“One of the first stages in growth is to have a really stable business foundation… When we have a really rocky foundation, we’re not able to grow effectively and eventually, we’re going to get exhausted and fail because we have exerted all of our money and effort.”
This week on the Women in the Business Arena Podcast we discuss creating sustainable long-term growth in our businesses. There is a right way to grow your business and a wrong way. So often, women can get distracted by the ways others are growing or scaling their businesses. When you try to mimic the next steps of others, rather than following the right path for you, you can topple your business over like a house of cards. When you get out of sequence, it leads to overwhelm and exhaustion. In order to create sustainable growth, we have to follow the proper order, beginning first with a solid foundation.
“So many people are doing what I call’ hope marketing’ or they’re out there in the world throwing seeds out, hoping that some of those seeds might hit fertile ground and they’re wasting so much energy and effort when really it’s about looking for where the fertile ground is, where your ideal target market is, and just doing little things to be able to plant the right seeds.”
Sustainable growth looks more like a stair step than a curved upward line. We have to integrate new growth until it’s habitual, then we can begin incorporating and implementing new tools. Stabilizing after each new level helps to further solidify the foundation for long-term sustainability, instead of being in danger of toppling our business.
Part of creating sustainable growth, means looking at our current business model. Streamlining and simplifying is one of greatest pieces of advice for those looking to grow and scale their business. Often what is getting in the way of growth is the business model you are currently using. Many business owners have too broad a market, too many services and too much going on. It means their attention is divided between a million different avenues. Narrowing your focus can create the momentum you need to achieve real growth.
“Growth is done from a stable position. If where you are right now is not stabilized, you’re probably not ready for growth, because if you’re growing off of an unstabilized foundation or an unstabilized place, you’re just going to create more instability.”
Each business is unique. Growth will look different, and mean something different for each individual. Before pursuing growth, it is vital to look at your motivations. What do you hope to attain in the growth of your business? Are these ideals realistic? Or are you attempting to create more space and freedom in the pursuit of growth and scaling that will actually be more demanding of your time and profit margins?
“The more slow and deliberate you take the process of building your business, the more sustainable it is long term”
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