elitefts™ Sunday Edition

Dave,

I'm an idiot. I have to make things hard for myself in order to get myself going and reach success. Have you ever gone through a period in your life when you felt like, if things were easier, you got bored and complacent? And lost sight of what the goal was until your back was against the wall? In other words, were you ever standing in your own way from reaching success, and what did you do to get out of your own way?

Thank you.

This is an easy answer.

NO.

Sometimes I wish that was the case. Since day one... if it hasn't been one thing it been two others. It has never been easy, but this forces me to continue learning, examining, re-thinking, questioning, looking from different perspectives, and being paranoid. I used to say that every small business is only a few months from being "out of business." I would like to add to that:

Every small business is one legal case away from being put out of business.

One bad employee from being put out of business.

One bad product from being put out of business.

One bad investment from being put out of business.

. . . I could list 1,000 things.

I highly suggest any business owner to do a SWOT analysis.

After doing so, keep this info to yourself. You NEVER tell your staff, consultants, or ANYONE about your biggest weaknesses and threats. Once again YOU TELL NOBODY! You can work with them on the smaller threats and weaknesses but NEVER share the biggest ones.

This is not just how you make your living, but it is also how your staff and the many others who work with your business make their living. You are responsible for FAR more than just yourself. I have learned the hard way that you can trust most people with some stuff, but you can't trust anyone with major issues. Well, there may be some you can, but this becomes a RISK- and one that really doesn't have any plus side. Finally, when it's all said and done, the other party really doesn't care. They have their own issues to worry about.

As a final note: If you have lost sight of your goal - find a new one. Business is not about setting and achieving goals. I can't stand people who say and write that shit. You can have a goal, set it, and achieve it, and it does nothing to move the business forward. In general, look at the goals people do set. They are always the "cool" things, and most of the time they will have some impact on success but not nearly as much as all the "uncool" things that HAVE to be done in order to grow.

For example, what is your overall knowledge of financial statements and fiance? Do you have any idea how important this is to ALL businesses? Do you also know how much this SUCKS unless this is what you are really passionate about?

You have to be extremely passionate about what you do because motivation doesn't last long. It's inconsistent, and it doesn't provide the faith needed when you are getting pummeled from all sides. Passion will get you through the worst shit and keep you going when others quit.

It's supposed to be hard. It's just that most people don't know what "hard" really means,

Dave Tate