When starting a business, it can sometimes be difficult to know what to prioritize, and it can just be overwhelming. But there are strategies you can use to avoid common pitfalls.
My mission is to teach people how to make money from passion. That’s what I did: I went from living on food stamps to building two online businesses.
Today, I run a music blog, The Recording Revolution, and an entrepreneurial coaching company. I work just five hours a week from my home office and earn $160,000 a month in passive income.
Here’s what I’ve told 3,000 clients to think about in the first 30 days of starting a business:
1. Be clear about how you want to spend your time.
Many new business owners I meet know only one thing: how much money they want.
While that is a good starting point, it is not complete. Your business should serve your life, not the other way around. So make sure it aligns with your hopes, dreams and goals.
To find out what kind of business and life you want, ask yourself three questions:
- What is a perfect day for you? Don’t just think about your typical work day. Consider other life activities that you want to fit into your day, such as exercising or spending time with your family.
- How many hours do you want to work a week? You don’t have to follow the standard 40 hour work week. Knowing exactly how many hours you want to work will help you better prioritize your tasks.
- How important is rest time? Some people don’t care about taking breaks, as long as they enjoy what they do. Others consider a longer rest period. In order to earn money while you’re not working, you need to have some passive income stream.
2. Simplify your business model.
When I started my music education business, people told me I needed to try sales pages, throw launch parties and pre-record lots of ads to grow.
Instead of building it thin, I kept it simple and focused on three things: creating weekly content for my blog and YouTube channel, growing my email list from my audience, and promoting my paid products. made for that list.
If you’re just starting out, create content about your expertise to grow your audience. It doesn’t have to be perfect. You can iterate as you go and design new products based on what your customers want.
3. Cut out unnecessary daily tasks.
Identify daily activities that will help you achieve more. Don’t waste time or burn yourself out by focusing on unimportant tasks.
It may feel good to get to inbox zero or change the color of the buttons on the website, especially in the early days where you want to feel like you have achieved your goal. But none of these things will make you money.
Before starting a new task, ask yourself three questions:
- What is the expected result of doing this task?
- Does it lead to more money?
- Can I point to a direct link between doing these tasks and earning them?
- What does it cost to do this over others?
4. Prioritize having fun.
People can tell if you’re just doing something for the money or if you really love what you do. That authenticity will connect you more deeply to your customers and will sustain you for the long term.
You don’t want to burn out because you spend all your time doing things that don’t benefit you.
I always give students this framework when they start their entrepreneurial journey: Build a business around something you see yourself doing and enjoying for the next 10 years.
Graham Cochrane is the founder of The Recording Revolution and the author of “How to Get Paid for What You Know.” He has helped over 3,000 people launch and grow their own businesses. Follow him Instagram and Twitter.
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