Seven Traps New Entrepreneurs Fall Into
Things I Wish Someone Had Told Me From Day One
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So you started a business? Congratulations! You are on your way to taking back charge over your time and life and designing life your way. Entrepreneurship is exhilarating, but there are many traps you must watch out for. Today I will identify the top ones:
1/ Whom You Invest In
In the beginning, you should hire ONE experienced and vetted business coach (not a mindset/energy/manifestation/ empowerment/guru/social media expert type coach) who:
- has 10+ years of business experience,
- built a legitimate and successful business outside of coaching (this is very important),
- is knowledgeable in business setup, including legal and financial issues, marketing, and sales and
- does not force you to use one method or software but tailors a strategy to your unique business needs, personality, and work style
Here are some tips for hiring the right coach. Beware of hiring the wrong coaches. Don’t be fooled by reviews that are often written by affiliates, paid reviews, or clever marketing, which anyone can pay for to impress others. It is a big investment since coaches aren’t cheap, but nothing will sink you faster than investing your hard-earned savings into the wrong person.
Similarly to coaches, there will be a ton of service providers offering you their services from a whole array of prices. When I started my own business, I interviewed, among other people, marketing agencies, web developers, ad specialists, copywriters, SEO experts, email experts, social media managers, and many, many more! My 3 words: Don’t Do It. Wait until you have fleshed out your brand target audience, your service offerings, and your general messaging with your coach BEFORE spending a single dollar on any other services. Trust me, after working with hundreds of business owners, we rarely have enough brand clarity in the first six months and/or without a coach. Then anything you did may be wasted. Plus, managing others is a time investment you don’t need in the beginning.
Please don’t try to DIY your business! You may be hesitant to invest in a coach, but a good one will save you…
