When starting a business, it’s sometimes hard to know what to prioritize, and doing it alone can be overwhelming. But there are strategies you can use to avoid common pitfalls.
My mission is to teach people how to make money from their passion. Here’s what I did: I went from living on food stamps to building Two companies online.
Today, I run a music blog, Recording revolutionand a Entrepreneurship training company. I only work five hours a week from my home office and make $160,000 a month in passive income.
Here’s what I tell my 3,000 clients to think about in the first 30 days of starting a business:
1. Be clear about how you want to spend your time.
Many of the new business owners I meet know only one thing: how much money they want to make.
While this is a great starting point, it is incomplete. Your business should serve your life, not the other way around. So make sure it aligns with your hopes, dreams, and goals.
To clarify what kind of work and life you want, ask three questions:
- What does the perfect day look like for you? Don’t just think about your typical work day. Consider other life activities that you want to fit into your day, such as playing sports or spending time with family.
- How many hours do you want to work per week? You do not have to follow the standard 40 hour work week. Knowing exactly how many hours you want to work will help you better prioritize tasks.
- What is the importance of leave? Some people don’t care much about taking a vacation, as long as they love what they’re doing. Others value extended time. In order for money to flow when you’re not working, you’ll need some type of passive income stream.
2. Simplify your business model.
When I started my music education business, people told me I needed to test my sales pages, do launch parties and pre-record a bunch of ads in order to grow.
Instead of stretching out doing things that make no sense to me, I kept it simple and focused on three things: creating weekly content for my blog and YouTube channel, growing my email list from that audience, and promoting paid products. created for that list.
If you’re just starting out, develop content around your expertise to grow an audience. It doesn’t have to be perfect. You can iterate as you go and design new products based on what your customers want most.
3. Cut out unnecessary daily tasks.
Determine which daily activities will help you earn more. Don’t waste time or stress yourself by focusing on unimportant tasks.
It can be a good idea to hit your inbox zero or change the color of the buttons on your website, especially in the early days when you want to feel like you’ve achieved a goal. But none of these things will make you money.
Before you start a new task, ask yourself three questions:
- What is the expected outcome of doing this task?
- Does it lead to more money?
- Can I point to a direct link between doing this job and earning income?
- What is the cost of doing this instead of doing something else?
4. Prioritize fun.
People can tell if you do something just for the money or if you really love what you do. This authenticity will connect you deeper with your customers and support you in the long run.
You don’t want to burn out because you’ve spent all your time doing things that don’t make sense to you.
I always give my students this framework as they begin their entrepreneurial journey: build a business around something you see yourself doing and enjoying over the next 10 years.
Graham Cochran He is the founder of The Recording Revolution and author of “How to get paid for what you know. He has helped over 3,000 people launch and improve their own businesses. Follow him Instagram And the Twitter.
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