I come across many people in my classes who want to start their own but find several excuses to never start one.
More often than not, it comes down to something as simple as lacking confidence. So, how can aspiring business owners and entrepreneurs gain the confidence they need to start a business? Here are 4 suggestions that can help.
- Give up the need to be perfect
Is perfection one of your excuses for not starting your business? Do you tell yourself, “I’ll start my business when the time is right or when I gain this skill or when I have this exact amount of money saved up?”
Perfection is simply a judgement, but one that we often use to set a standard for what we want and what we desire to achieve. But what many of us will come to realize is that striving for perfection can only end in failure, because it is completely unrealistic.
There are so many success stories of people who started from nothing, or don’t have any qualifications, or a support system, building successful businesses. They didn’t have a perfect skill, perfect moment or perfect, yet they succeeded. So, why can’t you do the same? What if you could embrace where your strengths lie? And if there’s an area where you’re lacking a skill, why not hire the right people to take command of that area? After all, having a team backing you is one of the many things that comes with owning a business. Stop using your desire for perfection to diminish your confidence and stop you from starting your business – why not start it right now!
- Destroy other people’s judgements and judgements you have of yourself
Has someone ever told you that you weren’t good enough? Or you weren’t smart enough? Perhaps you’ve told yourself you’re not good enough or smart enough? Or you can’t do something?
These are all examples of judgements, judgements you have of yourself and judgements that other people have of you. Whether they are positive or negative, they are judgements we receive, keep and ultimately become a limitation in our life. Each time you buy into these judgments, you diminish yourself, your confidence, your value, your wants and your needs.
Ask yourself, “do these judgments belong to me?” Most of the time, the answer is no. So, why do you want to give power to others instead of keeping your own power? Destroy all the judgments you’ve received from others – acknowledge them, and then let them go.
What judgement of yourself do you have that limits you? Judgments of not being perfect? Not doing the right thing all the time? Have you noticed that many of your judgements start with “why?” For example: “Why did I arrive late?” “Why am I not as smart as this person?” “Why can’t I speak up during a meeting?” A question starting with why, is not a generative question. Most of the time there is a judgment attached to this question. The ‘why’ is an intrusion, and as soon as you answer, you’ve given up your power and your confidence. There is no need to justify yourself, as soon you do this, you trap yourself in a cycle of judgment.
What if you could start your business today and that was required was destroying the judgments you have of yourself? What’s really stopping you from doing what you want to do?
- Interesting point of view
What if all judgments we received from people were just interesting points of view? What if all judgments we have about others and ourselves are interesting points of view?
Each point of view you have limits you and removes the choices you could have. For example, I have this point of view, “I don’t like coffee because it’s not good for my health”. But, there are some studies that claim coffee is bad for you and others that claim it is good. At the end of the day, this simple point of view traps me in a situation where I’ve already made up my mind that I won’t drink coffee and nothing will change it. Perhaps my body wants coffee! If I don’t change my point of view, I’ll never have coffee.
The same can be said in business – if you have a limiting point of view, you may never be able to do what you actually want to. If your point of view is that “I can’t start my business right now, because…” you never will. But, what is the value for you to be attached to this point of view? What does it create in your life? What if you let go of these limiting points of view?
4. Ask questions
Asking open ended questions will help you see a situation in a completely different light. When you ask certain questions, different choices, possibilities and options, that you may not have thought of before, will show up. You may discover that you had a piece of knowledge locked away, or a skill unrelated to business that might ultimately help you, in business. Questions will allow you to see areas where your strengths lie and where you may be lacking and need more knowledge, experience, skills or need to hire someone else to help out.
Here are some questions to help you get started and help you tap into your confidence:
- What is the value of having this judgment?
- What’s the value of being perfect?
- What invention am I using to stop myself?
- What limitation am I using for not being seen?
- If I stopped telling my own story, what would change in my life?
- If I can change the whole energy of my past on things blocking me for now and my future what does this will create?
- What would it take to create ease for me?
- Who else can I hire, talk to or ask to help with tasks and activities, that can do them with total ease?
- Who can I talk to that will help me get through this task, issue, situation or problem, or look at it from a different perspective?
By considering these 4 tips, you will be able to unlock your true confidence to start your own business, or build upon your business if you already have one. The mark of a great entrepreneur and business owner is to look at what you can do to be greater, rather than striving for perfection, removing judgements you have of yourself, acknowledge other points of view and ask questions.
Christian Verny has been an IT consultant for over 30 years and has managed hundreds of projects for various companies in France and around Europe. In 2016, he discovered Access Consciousness and a new way of being. From being rationally mind, calculated and organized, he felt a new energy when he realized the power of seeing wider possibilities instead of doing business, relationships – and indeed life – in the exact same way for decades. He is a personal development coach and an Access Consciousness Certified Facilitator specialising in Right Voice For You classes.
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