I don't want you to get to the point where you feel you have to "burn it down" when it comes to your business. In the last few years there have been several "big" online entrepreneur names that have shut down their businesses completely. I respect them for doing what they needed and wanted to do but my goal is help you build a business of your dreams and not your nightmares so let's get ahead of this for you.
See one of these "I'm out" messages: Vanessa Lau shared this message when she decided to stop everything in her business and take a sabbatical.
Instead of hitting the point where you shut it all down, you can take intentional action now to prevent this drastic shift. It's all about getting clear on how you define success and what enough is for you. These things help you stay grounded in what you want so you don't get swept up in the online chase for more.
What Leads To The Feeling Of "I Need To Burn It All Down"
Let's take a virtual trip together for a minute...
Fast forward 5 years and imagine that you've achieved every goal you set and have exceeded your expectations for your business. You have more than enough money so you're feeling secure with finances. Everything is "successful" on paper. But while your bank account looks incredible, you realize that the things that really matter to you have been put off to the side so that you could reach those goals. Your relationships are struggling, your health is struggling and you're exhausted. What started as a passion has now become dread and drains you completely.
Back to today...
This is not what you're looking for in life but it's easy to get there. This reality comes from trying to do it "all" based on what others are doing and always striving for "more".
You're not alone in this and there is nothing wrong with you for falling into this trap. When we step into the world of entrepreneurship it's easy to consume all the information so you can learn fast and make progress. This is especially the case for Accidental Entrepreneurs because you don't feel qualified to run a successful business so you do everything you can to learn from others.
Learning from others is fantastic and I believe you can be inspired by others in great ways as long as you're grounded in how YOU define success.
So-and-so is chasing $100K months but you really only want $100K years
So-and-so loves using sales calls but you dread them like the plague
So-and-so wants luxury vacations 6 times a year but you'd rather renovate your home
Success is defined different by everyone but somehow as entrepreneur's we slip into a general bucket based on what's trending. There's always going to be a new thing trending whether it's a marketing tactic or product on the market.
"You have to have the new stanley cup but your cabinet is filled with yeti's from a few years ago and before that it was tervis tumblers." - Amanda McKinney
Just like there will be another cup company in a few years, there will always be a new business target that people are striving for. The treadmill is never-ended UNLESS you stop it by defining success on your terms.
The more 'success' you see in your business, the more opportunities you'll be presented with so it's important to know what you will say yes or no to BEFORE those opportunities come up. This will help you set yourself up for long term success versus hitting the point of "I need to burn it all down".
**This was also a podcast episode (episode #184. Use the player below if you'd prefer to listen to this message.
How You Can Avoid Arriving At Burning Your Business Down
Here are my suggestions on how we can all avoid arriving at this place of "burn it down, I'm out". There are certainly other things you can do to help avoid this but these are the first steps to ensure you don't hit this point.
Define Success On Your Terms
Knowing this helps you deal with comparison and chasing shiny objects that you see others doing.
Last year I went on a journey that changed a lot about my life and business when I was asked the question "what does success FEEL like for you?". My answer was my goal "I want to hit 6-figures this year".
I was defining success with a goal but what I learned last year is that goals and success are different.
Success is the destination.
Goals are milestones to reach your destination.
So I want you to remove your goal completely from your mind right now and ask yourself what does success FEEL like for you? And this doesn't have to be a destination that takes 5 years to get to, you can take this a step further and ask "how can I feel successful each day?".
For me, in this season of my life I've defined success as being present in my life, content with what I have and also challenging myself in new ways.
If I'm present with whoever I'm with, that's success.
If I'm content with what I have, that's success.
If I'm challenging myself, that's success.
Do I reach this every day? Heck no! I strive for it daily and the more I do it, the happier I am in life and business.
ACTION: Ask yourself what does success feel like for you?
Know What Enough Is For You
Knowing this helps you from falling into the "I need more" trap. You can strive for more as a goal but knowing what enough is helps you stay grounded.
I realize that money allows us to live life so I know it's part of the success equation as well. While I don't have it as part of my current definition, I do fully understand what enough is financially so that my needs are met in business and personally.
Knowing what "enough" is for you is critical because it helps you not constantly strive for "more". This relates to finances as well as your work/life integration.
Financially - understand what your monthly expenses are in business and if you're contributing to your household finances, what you need to be bringing in. Find the exact number.
Work/Life Integration - understand what enough working hours are for you so work doesn't take over your life.
ACTION: Identify what "enough" is for you financially and working hours.
Establish Checkpoints So You Can Check In
Taking this action helps you stay on track with what you really want in life and business so that you don't get 5 years down the road and think "how did I get here".
I highly recommend setting 90 Day Goals and doing Quarterly Checkins with yourself. By doing this you're able to ask yourself a set a questions to ensure you don'g get too far down the road of chasing other people's definition of success.
ACTION: Set a 90 day goal based on your definition of success and then put a date on your calendar to do a quarterly checkin 90 days later. Treat it like a doctors appoint that you will not miss. Ask yourself these questions:
What does success feel like for me?
Do I feel successful currently? If yes, celebrate. If not, identify why.
Evaluate actions you're taking in business, identify if you want to continue doing those things or change things to better fit your life.
All of these things are part of what I call your Y.O.U. Promise, which is a framework that I came up with when I was writing my book Why Not You? An Accidental Entrepreneur's Guide To Success. In this book I walk through the nitty-gritty of defining success then specific tools that will help you achieve success on your terms.
Why Not You?
Ac Accidental Entrepreneur's Guide To Success
Take Away Message / Action
Take time to define success on your terms and then identify what enough is for you financially and from a work life integration standpoint too. By doing these two things you're in a better place to not hit the point of "burn it all down, I'm out". Then be sure to put quarterly checkins on your calendar every 90 days so you don't get too far down the road before you recognize you're on a path you're not enjoying.
Until next time give yourself permission to change things before you reach "burn it down" status and grace along the way. I'll talk to you soon.
"Instead of hitting the point where you shut it all down, you can take intentional action now to prevent this drastic shift. It's all about getting clear on how you define success and what enough is for you."
- Amanda McKinney
Your Guide To Accidental Entrepreneurship
You're building a business with intention and want it to support the life you dream of so it's time to do this on your terms. You can do this by declaring your Y.O.U. Promise which is what I walk you through in my book:
Why Not You? An Accidental Entrepreneur's Guide To Success.
Order your copy using the button below.