Set Yourself Up for Success

“Have the right mindset shift, and you’ll be successful. As long as you tell yourself you can do something, you’ll do it,” are common beliefs.

In the words of Henry Ford, “Whether you think you can, or you think you can’t – you’re right,”

I 100% agree with the sentiment. The way we think often stops us from achieving great things more than any actual obstacle ever will.

That said, telling yourself you can is not enough. You also need to set yourself up for success. You need to go beyond a simple mindset shift. If you don’t, you’re engaging in nothing more than wishful dreaming.

From mindset shift to action

I can decide to make a million dollars. I can tell myself it’s possible for me to make that kind of money. But if I haven’t laid the groundwork for it, it’s not happening.

Is deciding to make a million dollars even a realistic goal at all? As long as you have a timeframe that makes sense, sure.

There are probably many things to do in your goal of making a million dollars. My best advice to people is to always start with something. If you have a long list of things to be done, pick one and run with it.

Constantly thinking about the 100 things that need doing can be overwhelming. Only focusing on the one task that needs to be done by noon today is much more manageable.

Knowing yourself

The key to success is understanding there are no universal methods of doing things. What works for me might not work for you.

I know there are people who thrive if they’re working with a two-page to-do list. They get a thrilling feeling of satisfaction every time they cross off something from the list. I also know people who become frozen at the sight of a long list waiting for them.

Do what works for you.

If you’re not technologically inclined, get someone to help you come up with a framework. Look for people who can help you learn the tech.

Consider your situation

It’s important to look at your business and your skillset. Decide what makes sense for you to do, and what can be automated or contracted out.

Delegating

I can picture all you small business owners going, “I’m a one-person shop. Who am I delegating stuff to?”

I get that. Many small businesses prefer to operate a one-person show. It’s cost and time effective.

That said, you’re not necessarily an expert at all the things you are trying to do. I’ll use my own website as an example.

I built the first version of my own website. It took me forever to finish. All the time I spent working on it is time I could have spent chasing down new leads or serving my current customers.

In addition, I made mistakes a professional wouldn’t have made. For instance, my entire website didn’t have anything about me on it.

By building my own website, I wasted valuable time, and still produced a subpar product.

Automation

When I say automation, I’m sure many of you are picturing a futuristic robot carrying out most of your tasks.

That’s not what I’m referring to. I’m thinking about systems and tools that make your work easier.

For instance, do you use a piece of software that schedules your social media posts? Is your accounting program set up to automatically send out your bills?

Automation is about doing the actual work now, with the full assurance it will be implemented at the right time.

You can write all your email campaign messages today, and schedule them to go out the following week. When next week comes, those messages will be sent out, even if you are busy doing something else.

Don’t stop at the mindset shift

Telling yourself you can do something is great. I wish more people took the time to do that. However, without an actionable plan, your mindset shift remains a daydream.

I know developing systems does not easily come to everyone. If you’re having challenges, book a call with me today, and I’ll help you simplify systems in your business.