3 Ways Small Business Owners Get in The Way of Their Success

Posted December 8, 2018

If you want to know how to start a small business, there’s a wide array of online or offline resources to help you out. However, it’s up to you to determine which bits of advice are truly smart and which ones are nothing more than speculation.

Studies show that 80% of start-up companies make it through their first year of business, but only 50% can survive the first 5 years. While there are different factors involved in how things play out, the business owner’s mindset plays a major role on whether an enterprise will succeed or fail.

So, how can you make sure that the business ideas you have will turn out to be effective? Simple: have the right business mindset from the start so you know which way to go.

You can start by identifying how some start-up entrepreneurs become their own obstacles.

Check out the 3 ways small business owners get in the way of their success:

When you think that being the owner means you’re in it by yourself.

It’s true that as a business owner, there are some tasks and decisions that will always be your responsibility. However, this does not take getting help out of the equation. In fact, outsourcing certain tasks to specialists can even improve your business. Such tasks include content creation, bookkeeping, and administrative work.

Working with a business coach can also give you eCommerce support especially tailored for your own needs, goals, and progress. Once you’ve debunked the myth that you’re all alone in your endeavor, you’ll not only find assistance and better results, you’ll also have more energy, time, and inspiration to put into your work.

When you only rely on banks or big-shot investors for financial support.

Without financial support from banks and major business investors, you don’t stand a chance to launch and operate your business, right? Wrong.

As it turns out, 83% of American entrepreneurs find financial support from family and friends, while 60% of business loan applications are provided by alternative lenders. These financiers aren’t so stringent with requirements and offer easier payment terms compared to banks and conventional investors.

Here are the top-rated alternative business lenders for 2018:

Noble Funding for working capital loans
SBG Funding for start-up finances
Crest Capital for equipment, vehicle, and software sponsoring

When you always try to reinvent the wheel to be original.

Many aspiring entrepreneurs fail to see their dreams materialize because they think they don’t have anything new to offer. The truth is, you don’t always have to be first to be original.

Take Facebook for instance. Facebook wasn’t the first social network, but it’s the biggest one today. Its predecessors, Myspace and Friendster, are now defunct. On the other hand, as of the second quarter of 2018, Facebook boasts of 2.23 billion active users every month. Being original doesn’t mean you have to be first. It means having the initiative to question the default and finding ways to improve and revamp the old-style ways of doing things.

Knowing these 3 ways small business owners get in the way of their success will help you dodge it – and set you on a clearer path.