Executive Business Coach Chuck Boyce: Generating Your Own Good LuckEntrepreneurs and small business owners of all types and stripes usually have one thing in common – they’re looking for the big business breakthrough that’s going to make them rich and successful. And some are lucky enough to find it. As a matter of fact, some are lucky enough to find a few of them. Then there’s the other camp – the ones who complain they have no luck and that’s why they can’t make a go of whatever their enterprise might happen to be. They may even make a comfortable living, but still bemoan the fact that they didn’t wake up with the idea for the iPod in the middle of the night. But is business success really about luck? To be fair, sometimes it is. This winter, for instance, if you ran a ski resort or sold snow blowers in the Northeast, you were lucky. But true business success has to be about more than good luck, because it’s not simply something we can depend on, as anyone who’s been to Las Vegas knows. Let’s get back to that iPod idea. No one would claim that Steve Jobs just had good luck on his side when he came up with that or countless other Apple innovations that changed our view of technology forever. Jobs was committed to his vision and seeing that vision through – even when he was briefly thrown out of Apple (his own company!) in the mid-eighties. As a great philosopher once said, “Luck is when preparation meets opportunity.” Any small business guide should have an entire chapter devoted to the fact that entrepreneurs make their own luck. We can’t control the “opportunity” part – but there’s nothing stopping us from putting in the right preparation. How do we do that?
Whatever business sector you’re in, you need to be continually educating yourself about it and researching the latest trends in it. Many small business owners make the fatal mistake of saying to themselves, “I know this business inside and out” – and fail to keep up to date with important evolutions that can eventually shrink or even bankrupt their business.
Any business has its slow times and down days, as well as problems and obstacles. Not giving up and seeing tough situations through as they come up means you’re setting yourself up for future success.
Sometimes you need to look outside your own business bubble for outside guidance and opinions to enable you to see the “big picture.” Masterminding with other entrepreneurs or using a skilled small business coach can often lead to those “lucky” breakthroughs that take your business to a whole new level.
When Steve Jobs returned to Apple in the 90’s, he had learned enough from his experiences both building Apple from scratch and being on his own to understand what was needed to fully create the level of success he was after. While his early Apple economic track record was rocky, he returned, older and wiser, to fully realize his innovative vision. You don’t turn away good luck, but you don’t wait for it either. Today is the day you need to deal with. Put all your energy and brainpower to work on your business now so you can reap the rewards later. “Independent Executive” Chuck Boyce is an experienced small business coach who can help you get the most out of your business. For more information on how you achieve your business goals, go to www.breakingfreeblog.com. |
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