executive business coach

Bye Bye Safety Nets

I’ve been in business for almost 15 years.  I’ve had times of struggle, times of steady growth, and times of rapid growth and huge changes.  When I look back at my times of rapid growth and success, there was always one thing in common.  I completely got rid of my safety net.

The first big leap, my husband quit his job to support me in making a short term push to reach a rank that would provide us with enough income to support our family.  The second time, I closed down my business (which was half our families income) to follow my inspiration and become a speaker and coach.  The third time, I resigned from my beloved job where I was making 9,000-12,000 a month to start my own company.  Every one of them was risky and every one of them was right for my family.

It’s a big risk leaving behind a stable paycheck to step into the world of entrepreneur-ship.  Some people stand on the side lines for years waiting for the right moment.  Others jump right in and hope they don’t drown.  No two people’s journeys will look the same, but there are some common principles that will help you progress towards your goals!’

First identify your safety nets.  If you didn’t notice the common theme, money is a common safety net for me.  If I am comfortable and taken care of, it is soooo easy for me to settle.  But when my family is depending on me to produce money to pay the bills, I show up!  Money is not everyone’s safety net and I don’t recommend that everyone quit their jobs to start their business.  Most people do better with a gradual transition.  But you still have safety nets.  It could be staying inside your comfort zone and only talking to a select group of people.  It could be not hiring household help so that you can fall back on being too busy taking care of the home and kids.  It could be something entirely different.  Running a business with a safety net in place is kind of like running a diet with a tub of Ben and Jerry’s in the freezer.  Willpower only works for so long until you go running back to it.

Once you know what your safety net is, don’t just cut it and let it go.  That would be unwise.  First, firm up your plan.  When my husband quit his job so many years ago to support me, it wasn’t a reckless decision.  We carefully weighed out how much we needed to get by, what it would take for me to reach that level every month, what our potential income was in the future and mapped out a plan for me to accomplish it.  If you are going to cut the safety net and jump in, make sure you have a landing plan!

Last tip for you is to put some skin in the game.  If your business is too easy to walk away from, you have a problem.  In my early years of business, I did not have enough skin in the game.  If I made extra money, great.  If I didn’t, great.  When things got hard (and they always do at some point), it was VERY easy for me to rationalize why I didn’t need to succeed and finish the goal.  I meet business owners all the time who desire HUGE amounts of growth.  But when I ask them about what they are willing to sacrifice to get it, they are simply not willing to sacrifice.  They don’t want to disrupt the schedule.  They don’t want to invest in learning new skills.  They want it all, but without paying the price.  It doesn’t work that way!  Be wise in determining what that will look like for you!  The first thing I ever did that put skin in the game, was hire someone to come and help me in my home for a few hours a week.  All of the sudden, I had to work because I had someone to pay!  It got me moving!  The most life changing skin in the game experience was when I invested over $25000 into a business coach.  It was terrifying, but it taught me the skills to create a strong and very profitable business.  Figure out what that will look like for you!  Then take a deep breath, believe in yourself, pray a lot, jump in and get to work. For more details visit here : http://amywalkerconsulting.com/