Top Ten Tips for Self-Employment Success

  • Ian Sanders
  • 2012-01-10 09:12:00.0

From Ian Sanders, author of Leap!: Ditch Your Job, Start Your Own Business & Set Yourself Free & Juggle: Rethink Work, Reclaim Your Life



1. BE FOCUSED: There's lots to do; so you need to stay focused on building a business and growing revenues. Don't get distracted by less important tasks.


2. BE CLIENT-CENTRIC: Relationships with clients are at the heart of every business; so make sure you super-serve.


3. KEEP IT LEAN: Don't blow your funds on flash offices and glossy brochures, keep overheads low.


4. CHARGE ENOUGH:
... for your products and services: be creative in your pricing and financial models to maximise profitability.


5. BE ENTERPRISING: Be smart in creating business opportunities, in turning contacts into clients, and ideas into invoices.


6. BE GOOD AT PROMOTION: This isn't for the shy; you need to be good at sales and at spreading the word about what you do.


7. HAVE SELF BELIEF: You've got to truly believe you can be a success and that you can realise your goals. If not, entrepreneurship is not for you!


8. MAKE SURE YOU ARE GOOD AT IDEAS: …at generating innovative ideas for your own business and also coming at ideas from a fresh-perspective for your clients too.


9. BE FLEXIBLE: Be prepared to re-write the rules and to re-invent yourself.


10. BE GOOD AT JUGGLING: When you start out you don't just have to win the business you also have to do the business. And that's a lot to juggle, from sales and recruitment to IT and operations.