A huge part of success in any business, especially when you’re just starting out, is having the proper mindset for success.  If you’ve been to any of my seminars, or have been reading this blog for any length of time, you know that I’m all about taking ownership and running your business your way.  You don’t want to follow cookie-cutter methods that everyone else uses.  They might not work for you.  Everyone is different.  And even if they do work, that means you’ll blend in with the crowd.  That’s not a good thing for a business.  You need to find a way to stand out from the crowd, to differentiate yourself.  That’s what will make your customers come to your bookstore instead of the other ten bookstores in town.

“An entrepreneur can become moderately successful doing the same thing that everyone else does. But if you want to become wildly successful, you have to do what no one else has done.”  -Tim Gill

In my earlier post, 4 Magic Words,  I mentioned an important concept: mastering your own universe.  I thought I’d give you a few examples of how I master my own universe, and how you can use the concepts to master your own.  All of these concepts deal with how you think about what you do.  Try them out, and let me know how they work for you.

Is it a hobby or a business?

How you think about what you do is critical.  In your head, do you think of yourself as a freelance writer, or as a business that sells writing services?  Thinking of yourself as a business gives you an entirely new grasp of the concepts that you’re going to have to learn and master if you’re going to be successful. Take marketing, for example.  It’s very easy for a freelance writer to say “I don’t know marketing…I’m a writer.  I’ll just put my website out there and people will see how good I write and come to me.”  This is great when it works, but what happens when you don’t have any income coming down the pipe?  If you think of it as a business, then you know you need to get out there and pound the pavement, advertise, cold-call, or do whatever it is that you do.  Identifying it in your head as I’m in the business of selling xxx makes it much easier to take the steps you need to take as a business, versus someone who personally identifies their business as what they do (ie: I’m a writer).

Do things your own way.

Sure, there are some things that you are absolutely required to do (like pay taxes), but aside from that, the way you run your business is completely up to you.  You can run it however you wish.  Find what works for you, then stick with it.  Find your passion.  Stay true to yourself.  If you buy the latest “7 Steps to Making a Million Dollars Overnight” from today’s internet guru, it might or might not work for you.  We know it worked for him…he got your money, right?  Let’s pretend his method does actually work for you.  How many other people are following his method step by step? A Hundred? A Thousand?  You end up becoming just one more clone out there.  Why would I spend my money with you, instead of one of your 999 competitors?  The simple point is: there are very few rules.  Find what works.  Tweak it.  Make it better.  Make it your own.  This is your universe we’re talking about, right? 

“Once in a while it really hits people that they don’t have to experience the world in the way they have been told to.” -Alan Keightley

This is your universe.  Master it.

There is a huge psychological shift when going from employee to business owner.  The possibilities are only limited by the limits you put on yourself.  Do you know what I call my office?  I don’t call it an office.  I call it my Command Center.  And yes, when I travel, my overstuffed laptop bag is my Mobile Command Center.  I get so excited when I think about the possibilities that are open to me. I think BIG.  I have a universe to direct!  I can’t direct it from a mere office.  Think BIG.  Take ownership.  Love every minute of it.  Enjoy the excitement of it!

“The person who says something is impossible should not interrupt the person who is doing it.” -Old Chinese Proverb

I hope some of these ideas will inspire you to grow your perspective.  Leave me a comment and let me know what you think.  What other ideas do you use?

Now go out and master your own universe!

Thank you.  Be well.

P.S.   I need you to do me a favor.  If you haven’t done so yet, please take my quick survey here.  It’s only six questions and shouldn’t take more than a minute or two to complete.  It will help me create the content you want and need.

No related posts.