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<\/b>I\u2019ll admit it, I\u2019ve caught myself deluding myself in the past too. It\u2019s a habit I\u2019d like to think I\u2019ve booted down the block once and for all.<\/p>\n<\/b>I\u2019ll admit it, I\u2019ve caught myself deluding myself in the past too. It\u2019s a habit I\u2019d like to think I\u2019ve booted down the block once and for all.<\/p>\n
I used to tell myself fibs like:<\/b>
\n-\u201cSugar is low in carbs.\u201d<\/p>\n
-\u201cThere is nothing I can do to change people\u2019s minds.\u201d<\/p>\n
– \u201cIf I eat careful 5 days a week, it\u2019s okay to splurge on the weekend.\u201d<\/p>\n
– \u201cThere is no point in cleaning, things will just get dirty again.\u201d<\/p>\n
– \u201cMulti-tasking is a good idea.\u201d<\/p>\n
– \u201cKetchup is a vegetable.\u201d<\/p>\n
Which are for the most part innocuous lies. They\u2019re not the big ones that you tell yourself about your practice, the ones that can cost you literally a fortune.<\/p>\n
Here\u2019s the problem.<\/b><\/p>\n
Most small business owners, when they get to the point in theircareers where they decide to sell their business, the one they\u2019ve spent decades growing \u2013 find buyers won\u2019t pay anywhere near what they thought it was worth. It\u2019s a rude awakening, and it means when you get ready to cash in on all your hard work, you could have a lot less to live on.<\/p>\n
Instead of kicking back, having more time to play golf or enjoy your grandchildren, you could be stuck working part time at Walmart to make ends meet. Which would be, from my perspective, beyond awful given all the effort you\u2019ve put into growing your business.<\/p>\n
To make sure this doesn\u2019t happen to you, let\u2019s take a look at the 4 most common lies small business owners tell themselves. You know, the ones you can avoid, so instead of ending up poor, you end up prosperous.<\/p>\n
Lie 1 \u2013 Working harder is the best way to build value $$$<\/b><\/p>\n
Practically every minute of every day a small business owner proves this wrong. First, they tell me how many hours they are working each week, then they tell me about how overwhelmed and stressed out they are. Finally, we get to the numbers and in all too many cases, their profits are roughly 50% of what they should be.<\/p>\n
Which means that most smart, \u201chard working\u201d small business owners are making $253,000 less per year than they could be. If instead of working harder, they changed a few systems or habits and worked smarter, things would be different.<\/p>\n
Lie 2 \u2013 Marketing Doesn\u2019t Make The Difference<\/b><\/p>\n
You\u2019re right, if you use any old online or offline marketing system, you can get lousy results. My partner\u2019s father in-law hated his car, the cheapest one he could buy. He complained about it every time we got it it and was alway remarking on how nice our car was, the one we paid twice as much for. Of course he never would pony up the money to get a better one.<\/p>\n
The truth is marketing is the fuel that drives your profits, and to be successful you need a proven marketing system.<\/p>\n
Lie 3 \u2013 If I Can Get A Client On The Phone I Can Sell Them<\/b><\/p>\n
I\u2019m not sure why it is, but most people seem to think they were delivered into this world with world class selling skills. But if that is true, why is it some businesses convert 75% of prospects and others only, and more typically, convert 45% of interested wannabe customers.<\/p>\n
Obviously, despite everyone\u2019s assumption they could sell the Brooklyn Bridge or ice to eskimos in the winter, selling is a science. The key is the questions you ask and how you walk prospects through the selling process.<\/p>\n
Lie 4 \u2013 It\u2019s Our Smiling Staff That Makes the Difference, Not Systems<\/b><\/p>\n
Just last week I was talking to a business that was doing a great job of marketing, selling and smiling but still losing money. The key to making your service business profitable and building value isn\u2019t the people but the systems you have in place.<\/p>\n
The Bottom Line is $628,000<\/b><\/p>\n
On average, that\u2019s how much MORE you could get for your small business if you know how to build VALUE. And if I had that amount of extra cash right now in my hand, heck, I might indulge, buy something totally impractical and fun like that Lamborghini I\u2019ve always wanted.<\/p>\n
How about you? What would you get?<\/p>\n