first business, and they are full of excitement and energy.
They were going on and on about all the cool things they were doing, and how crazy it was that nobody was doing it like them.
I listened for about 20 minutes before I finally stepped in…
I said, “You should focus on building a boring company first.”
They looked at my like I was an idiot.
I continued…
“I feel like your focus is off and you’re too in love with your business, your ideas, your product, and not focused on solving a real need.
If all you do is focus on all the cool, exciting things you’re talking about, you’re going to have a super fun rise up, followed by a painful collapse to the bottom.”
You need to build systems to support all the stuff you’re talking about.
You need to focus on the boring stuff.
- How are you going to prospect?
- Who’s your target audience?
- What’s your follow-up system?
- How are you going to get them to keep coming back?
- What are you doing to build up your MRR?
- What parts are you automating?
- What can you deliver consistently long term?
Far too many new entrepreneurs get so caught up in the flashiness of business that they forget to actually build a real business on a solid (boring) foundation—and that’s what gets you in trouble.
When you focus on the fun stuff, the accolades, the awards, the Facebook likes and shares, the articles in the paper and all the praise, you risk finding yourself constantly struggling to make ends meet, constantly struggling to find the next client, constantly struggling to build sustainability and recurring, automatic revenue.
I’m not saying all that flashy stuff is bad… but it should come second.
Focus on the boring stuff first.
- Figure out the right market.
- Identify the most powerful hooks.
- Build up your value ladder so you know what the buyer journey is.
- Figure out the systems, procedures, processes, policies.
- Know where you’re going to build in sustainability.
- Figure out how to leverage what you already have.
- Build a solid foundation—one that can support the empire you crave.
Business building is like going to the Olympics… You spend MOST of your time alone, in pain, busting your ass off perfecting the basics and building a foundation so that one day you can have it all, be at the top of the world with everyone cheering you on.
If you want to be here in 10 years—and living the good life—focus less on the flare, and more on the boring stuff.
As I wrapped up my mini-speech to this new client, they looked at me like I had just broken up with them or something!
They went on to tell me that they had just spent several thousand dollars with a marketing agency (NOT mine!) that sold them on how much they needed a big fancy website, super awesome business cards, killer high end handouts, and over-the-top posters and display stuff.
No!!!!
Apple…
Amazon…
Facebook…
They all started in garages, in dorm rooms, in boring little spots without any of the flash—and look at them now.
They focused on what MATTERED first.
In fact, once a week I have coffee with a business owner whose MONTHLY gross is just shy of a million bucks, and he doesn’t even have a business card.
Don’t be so seduced by the excitement of building a business that you forget to actually build a business—not just the appearance of a business.
To your success,
Al
Alain Blais
CEO RYS Group
alain@rys.group
The Blais family enjoying the views at Lake Tahoe.
RYS Group Inc.
Your Back Office Is Our Business!
We specialize in building systematized businesses with automated cash-flow for celebrities, speakers, authors, and entrepreneurs.
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