12 months ago, my daughter got engaged and this past weekend, she finally tied the knot with the man of her dreams.
When they got engaged, I had a vision of how the day would go and the décor that would suit her relaxed style. I knew it wouldn’t be easy to pull off so I spent a lot of time researching and planning to see if I could get together everything I needed.
It was stressful at times, there were tears, but I persevered and cannot tell you how happy I was the day was simply beautiful. From the trees I hired in and had lit up, to the festival style food and the exquisite decorations, everything was perfect.
But why am I telling you this?
Fail to plan, plan to fail.
Because the same principle applies to building a successful business.
- Research and planning are critical.
- Having a timeline in place and constantly working towards that is what turns dreams into reality.
- Not giving up when the going gets tough or when someone tells you what you want isn’t possible.
Only this week, yet another new business in the town where I live closed its doors after just a few short months. Everyone blames the locals for not supporting it but I have to disagree.
I put it down to bad planning. When building a business, you cannot expect to open your doors and have a flood of people come running through to spend their money with you.
- You have to plan for the long term.
- You have to work out your finances to see you through the early days.
- You need to build trust and rapport with your ideal clients which is going to take time.
Blaming others for the failure of your business is burying your head in the sand. If your business fails, I’m sorry, but it’s down to you! Harsh but fair! Yes, external factors come into play, but I have yet to see a business fail where the owner has planned, researched and stuck with it through thick and thin.
I know my thoughts may jar with some and await the replies with reasons beyond control why businesses failed. And I’m looking forward to them. Tell me if you agree or disagree in the comments box below.