Stop Swimming Against the Current

And trying to do everything entrepreneurial by yourself.

It takes a lot to run a business, from actually marketing and selling your products services, to the accounting, the marketing, etc.  Often I see entrepreneurs trying to accomplish every aspect of their business on their own.  This is a slippery slope that bottoms out in burn out.

Why do we think we must do it all?

There are people who have come before us, having done it all, and managed to somehow do it all successfully.  This proof that one can possibly do it all by themselves, has led to a false expectation that in order to be an entrepreneur, we must do everything our business requires by ourselves.  This isn’t true and for many, it isn’t healthy.

For other business owners, this might stem from the notion that the journey of an entrepreneur is a solitary one.  Today we even have terms like “solo-preneur” the emphasize that we try to move mountains on our lonesome.  Yes, you have dared to branch out on your own, and to form something that is your own.  But that doesn’t mean that you have to walk every step alone.  If you do so, you may end up truly alone.

Work smarter, not harder.

Starting your own business is hard enough.  Why make it harder on yourself (and by extension everyone around you) and cut yourself off? We are more connected now than ever, and while this technology has made some aspects of running a business easier, it’s also created more for us to do.  Think of the difference someone had when starting their business 30 or 40 years ago verses someone doing it now.  Yes you would both need your branding elements, to define and produce a product or service, and the legal bits like forming your entity and keeping your books.  Today, you can add on top of this, building a website, optimizing it for search and social, creating Google listings and social media…and all of this needs to be maintain, and kept current.  It’s like swimming against a strong current.  And doing so without any flotation, paddle, flippers, or anything else.

It’s a lot to handle, so why not be smarter about it? Why not work with someone who excels in logo and web design, in brand copy and content marketing, in social media marketing?  Why not pay them to dive in with momentum, rather than waste time, effort and energy trying to learn these skills from scratch.  You’re essentially treading water when someone could be sprinting ahead.

A Tip: Partner with an Entrepreneur

You’ll uplift each other, get better attention from your services provider than if you hired a large agency, and gain a partner who understands exactly where you are and what you’re doing.

1. Research the services and find a local option or someone who specializes in your industry.
2. Speak with them – Face to face is great, but on the phone works too.  It lets you get a feel for their personality and whether you can work together.
3. Ask for a consultation or evaluation before you get started.  You’ll be able to size up their skill level and what quality of services they can provide before you contract with them.
4. Sign a contract, it sets the expectations up front and gives you both the ability to break the relationship if it’s not serving one of you.  It’s a mutual agreement rather than some big scary document.