The Most Important Thing In Your Business

The Most Important Think In Your Business

The most important thing in your business looks different to everyone, but fundamentally is the same.

I put a poll on my Instagram stories the other day and I was surprised how many of you wanted to hear more practical business ‘stuff’ from me.

So I thought i’d give you some today, with a Fran twist.

Of course it’s with our ‘human-ness’ in mind because everything I do operates from that perspective.  Our unconscious programming and the ways we inevitably get in our own way.

Sometimes it’s not because of a deep dark part of your psyche.  Sometimes they’re very practical things that can be changed, but we just haven’t connected the dots to understand that’s what is going on.

But I can absolutely give you some of my musings on business specifically.  It would be my absolute pleasure.

It’s worth giving you a big of contect first.

My career prior to this was 15 years in media sales for some of the biggest print titles in the UK.  

I’ve talked about this before so forgive me if you’ve heard this already, I handled multi million pound contracts across some of the biggest advertisers in the country for the biggest national print titles.  I worked on newspapers, glossy magazines and digital platforms too.

The main parts of my job really were building relationships with clients, sales and negotiations and being an ideas person. That was the crux of it if I simplify it.

I was responsible for managing huge contracts, I created whole magazines, which turned into a portfolio of magazines, from scratch when I was at The Telegraph. 

I would be given 6-7 figure budgets to come up with creative ideas to achieve the goals of the client.  

I’d also be responsible for coming up with ideas to expand the business and find new revenue generating opportunities and where we might be leaving cash on the table.  That’s actually one of my favourite parts of what I did then and what I do now.  I think of ideas as one of my super powers.  I find it very easy to see things from all angles and connect the dots of what might be missing or what might be an opportunity.

I learned a huge amount while I was doing that.  I learned about sales (without ickiness), marketing, negotiation, building relationships, business development, all sorts.

I learned from HUGE mistakes that we made when my husband had his business in 2014.  I learned from mistakes I made in my first business as a jewellery designer and maker, and the last 4 years in this business.

I know my stuff and it’s probably time I owned that.  The only people that really see it are those who work with me 1:1, particularly with the VIP half days that I run in person where it’s pretty much ALL business focused. Business focus but human centrered. 

So i’m going to tell you what I believe to be the most important thing in your business.

It may or may not come as a surprise to know that it’s you.

Before you roll your eyes i’ll explain what I mean.

Before we even get to the nitty gritty practical moving parts of running a business this NEEDS to be addressed.  Which is why we’re starting here.

We’re laying the foundations so you can create a solid business ‘house’ that can weather any storm.

If you don’t put YOU as the most important thing in your business all sorts of things can happen, and can’t happen.

Firstly if you don’t think about what you want for your life and how you want the business to run and what’s most important to you I promise you’re setting yourself up for a long road of frustration and heartache.

You’ll be building something that fundamentally you don’t really want, or doesn’t fit in with the lifestyle that you want.

You’ll be trying to build your business on platforms you hate being on, using a model that doesn’t actually work for you and what you want your life to look like or you’ll just create yourself another job.  Often worse than a job because there’s so much more emotion attached to it because it’s YOURS.  

And guess what happens with all this…yep…good old self sabotage!

So you’ll be ‘trying’ and ‘pushing’ to build your business and wondering why things aren’t working. 

You are the most important thing too in terms of looking after yourself, because if you’re not in a good place physically, mentally and emotionally, your business will probably suffer.

Particuarly if you operate a business model that totally relies on you.

This is why it’s important to factor you into the equation from every angle.

So my aim for you from this episode is to grab your journal and really think on these questions.

Do you have support in your business, personally and in the business?

Have you factored in what happens in your business if anything happens to you?  If you need time off for whatever reason.  Can you take it?

If you step back for a couple of months what would happen in your business?

Are you trying to build an audience on a platform you can’t stand being on? Is that affecting how you show up?

Do you have multiple revenue streams in place?

Do you have recurring revenue streams in place that keep coming in even if you don’t?  

How easy would it be for you to pivot if you wanted or needed to?

What hours can you/do you want to work?

Is your business set up so you can take a holiday?

Is your business set up so you can look after your own wellbeing?

What will bring you joy to deliver to your clients vs what could weigh you down?

What’s the big picture in terms of how you get to the income you want to create?

It’s really REALLY important to think about these things, they really are the foundation to your business success and longevity.

Most people tend to bypass these hugely important questions and go straight to things like ‘how can I grow on Instagram’. 

You already know from the last couple of weeks the biggest thing I think can help you have a business that gives you want you want for yourself and for your life is to have multiple revenue streams and recurring revenue streams.

So making sure that you have money coming into your business on a regular basis that doesn’t rely on you constantly having to sell more things!

If you missed the Race to Recurring Revenue challenge that my friend Lisa Johnson was running last week then I highly recommend that you check it out. You’ve got time to catch up and start thinking about these things by attending her Masterclass tonight at 8.00pm UK.  You can join at https://bit.ly/franrecurring

In it she goes into the 5 things you need to make recurring revenue online.  (If you’re listening to this after then just drop me a message on Instagram @imfranexcell)

She knows her stuff and in it she’s going to talk about her programme One To Many.  You’ve probably heard me talk about it many times before.  I’ve been a participant, a pod leader, the mindset expert within the programme twice and a partner on it 3 times.  

It’s everything you need to be able to create yourself a sustainable business model.  Create recurring revenue streams, build an audience, write copy, sell, it’s all in there. Think of it as business 101 with the dots connected!

You’ll get a TONNE of information that you can go and implement just from the masterclass.  

But, If you DO decide to join the programme you’ll get more than the investment from the course in bonuses from me too as a partner! 

You’ll have me literally in your corner to guide you through it. Accountability, support, mindset gremlin taming…BOOM! 

If you’re on my email list you’ll have already had a sneak peak of those. You can find them at https://bit.ly/fransOTMbonuses 

So you could have both me AND Lisa in your corner.  That’s a LOT of business knowledge right there. She went from £30k in debt to £4.5m per year in 4 years. I’ve seen the number of people who get results from her work.   

Combine that with the mindset work and my experience then you really are onto a winner. 

So the question becomes, have you put you as the most important asset in your business right now?  If not, what are you going to do to change that?

Fx

Fran Excell, Success Mindset Mentor at www.franexcell.com – Helping Business Owners & Executives Overcome Stress & Self Sabotage so they can get back their time, get off the emotional rollercoaster and feel more in control. 

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