I have a question for you.. Can growth happen without challenges?
Our business is ever changing and evolving and if we want significant growth within our business, challenges are inevitable – However, the more we can learn from others along the way the more we can avoid some roadblocks, and speed up the path to the success we are working towards.
Here are 5 of the mistakes I made in the beginning of my business, that by overcoming has propelled me forward to more hairstyling business success than I’d ever dreamt of!
1. Not creating a clear brand
In the beginning I thought branding was an exciting mix of colours, a logo and a business name.. There’s no doubting these are fun to create and a necessary part of branding, but there is certainly more to be done to get enquiries overflowing from ideal clients who know our worth and are prepared to pay for it.
We need to know our reason why we do what we do, our brand values, brand message, who our ideal client is and how we offer a solution to their problem before we can begin attracting them. The more we can niche down with our brand message, the more we will attract the right clients.
2. Not communicating my services effectively
As a natural creative I’m not a natural sales person. I found it more than difficult to talk my services up and really sell myself for a while there. I didn’t want it to feel sleazy, slimy or inauthentic. I realised that the alternative to not communicating my services was to not have my business for much longer this meaning I wouldn’t be able to do what I love every day. I made the decision to work out the truth of what it is that I absolutely love to create, who I can help by creating this for, and the points of difference that are unique to me and my business whilst doing it. Confidence comes more and more as we begin and see the progress we make along the way.
3. Not having processes for my styling and biz
Process equals confidence. Anywhere we can create a process inn our business and hairstyling, we should in my opinion. Processes take the guesswork out and make areas of our business run like clockwork.
4. Letting client opinions run my business
Avoiding being influenced by opinions around us can be difficult at the best of times and breaking our own rules to keep a client happy seems to be more common than not. Business is business and if a client has a question, there is absolutely nothing wrong with giving a direct ad honest answer that is aligned with your values and terms and conditions with kindness of course. Remember – you are the boss of your business ad have the freedom and flexibility to protect your peace.
5. Not focused on what I’m great at and outsourcing the rest
In the beginning of putting our new business out there we are usually in the learning phase. We usually have more time than we do money during this stage of business so learning how to do tasks ourselves makes more sense than investing in someone else to do it for us. As our business grows and develops, it no longer makes sense for us to be wearing all of the hats, and employing others to take the areas of business that take us too long or we don’t enjoy implementing off our plate makes much more sense. I suggest working in your one of genius as much as you can, and outsourcing as much of the other tasks as possible.
There we are 5 mistakes for you to avoid in order moving your business closer to your goals. If you would like to be walked through these points in more detail and supported through making these changes in your business, my online program Polished Skills is for you! You can check it out here and as always, feel free to jump into my DM’s over on Instagram with any questions.