Are you confused about how to run your business in as little time as possible yet still make money? Well you dang well should be! If you’re not then you’re in the minority. The information being delightfully delivered to your inbox and shoved into your news feeds is a clustermuck (see what I did there…. I changed the letter so the word wasn’t rude!) of non-specific advice coming from people who don’t have all the answers.
Why so ranty today, Melanie?
I really do feel for my Profit Lovers, you have great products and services and people ‘should’ be buying. When people buy you ‘should’ be making coin right? But it might not be working that way because you have been lead astray. Here is why figuring out how to make your business work is so difficult.
1. Everyone’s an expert
I opened an email today from someone who sells a product completely unrelated to business. For some unknown reason the email is full of business financial advice. The advice isn’t bad, it is absolutely horrible. If you were to take the advice and implement today you could do some serious damage. Scary.
Over the past few years we have witnessed the rapid rise of the online expert. The self proclaimed authority in all things business, health, wellness, styling, money, mindset and … the list goes on…. People who otherwise would not have found an audience suddenly attract the attention of many with their musings and advice.
Weeding out the legit from the not-so-kosha can be difficult.
2. What works for one might not work for the other
A lot of the solutions sold (especially around business and marketing) don’t teach you how to take a concept and make it work in your business. They teach you how to do it the way they do it. It works for them so it must work for you too right? Maybe, maybe not.
What if you don’t want to do it EXACTLY their way because your target market is different, your pricing model is different or your service is different. Will it work for you then? Maybe! You need to give it a try and track the results.
3. Advice is only valuable if you can implement it
Your inbox is filled constantly with sparkly advice that is really valuable. The problem can be that the advice can’t be implemented. You understand WHAT they are saying you need to do, but you don’t know HOW to do what they are saying you should do.
If you sign up for a lot of freebies and information you will find yourself with lots of great info but no way to execute. If you want to execute you will most likely need to stick your paws into your purse and pony up some pennies. Don’t be afraid to invest, it could completely change your future.
Any good advice giver will not just share the what, they will give you the how too! Perfect example below… I GIFT you my Profit Lovers Plan + Track then I TEACH you how to use it.
4. They hit the jackbox once
Just because someone hit the jackbox once doesn’t mean they should declare themselves the expert and start pitching their super secret strategy to others. This is a scary trend that I see a lot. Last week there was an ad in my Facebook newsfeed that said “I made $100,000 on Amazon with my first book and you can too!”. When I checked they only had one book! You could purchase a program for USD $4997 (so about AU$6400) to teach you how to do the same. Ummm…. call me when you do it 5 times over with the same results..
Success requires repetition. Can you imagine scientists testing a cure for cancer that worked once? Pretty sure no one is funding their awesome discovery until they have repeated their success again and again and again.
5. Most diets work, you’re fat because you didn’t stick it out (advice to self here…)
When we don’t see immediate results we often give in. It is human nature. We go looking for the next fix (me included). Diets are a perfect example. You see a diet that promises you will lose your chub fast! Ditch your moo-moo ladies! It is time to break out the gold hot pants! You commit for the first week, but when you see no results you chuck it in and look for the next solution.
When you take advice you have stick it out. There is so much trial and error in business, but the rewards are SO worth it. If you’re going to invest in training or information then give it a chance to work. The providers of the fancy advice are often not upfront with the amount of time it would take to see results. It’s not really their fault. If they told you the truth you would go looking for a faster solution (that doesn’t exist anyway).
No cake for you!
Just like the diet analogy above you can’t modify the advice you’re being given and expect the promised results. That chunk of cake that you shoved into your face while standing at the fridge counts. No gold hot pants for you.
Don’t be disappointed by results you got when you didn’t follow the plan. It’s like baking a cake with only half the ingredients then complaining that it tastes like dirt and dog biscuits. What were you expecting?
How do you get unconfused?
Here are my tips!
- Look for advice from people who have achieved results multiple times
- Accept that some advice might not work for you, that is just part of business and it is ok to try
- Be consistent, don’t give up too soon
- Stick to the plan, take the experts advice (all of it)
- Invest in programs that focus on implementing, not just learning
- Trust your gut, if someone gives you advice that feels wrong then question it
You can also join my Profit Lovers Get Organised 5 Day Challenge
The Get Organised Challenge will help you plan out your business step by step as you focus on setting sales goals, better organising your to do list, creating a marketing outline and tracking your money. This is about you better understanding your business and not getting distracted or confused about what you should be doing. Ready to get started?
Great advice Melanie. I’m personally getting over seeing posts about how people made x amount in a month and they don’t actually offer any real advice or structure.
I agree Jessica. It makes it difficult for the people providing real advice to get noticed when they’re not offering a magic bullet.