As a business owner, have you held fixed ideas about what products and services you *should* offer and how you *should* deliver them?  Is there room for growth? Are *you* what is holding your business back?  Maybe.

Personal Growth Is Essential

Unless you are living in a bubble, it’s a pretty safe bet you have given these questions some serious thought in the past several months.  It is, after all, 2020.  How do you move forward in the middle of…THIS?! 

You can start with personal growth, which is essential for small business owners.  Now is the best time to wonder if you have reviewed here and evaluate where you need to update your skills, embrace change and gain fresh perspectives that will let your business grow.  These changes can be both a bit scary and wicked exciting at the same time! 

Here are some areas of focus to get you started. As you go through the list, don’t get overwhelmed.  Make a plan and tackle one area at a time.  When I say, “make a plan,” I mean to literally write down the task you want to complete with an estimated finish date and who will be responsible. Some of these areas you will want to tackle yourself, and some you will want to hire others to complete for you.  This is an excellent place to use sticky notes, by the way, so you can switch around your tasks, dates, and who-is-responsible-for-what when necessary! 

Update Your Online Skills

In our current “stampede to all things online,” are your skills where they should be?  If not, now is the time to change that.     

Technology

I am hearing from more and more clients that they feel they are “too old” to tackle today’s technology.  Hogwash!  That is only true if you believe it. 

Let’s take a real-life example.  Many businesses have pivoted to online video platforms to conduct business, with Zoom being one of the more familiar ones. Not familiar with the in’s and out’s of Zoom?  No problem.  Zoom has lots of tutorials. Schedule the time you need on your calendar, grab your coffee or your lunch, and devote time to technology learning and personal growth. 

Digital Strategy

Strengthen your digital footprint NOW.  Is your website up-to-date? Do you post regularly to your social media sites? Have you updated your online profiles? Are you using videos? Are you adding fresh written content?  The skills you will begin to master in this category are endless!  Remember the Zoom training videos I referenced above?  Most online platforms and social media sites have them, as well. And there is always YouTube.  Add these areas to your plan, decide which you will do yourself and which you will outsource, and a completion deadline.

Online Course

Have you thought about pivoting and offering an online course? Take some time to plan what your offering will be, how you will create it, what platform you will use, what your price is, and how you will market it.  This sounds daunting, but remember, you are just taking one area at a time! 

Update Your Offline Skills

How about your other offline business and life skills?  Do you have a current business plan, a/k/a action plan or blueprint?  Is it time to take a basic marketing course? Being a business owner is also about work/life balance, so how about a meditation or exercise class, too?  Again, make a list and include these areas in your written plan. 

Confidence

Each time you learn a new skill, become more proficient in a specific area and grow personally, you gain confidence.  The more confidence you have, the more you will be able to guide your business growth.  You can stop being the thing that holds you back! 

Conclusion

In reading this article, I hope you have been able to explore possible areas of personal and business growth. There are many paths to the top of the mountain, and the best time to get serious about that journey is now.  You can start today by making your written plan of the areas where you want to improve, and include completion dates.  Then decide which tasks you want to do yourself and which tasks you want to hire professionals to do for you.  Then execute your plan and…let your business grow!   

As always, if you have any questions about this article or your business growth, please contact me at [email protected].  I’m happy to help!

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Robin Suomi, MBA, is an experienced small business expert and founder of Startup to Growth. She has worked with thousands of small business owners through coaching, mastermind groups, education and training.  Robin believes success is rarely accidental and her passion is to help her clients set and reach their goals. Working with clients remotely through video platforms, she helps clients answer their technical business planning and execution questions as well as supporting them while they explore their potential. She encourages clients to dig deeper, dream bigger, and works with them to create their tangible Success Steps. Check out the website for ongoing virtual Small Business Coaching, Small Business Blueprint in 30-Days classes, MEG (My Entrepreneurial Group) Connect and MEG Startup mastermind groups. Email [email protected] with your questions.