What You Need to Move Your Business Forward

As women entrepreneurs we often start and run our businesses very organically. Those women with flourishing businesses are remaining open to new opportunities, new connections and taking small steps along the way. They take one action, move forward, and then take another action.

 

But sometimes we run into roadblocks.

We have been conditioned to think that the traditional way of running a business is the only way, so we sometimes find ourselves paralyzed in moving forward. We are told by society, and often the men in our lives-our brothers, spouses, teachers - that we need a business plan, financial backing, experience and education in a specific area.

As we hear these messages they often become roadblocks to us moving forward, and our success. The interesting thing is that many truly successful women entrepreneurs rarely have any of these things in the beginning. Many of us start without a business plan, without crunching numbers, and even without much money.

So if these "traditional" things aren't necessary - what is? What do we as women need to have to move our new business or new idea forward?

Start with a clear vision.

As you get started with your business, it's paramount to have a clear vision. When you have a vision of WHAT you're trying to do, like the problem you're trying to solve or the quality of the product that you're trying to produce, the HOW will eventually come.

As entrepreneurial women, the path we take as we work towards our visions may twist and turn a bit. Imagine you're driving a car. If you know you're driving from the east coast to the west coast, you know you've got to take some combination of east-west roads. There is not just one right and perfect route for you to take. You, as the navigating entrepreneur, have the choice of your route (as crazy and twisted as it might be).

It's the same with your business vision. As you gather new information, ideas and connections along the way you might adjust your route. The key is to keep focused and continually move forward towards that final destination - your vision.

Take action, it's always better than doing nothing.

Once you have a clear vision it becomes apparent what action is necessary for you to take. When Victoria Colligan, the founder of Ladies Who Launch, and I spoke, she shared that "taking any action is better than taking no action, even if the action you take leads you nowhere."

Why? Because you learned from it. You now have information so you can adjust your course. The key is that you have momentum and can just keep on moving.

Let go of needing to be perfect.

A really important message I want to communicate is there's no such thing as perfect. The beauty of having a business, particularly an internet-based business, is how forgiving it is and how easy it is to make adjustments along the way.

I'm a recovering perfectionist so I know it's not easy to overcome that tendency. It's not an easy thing to walk away from. But if you acknowledge how much your desire for perfection is holding you back (which is incredibly eye-opening in itself) that can often give you the motivation to just move forward and take action. I sometimes have to remind myself of this when I'm stuck in the desire for perfection when launching a new service or product to "just get over it because a blank page doesn't sell anything."

Start with a clear vision and then take consistent imperfect action as you work towards it. Embrace the organic business process and you'll not only be successful, you'll have much more fun.

About the Author:

Kim DeYoung is the original Metromom'a driven, evolving woman committed to her family, her career and achieving success on her own terms. Also known as the 'Get It Done Girl', Kim is the dynamic and creative force behind Metromom.com, a comprehensive resource for the busy mom entrepreneur, providing solutions on marketing, money, mindset and motherhood. Order your own FREE CD - "5 Surprising Secrets Every Mom Entrepreneur Must Know" and learn more at www.metromom.com. To see if you're in fact a Metromom, check out her 3-minute video at http://TheMetroMomMovie.com.

Author: Kim DeYoung

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