When it comes to running your own business, most people fail.
The exact point of failure can vary somewhat. Maybe manufacturing your product costs a lot more than you thought, and you can't make it profitable without charging prices people don't want to pay.
Or maybe you didn't do market validation right, and it turns out, no one really wants what you have to offer.
But there's one really big reason that most people fail, and it's not any of those things. It doesn't even have that much to do with the quality of the product, service, or content.
It's all about the follow-through.
Having great ideas is the first step, and getting started is the second.
But how many times have you had the Best Idea Ever, then gotten distracted by other things, and never quite brought it to full fruition?
In a recent article from the Content Marketing Institute, the authors discuss how this phenomenon affects corporate marketing teams.
But it's just as relevant to solopreneurs as it is to Fortune 500 companies. In fact, when you're a one-man team, it's even more of a primary concern.
You have too many ideas but have trouble taking something from start to finish
I was recently asked about my biggest challenges as a marketer. While I have several, the one I chose to reflect on is that our team is drowning in ideas. While I’m glad we have so much to cover, I have found this glut of ideas to be a negative for a few reasons.
First, if you are working on something, you need to give up – or push back – working on something else. And this can be tough if you love a lot of your ideas (as many of us do).
Suggestion: Choose something and commit to it. Don’t get stuck in the trap of thinking about what you aren’t getting to and instead focus on the movement you are making.
A second issue when you get stuck when you are working on something is that it can feel easier to move on to something new because there is plenty to choose from. It’s easier than bearing down and doing what is difficult that stands right in front of us.
Suggestion: Have one or more gut-check people who can tell if you’re going in the right direction or suggest another approach if things aren’t working.
For instance, I shared the first draft of this post with one of our editors, Ann Gynn. She told me the piece wasn’t clicking for her and gave me some advice on how to reframe this.
While I initially considered moving on to another piece, I stuck with this one but looked at the issue in a different way. You need these honest and insightful people in your life.
You can read more over at the Content Marketing Institute.
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