5 Simple Ways to Foster and Grow a Business Mindset
Contributed Post
When it comes to doing well in business, all successful businesswomen have one thing in common; they foster a business mindset. A business mindset put simply, is a way of thinking strategically. It puts the needs of you and your business first so you can maximize growth, profitability and success.
For many people, fostering a business mindset doesn’t come inherently. Just like any other new skill, it requires time, effort and consistency to develop. So whether you’re new to business or just think you could be doing a little better, here are 5 ways you can foster and grow your business mindset.
Know Your Purpose
A business mindset involves understanding the purpose of your business. For most, this centers around making money and turning a healthy profit. A business without a clear purpose often ends up being a very time-consuming hobby. So sit down and ensure you are clear on what the purpose of your business is. If you’re struggling to find the purpose of your business and don’t want it to center solely around profit, then you may find it helpful to return to your “ultimate why.”
Your ultimate why is why you started your business in the first place; maybe you wanted to take the road less traveled? Or did you want to be able to spend more time with your family? Perhaps you went into business because you saw a need and knew that you could fulfill it? Whatever your reason is, think about it now, trace it all the way back to its very core and allow it to help you understand your business purpose. With a clear ultimate why and business purpose you’re now ready to take on a higher level of thinking dedicated to achieving your business goals.
Never Stop Growing
A key component for fostering a business mindset is to never stop growing and to continuously be on the lookout for new learning opportunities. Just like a muscle, a business mindset grows by being exercised, and even for those who take to a business mindset quickly, it can take time to fully unleash their mindsets full potential.
For some people, the learning aspect of a business mindset is best achieved through acquiring knowledge a little every day. For example, reading just 30 minutes of a book before breakfast or listening to a podcast on their morning commute. Whereas for others, learning is best acquired in more sizable chunks. Such as taking a personal development course from Norwich University or by enrolling at a business growth seminar weekend. However, you prefer to learn, the important thing here is that you keep on doing so.
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Understand Your Emotional Ties
Emotional ties in business can be what propels you forward but can also be what is holding you back. It’s completely natural to become emotionally invested in your business but the key to stopping this from holding you back is to recognize it. Understanding where your emotions hold you back will enable you to break down those barriers so that you can think rationally in highly emotive situations.
The easiest way to find the areas in your business where your emotions hold you back, is to jot down when you feel emotion taking over and to think about what triggered it. Soon you’ll start to see patterns emerging; perhaps you are too emotionally connected to your staff, or you struggle to separate work from home. Whatever it may be, once you realize where your emotion is holding you back you can begin to rectify it.
Be More Strategic
There are only so many hours in the day and it will never be possible to do everything put in front of you. So this means you need to start thinking strategically immediately! One of the common examples used here is with relation to attending networking events, but it can be applied to virtually any business task. Networking events work well here as they are something that many new business women feel they need to attend in order to succeed. When in fact, attending them without a strategy can do more harm than good.
Do you really know how much it costs you to attend a networking event? Have you actually added up the cost of your time, travel and the other extras such as the cost of a babysitter? When you actually sit down and calculate the cost of the event, it may surprise you to learn that a handful of business cards and a few extra connections on LinkedIn can become a very expensive commodity. With a business mindset, every task should be approached strategically. Ask yourself the questions, “Will this help me achieve my business goals? Will this help my profitability?”
Moving On and Learning from Failure
Failure in business is a part of the territory. You may lose your biggest client, fumble an important pitch, hire the wrong person, expand too quickly, not expand quickly enough, fail to balance your time properly and a swathe of other common errors. Failing is natural, and some would say if you don’t fail at times, then you aren’t trying hard enough.
When it comes to failure and making mistakes, what truly matters is how you approach it. Those with a business mindset know that failure is just a lesson and one which they can learn from. Start to see failures as opportunities for growth, don’t let your mindset be muddled by negative emotion. Instead, focus that attention on evolving and learn how to stop making the same mistakes from happening again.
Your mind is a very powerful asset and by tuning it into the goals of your business, you set yourself up for success. Just remember that even those with a business mindset still need to look after their mental health. Don’t let your self-doubt get in the way of your goals, but don’t be too hard on yourself either.
Until next time ASSASSINS. . . Stay Disciplined!
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