When engaging in a small business startup it is important to have an understanding of what it takes to succeed in business. In this snapshot from an interview between Dale Beaumont and Lisa Messenger discover some great tips on succeeding in business. With a background in sponsorship, marketing and PR, Lisa is currently the managing director of Messenger Marketing and Messenger Publishing. She is also the author of two books, with a six-part series of books soon to be released.

What are the most important things you have learnt about succeeding in business?

1. Maintain your Focus

For too many years I didn’t do this and constantly diluted my efforts because I was running in different directions. While I still offered great service to clients, I constantly had to reinvent the wheel.

2. Build a Great Team

You can’t do it on your own. Let go of the reigns and get some helpers because if you can’t, you might as well give up right now.

3. Build Quality Client Relationships

This is paramount in my business as it is largely based on word of mouth. What is handy, however, is that we only have to work with people we like.

4. Create Leverage

My business is now extremely focused to the point that we can present the same concepts, ideas and intellectual property through multiple products with multiple price points to reach a wider audience.

5. Love What You Do

No, really love what you do! Be so passionate about your cause that you radically believe that you can achieve it. Keep reminding yourself why you’re pursuing your cause and keep raising the bar so you are constantly challenging yourself.

6. Have Self-Belief

When someone tells me I can’t do something, I persist even harder! So should you. Knockers usually crush your ideas and goals because they’re afraid to go there themselves. Before I have even written a word, I have already designed the book cover. I do this so that both my team and myself know that it is not just a pipe dream – it’s about owning my destiny.

7. Surround Yourself with Incredible Mentors

Realise that you don’t know it all and that you need to open up to learning new things from those who have achieved success in parallel industries. You become a product of what you surround yourself with.

8. Have Financial Acumen

If you don’t have financial skills, find someone on your team who does. Our core business went from a flat fee and retainer style of invoicing to a really complex system of third party suppliers with multiple clients and multiple products. When you go from a $50,000 a year turnover to a $100,000 a month turnover, you need incredible systems in place to make it work.

9. Develop Intuition

In the beginning I laboured over decisions, but now I don’t have the luxury of time. I’ve got people around me who do the research, but intuitively you’ve got to know yourself and you’ve got to trust your instinct.

For more of this interview and small business startup success tips, check out “Secrets of Entrepreneurs Under 40 Exposed!“

The post Small Business Startup Success Tips appeared first on Business Blueprint.

Discover top tips for success from a highly successful businesswoman and author in this interview between Dale Beaumont and Lisa Messenger.

With a background in sponsorship, marketing and PR, Lisa is currently the managing director of Messenger Marketing and Messenger Publishing. She is also the author of two books, with a six-part series of books soon to be released.

What are your top tips for success?

• Dream big – chase your dreams until they become reality and don’t be afraid of your passions. If you believe in them enough, you will find an inner strength to achieve them.
• Don’t procrastinate – try not to postpone anything for the wrong reason. If you have to put something off, make sure it’s because the time really isn’t right, not because you’re too afraid to start.
• Ban negative thinking – become aware of the negative patterns you are perpetuating and de-program them. Replace them with positive habits to create a new way of living.
• Maintain a positive outlook – believe that you can take on the world – you can! Remain focused and don’t let anyone drag you down. Wherever possible, break from convention and take risks.
• Find a level of inner peace – believe in a higher power that will take you beyond your emotional and intellectual boundaries. You may surprise yourself by how exciting the journey of personal discovery can be.
• Find a strong team – surround yourself with the best people. Create a brilliant team with brilliant minds.
• Dump – leave behind anything you are not passionate about. Pursuing ideas that don’t sit well with your personal philosophy or ethics is a waste of time and a drain on your energy.
• Delegate – pass on anything that doesn’t require top-level strategic thinking. That way you can keep yourself clear for important projects, to think and to dream.
• De-stress – deal with any issues that could become unmanageable as they arise. I have found that this is a great way to alleviate stress. I have also found it useful to create an effective ‘switch-off‘ mechanism when I’m out of the office. I have an extremely full life with golf, tennis, boxing, kayaking, writing (I am currently working on a novel and co-authoring six non-fiction books), meditation, walking and going to the movies to keep me de-stressed. I’ll pretty much try anything once and have managed to create an amazing work/life balance.
• Know who you are and what you want – I can now say that I am content and accepting of who I am. I now have a greater awareness of my values and my beliefs. I think it is important to look deep within yourself to realise who you truly are, where you came from and what made you the person you are today.
• Love what you do – if you don’t like what you are doing now, change it! Refuse to live a discontented life.
• Never give up – sometimes knowing what we want is the hardest part of life. But when I know what it is that I want, I have an uncanny knack of never giving up until I have made it happen. I have so many dreams and never want to close myself off to opportunities. I suppose that is the true essence of an entrepreneurial mind-set.

For more of this interview and tips for success check out “Secrets of Entrepreneurs Under 40 Exposed!“

The post Tips for Success appeared first on Business Blueprint.