Written by: Marques Ogden, Executive Contributor
Executive Contributors at Brainz Magazine are handpicked and invited to contribute because of their knowledge and valuable insight within their area of expertise.
At last, all your hard work is paying off. When your business grows, it's like a dream come true. But this dream could quickly become a nightmare if you don't develop it correctly.
The Seven Fatal Errors That Halt Growth for Small Businesses and how to avoid them.
No Strategic Plan
If you don't establish a solid business plan that covers your growth strategy, you can be confident that your growth will be chaotic. Things outside your control will fluctuate, and you will constantly be defensive. If you grow in a deliberate and controlled manner, you will direct this expansion and achieve your goals.
Repetition of Old Behavior
A typical error is doing the same thing over and expecting different results. When discovering something that works well, you should repeat it. But you must test and incorporate new concepts into your toolbox over time. By neglecting to evolve, many businesses become stagnant and hinder their growth.
Avoiding Constructive Feedback
Every time you try out an idea or do something, you get feedback. You need to listen to what the market says to understand it fully. Keep track of how your efforts and new ideas work out, and you'll learn what works and where to go.
Being focused on YOU and Not the Market
Your business will do well not because of what you do but because you meet the needs of your market. You need to know a lot about your target audience. This includes your ideal customers, the companies you're competing with, and your industry. Many businesses don't grow because they stop paying attention to what's going on in their market and lose contact.
Chasing After Every New Idea
You can try a million different things in your business, but to grow, you need focus. You can't waste time going down paths that don't lead anywhere. You'll have a lot of business opportunities, but you need to be able to tell which ones will make you money and give you results, and give your attention to those.
Working with the Wrong People
Many businesses need to pay more attention to whom they work with and partner with. You won't grow as you want to if you work with or hire the wrong people. Stay away from people who are toxic to you. Surround yourself with people with a victory mindset who think it's essential to help those around them.
Growing Too Fast Too Soon
You want your business to multiply, but growing too quickly can cause many problems. More of anything brings more risk than it's worth. This is true for investments, outsourcing, and other things. Focused, slow, and steady growth is best for a business. This is how long-term goals are reached and legacies are created.
Need help avoiding these fatal errors along your journey? If so, contact us today to create a coaching/consulting package for you and your success.
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Marques Ogden, Executive Contributor Brainz Magazine
Marques Ogden is a leader in leadership, marketing and sales, diversity and inclusion, mindset enhancement and overcoming adversity. After losing everything he owned in a bad business deal in 2013, he filed a chapter 7 bankruptcy, lost his home, his car, and all of his money and ended up taking a job as a janitor for $8.25 an hour working in the graveyard shift. After his "spoiled milk" moment, Marques decided to take accountability and responsibility for his life and he decided to turn his pain into his purpose to become an inspirational keynote speaker. Since April 2016, he has spoken for over 35 fortune 500 companies and he is a coach, a consultant, a best-selling author, a podcast co-host and more.
