Thriving: The little thing we like to call business
Business, an altogether ominous word that could mean any number of things. To start one, you must have a sellable idea, to succeed within it you must work around the clock and to keep yours relevant, keep up to date night and day, 365 days a year.
Owning a business is often a never-ending tiresome affair but for the right person it becomes like a shot of caffeine straight to the system. The thrill of your own metaphorical professional ‘baby’ succeeding in its lifetime is unlike any other feeling. But what makes a business? What helps the owner become truly comfortable in creating their own professional destiny?
Depending on what your business is alters how you can make it successful, a few methods will however always enhance your chance at thriving.
Networking is key
In this day and age face to face communication is subconsciously frowned upon, a person would rather type over a keyboard or move their thumbs over a screen to talk to people rather than set up a meeting and spend 30 minutes creating a professional connection that is ten times more likely to last than any virtual business association made with the tap of a few buttons. Pick up a phone make a few calls and pencil in a few dates to sit and talk with those who may be able to help your professional profile expand. On the back of this I’d advise any new or existing business owner to try and connect with many kinds of other businesses, no matter how outlandish it may sound connect with any business you can, the future holds many different things and you will never know what resources you might need so connect, connect connect!
Learn from your competitors
I haven’t been in business for very long, so I do not want to claim to be any kind of guru in this field however my business is about helping other business owners thrive in their own environment, so I learn and develop my business through the knowledge and skills of others who are more established. I learn from this, so you can learn through this, take advice of others and watch as they thrive because this can only help you is your drive for success.
Don't sweat the small stuff
A business owner can falter because of their own worries and fears, you create a business and the business is essentially a branch of your person, therefore your feelings are its feelings and vice versa. When you panic about your business it suffers and when your business suffers you mentally suffer – it’s a vicious cycle that can lead to a meltdown of both your business and you. If you have any experience in feeling this way you are not the only one, I am constantly at war with my inner demons of panic to stop myself from failing because of the panic of failing, it comes with the territory of owning and running your own business, so you are not alone! Remind yourself often that you can do this. Be kind to yourself, mistakes in business are there to be learned from.
Take time out
If you are like me and run your own business from home it can become quite isolating, not seeing another person day after day is challenging and something that many will need to find a way around. I have taken to going out and getting a coffee in a public space, even if you don’t have a full-blown conversation with someone just being around other people, watching the hustle and bustle of everyday life is rejuvenating. Your business becomes your life and rightly so but always find some sort of time for yourself; take a walk, meet some friends or even just take a drive but the important thing is to remember that you are a person as well as a business.
When I first founded Bexmin I was filled with a mixture of feelings including panic but I learned to accept that as long as I had faith in my own product and faith in myself and work ethic, I could begin to create something that, hopefully one day, could blossom into an enterprise that continues to thrive year after year. I wish you the same.
Author's Bio
My name is Rebecca Spinks I am the managing director at Bexmin Ltd, which is a company that manages other businesses office admin and social media accounts, I have no official qualifications in the psychological field, but I do know how it feels to experience depression in day to day life. I think people working in this field and helping those in need are all one of a kind and each deserve a medal for championing against the horrors that are mental health. I have no expectations about where this article will end up or who will read it but I thought if I could help at least one person like me it will be reward enough.
