In this article 27 business owners share their tips on how to stay positive as a business owner. Please share with all your friends and networks so everyone can benefit from this knowledge!
INVEST in your Knowledge
Invest in yourself and increase your knowledge bank to enable you to move to your next level of success.
Janice Davies Attitude Specialist
www.attitudespecialist.co.nz
Worried Entrepreneurs? Five Simple Tips To Stay Positive
Staying positive in an Entrepreneurial game can be challenging. Here are the five simple steps to help worried entrepreneurs stay positive
Lalitha Brahma, Elbee Services, LLC
elbeeservicesllc.blogspot.com
Surround Yourself with Beauty
Just like the practice of Feng Shui suggests, surround yourself with things that support you, your intentions, and your goals. Buy a plant with rounded leaves or a bouquet of flowers to put near your desk. Hang a painting that brings you peace and choose soothing colors to surround you. These things will bring mental clarity and positive thoughts in your direction.
Michelle Hill, Winning Proof
www.winningproof.com
The Power of Positive Influences
Surround yourself with an optimistic circle of friends and associates. Positive people can be uplifting, allowing you to see things in a different light and keeping you from floundering in negativity. Those around us can influence us – good and bad – just as we can influence them. So it is important to remember that we have the power to positively influence other people’s lives as much as our own. Be a positive influence and it will be contagious.
Kelley Briggs, DesignWorks NY, LLC
www.designworksny.com
It’s All About Your Mindset
“Whether you think that you can, or that you can’t, you are usually right.” Henry Ford – Spend time and energy into developing a positive self esteem, a healthy emotional awareness and a disciplined mind talk. Your mind talk is the single most important ingredient in you having a positive outlook on life. It will be this that makes the biggest impact on whether you succeed in life and in business and above all, give you the tools to enjoy the experience along the way.
Vanessa Davey, Venus Clubs NZ
www.venusclubs.co.nz
Problem, No Problem
There is never a problem in small business, only the opportunity to learn, to seek then implement a profitable solution.
Ian Nye – Consultant
au.linkedin.com/pub/ian-nye/a/b85/402
Sales Strategies for Hard Times
Sales and marketing organisations everywhere want to know the answer to one question: “How can we sell our way out of trouble?” Doing more of what you’ve always done isn’t going to help. What works in good times may actually be counterproductive in hard times. Be proactive and read some of the latest sales strategies that work during hard times in this whitepaper.
Ralph Vugts, Huthwaite Sales Performance
blog.huthwaite.com.au
You are not alone
As small business owners we can often become overwhelmed with the tasks that face us on a day to day basis. We are, after all, the marketing department, the finance department, the HR department as well as being the technical expert. All these tasks can take their toll on us, leaving us feeling negative and wondering why we even decided to get into business. But wait! There is hope…
Jitesh (Jits) Doolabh
www.revonet.co.nz
Celebrate Success
As a business owner you will have successes and failures: some big and some small. The important thing is to celebrate every success, whatever its size, and don’t let the failures get you down. Use failure as a means of learning something new, a lesson on how to improve your business so you are better prepared next time. Take the lesson, then move on.
Michael Smyth, Approachable Lawyer.com
www.approachablelawyer.com
“It Is What It Is”
It is not about denying the current situation but acknowledging today’s challenges and having an action plan to overcome them. Where we put our attention is all that matters. If our attention is on the next most important action towards a solution then we are treading the path to success.
In this moment I need nothing, there are however some situations I am going to change.
Ted Sweeney, Essence Lingerie Ltd
[email protected]
Learn from Your Mistakes
It is very important to look at setbacks and difficult times in your business as golden opportunities to learn from and to help improve your business. Look at challenges as opportunities and not as stumbling blocks. Some of the biggest companies today are successful due to their ability to adapt, change and learn from their mistakes.
H.E.Muller, The Link Building Guy
www.specialprayer.webs.com
Protect All Your Assets
You will have or use some intellectual property (copyright, trademarks, patents). Ensure that you know, protect and make the most of your intellectual property by confirming all arrangements in writing, remembering that although the employer will own most of the employee’s work, the same does not happen with consultants, subcontractors or outsourcers and ensuring that you do not infringe somebody’s else intellectual property.
Maria Anassutzi, Anassutzi & Co Limited legal & Business Strategists
www.anassutzi.com
Name Not too high not too low
The best tip I received was to be careful to not get to high when things are going well and to not get to low when things are going badly. All businesses have peaks and valleys
Kevin Willett, Friends of Kevin
www.friendsofkevin.com
Create New Possibilities
Staying positive is about staying unstuck! The easiest way to get unstuck is to create change in the area of “stuckness” – it doesn’t have to be the ‘right’ and perfect change – just enough change for us to see the situation differently! I like to ask ‘What other possibilities could I consider here?’ and list at least ten. Our choice can always be for change rather than challenge! (See link for more insights!)
Lisa Murray, Revive Business Coaching
Freedom to Choose
The one constant in your business is your particular set of values. You can choose to align yourself with businesses that share a similar philosophy, allowing you to do your best work. In a challenging economy, it is harder to stick to your principles than follow any dollar. But that’s when it is most empowering. That freedom to choose your “why, what, how and with whom” will keep you going.
Jane Pellicciotto, Allegro Design
www.allegro-design.com
2011 Recession Business Survival Plan – Taking Positive Action
As we close 2010 we look back at the lessons learned and forward to new opportunities. Below are critical points we saw illustrated by among the most successful and intelligent people in their various businesses. Despite their phenomenal business track records few were untouched by the recent crisis. Here are some “lessons” we feel most important to examine for yourself as we tackle 2011 with positive momentum.
Ike Devji, Asset Protection Attorney
www.proassetprotection.com
Keep the spirits up
When you go to visit an authentic Chinese health practitioner, the first thing they will do is check if there is still light and spirit in your eyes. If there is, that is the most important indication for the possibility of recovery. The best thing we can do for ourselves in times of difficulty is keep our spirits up. Do whatever it takes to keep yourself happy and healthy so that you can cope with whatever life throws at you.
Kim Knight, Tao Health
www.taohealth.co.nz
Follow Your Own Convictions
No matter what people say about the economy and how difficult it is, follow your own convictions and push forward with all your drive and intention to make something happen no matter what. Create opportunities and open doors for possibilities even when you think there is none. Don’t become complacent or comfortable, think outside the box, look into other markets or knock on doors that perhaps you wouldn’t have in the past.
Bonnie Moss, President and Founder of Moss Networks, Inc.
www.MossNetworks.com
Stay Positive by Staying Engaged
All business owners become discouraged at some point – the operative phrase is “all business owners”. It’s very important to engage with other business owners, through social media networks like LinkedIn, Twitter, and Facebook, and talk about your issues. Get advice, commiserate, and share. By opening up and engaging, you help each other over the humps.
Tobey Deys, Lomotron Corp
http://lomotron.com
How to make your year more positive than ever
As a successful business coach and accountant, I’ve shared these 2 quotes with my clients: * “Birds of a feather hang together” – surround yourself with positive people. Distance yourself from people who’ve nothing better to do than complain; * Think positively & banish negative thoughts. Don’t waste energy thinking negatively? The great man, Henry Ford, once proclaimed, “Whether you believe you can or you can’t, either way you’re right.”
Mark Gwilliam
www.mark-gwilliam.com
The Recession Is Part Of The Journey Of Your Business
Adjust your profit expectations according to the condition of the economy. Remember that the majority of businesses do not have the same level of profits they did when the economy was strong. The recession is a part of the journey of your business that can be a helpful lesson. Use this time to reflect upon the mission of your business and the value it brings to the community. The strategies you develop now to survive and make daily progress, can help your company flourish as the economy improves.
Sherry – The Perfect Pearl Place
http://www.ThePerfectPearlPlace.com
Focus on your Strengths
Running your own business is hard work and the amount of time, energy and sheer perseverance should not be underestimated. It can also be quite a lonely and isolated existence, so don’t focus on what went wrong. Learn yes, but focus on your strengths, take time out to pat yourself on the back and recognise your achievements, how far you’ve come, what you’ve learnt and then build on the positives.
Alison Page – Alison Page Marketing
www.alisonpagemarketing.co.uk
Fall down 8 times, get up 9
I agree with William Shakespeare when he said “There is no good or bad, only thinking makes it so.”
Humans have always had two choices: react negatively or react positively. Both take the same energy and effort but only one will be far more productive. You just need to make the choice. Believing yourself and backing yourself is infectious. If you do lose, don’t lose the lesson. Learn, apply and move on. You’ll be better for it. And remember: make things happen!
St John Craner, Distinct Marketing
www.distinct.co.nz/blog
What do you really feel?
Keeping positive in business is a work!
You can train yourself to be positive, say daily affirmations and draw pictures of your success which will help maintain your positive attitude.
However you also need to talk about the difficulties from time to time. Here is a tried and true process for de-briefing your feelings which will help you stay real and positive.
John Faisandier, Managing Director, TUF: Thriving Under Fire
www.tuf.co.nz
Celebrate, Connect, and Learn from Setbacks
1). Celebrate even small victories. When times are tough it’s easy to get down on yourself. But to stay motivated, it’s important to recognize forward momentum in all ways. 2). Surround yourself with optimistic, inspiring people. Recharge by connecting with positive-minded colleagues, mentors, and up-and-coming talent. 3). Strive for constant improvement. See setbacks as bumps in the road rather than failures. Learn from them to make better decisions next time.
Karen Fojas Lee, Nomad Chique
www.nomadchique.com
When things go wrong, look at it as an opportunity
Look at setbacks as opportunities and focus on ways to improve your business rather than dwell on things not going to plan – some of our biggest successes have come about as a direct result of action taken after a failure. Finding someone like-minded to bounce ideas off and that is as enthusiastic as you are about the business, can also be a great way to stay positive in tough times.
Louisa Currie from Belly Beyond
www.bellybeyond.co.nz
Join A Mastermind
Staying positive can be hard for anyone. You need support. Find a good mastermind group that you can join. I’m not talking about your standard networking group but a high end mastermind. They will give you fresh ideas along with the support and motivation you need.
Ely Delaney – My Business Marketing Mentor
MarketingMentorTraining.com