Without quite meaning to, I've been writing a little series on exploring the support your business needs (this is just one area you might want to explore.)
Now that you know what you need, and you've explored your options of getting your partner's support, it's time to branch out and get support from the whole wide world.
Instead of thinking about all the options out there, focus in on your needs.
When you thought about what you needed, what where the tasks that came to mind? (Take a moment to write them out!)
Now, for each item on your list, who would be the best person to help you with that?
Some of your options for support:
- Teacher
- Mentor
- Assistant
- Professionals (lawyer, accountant)
- Community of peers (other businesses)
- Community of Right People (your buyers and supporters)
- Real-world community
- Family
Go on and take notes on your list!
The next step is to find the specific person you need.
If, for example, you are new to sharing your thing with the rest of the world, you might just want to read a book about that. But if you've read a few books and your problem is actually DOING it, perhaps you need the accountability of other explorers. If you need ideas for your newest product – don't ask a teacher or other businesses – go right to your community of buyers and talk to them about what they love, use and need.
The trick here is to remember what you need specifically – the actual tasks or barriers you currently struggle with – and then to seek out what will help you overcome (or accomplish) it.
Even though this is simple, are you doing it?
Or are you taking every class that's offered, and buying random books? Do you have lots of general knowledge, but no idea what to do for your specific situation? I know – it's tempting to download and stockpile it (without using it) because you don't want to miss out! I'm guilty of this too! But this gather-everything-and-then-sort-it-out method is why you feel overwhelmed. It's why you still feel unsupported.
Don't get me wrong, I totally believe in investing in your business (and your business education). I wouldn't offer books, classes and support if I didn't know it was helpful. But it's helpful for the people who have the specific need. The best investments I've ever made have been those that filled a need I had right then, or that related to a new adventure I was embarking on.
So what do YOU need? Where can you find it?
During this exploration of my own relationship to support, I made two big changes to my business, which I'll be sharing with you Thursday (you can subscribe so you don't miss it.)