In this day and age, it is easy to focus on the negative. So, you see tons of media on all the ways you can fail as an entrepreneur. But, what successful actions CAN you take? Here are the business commandments I live by to make all my companies profitable…
Don’t get me wrong, you must know the business mistakes out there to avoid them. Yet, none of those missteps can kill your company IF you know how to get back on the wagon.
As long as your business model:
- Solves Problems
- Helps Others
- Generates Cash Flow
These steps will ensure you stay afloat in any economic climate. Let’s not waste any more of your time and jump in…
12 Commandments for an All-Powerful Business
To begin with, the Average Joe doesn’t realize how tough getting a startup off the ground is…
And, it’s not just about that money. Business owners have to make sacrifices in their personal lives to get any kind of momentum. Therefore, it is even more vital that their ventures pay off.
That’s why I follow these business commandments religiously in any and all of my endeavors. So, don’t be tempted to take shortcuts with these rules, which brings us directly to the first tenet…
Go to Market YOURSELF
Like it or not, you are going to have to go out into the marketplace yourself in the beginning — no one else.
There are a couple of reasons for this…
ONE, NO ONE IS GOING TO BE AS PASSIONATE ABOUT YOUR OWN BUSINESS AS YOU ARE. SO, THEY WON’T SELL IT TO OTHERS AS HARD AS YOU WILL.
Look, you are not too good to leave your ivory tower here. You need to be the one making strong impressions and connections with potential customers and partners.
The owner of an up-and-coming company makes you real and memorable. Don’t let this digital age make you neglect to call on prospects in-person.
Promote with Fanatical Fervor
This is the business commandment violated the most by budding entrepreneurs — myself included. That being said, it may be the one activity you can’t do too much and I guarantee you’re not doing enough of…
Promotiing and marketing.
THERE IS NO SUCH THING AS SHAMEFUL PROMOTION UNLESS YOU’RE ASHAMED OF YOUR PRODUCT.
Promotion needs to be a priority ABOVE even cold-calling leads. Why?
The fact of the matter is that you won’t have to hit the pavement as hard if people know who you are! On top of that, someone who is familiar with you is closer to deciding than one who isn’t.
So, spend more time on promotion than you think you need to. It is never a wasted effort.
Obsess Over Sales and Revenue
Ultimately, running a company is about making money. Despite nice little sayings that preach money isn’t everything, you need it to survive and grow your business.
As a consequence, equip yourself with an arsenal of sales closing techniques as the one at the forefront of your business.
YOUR FOCUS NEEDS TO BE ON WHO AND WHERE TO GET MORE CASH ONTO YOUR BOTTOM LINE.
Then, you need to have a reliable system for assessing your profitability. I suggest looking at all your accounts every day at the very least even if you have an accountant.
Besides, you want to have your eyes and hands on everything in regards to your company…
Do It Before You Delegate It
Yes, it is true that to scale your business you will have to delegate.
However, I see too many executives handing off work:
- Before operating procedures are established.
- Or, before they’ve done the tasks themselves…
Breaking this commandment is not only lethal to your business success, but it’s also lazy.
Remember, this is your livelihood on the line here. And, you can’t expect to hold others to the high standards it deserves if you are unwilling to do the same.
Be the example of what you want your business to represent, and while you’re at it…
Know Yourself Before You Sell Yourself
There is a big question you need to ask yourself if you want to make it in the business world. You need to be able to answer it clearly and with confidence or you’ll be playing the game with a handicap…
WHAT MAKES YOUR COMPANY, PRODUCT, OR SERVICE DIFFERENT AND BETTER THAN ANYONE ELSE?
You know if you were to break it down to logistics almost every product known to man can be bought cheaper down the road.
For that reason, entrepreneurs need to nail down their personal branding BEFORE they spend ad dollars. Otherwise, you’re throwing hard-earned capital down the drain.
After all, you want that income flowing towards you like a riptide…
Have a Strong Stream of Income
Earlier, we discussed being obsessively vigilant of your sales. Nonetheless, you want to eventually get to the point where you aren’t constantly chasing it down.
And believe it or not, there is a simple way to reinforce your revenue stream without going after new traffic…
Asking buyers for additional sales and following them up is the business commandment no one talks about, but everyone is doing.
Think about some of the most successful corporations on the internet right now…
They ALL suggest you buy something else at checkout. And if you don’t, their ads follow across every other move you make online.
Utilize this strategy and you’ll be ready for the big leagues with this next power play.
Incorporate PARALLEL Revenue Flows
Entrepreneurship doesn’t just mean operating more than one business at a time…
YOU HAVE TO HAVE SEVERAL VENTURES THAT WORK TOGETHER AND ARE ALL IN THE BLACK.
Therein is what people misunderstand about multiple streams of income.
Once an owner starts making a little money, they invest in side hustles unrelated to their main source of income.
I’m sure all of you can think of friends and family who have fallen into this trap…
Your contractor uncle who tried to open a food truck…
Or, your lawyer best friend who started trying to flip houses…
Both probably ended up in disaster.
The common denominator of both these examples is that neither of them went into an adjacent field.
Instead, the contractor could have opened a hardware store. And the lawyer could have started some kind of consulting firm… In short, things that would enhance their current ventures.
So, think about what you do best that could add to your existing business strategy, not distract you.
However, I don’t want you just let these funds sit collecting dust in a bank account somewhere. You gotta give it something to do…
Don’t Let Money Get Bored
There is a funny thing about money that you may have noticed…
IF CASH ISN’T BEING USED, IT FINDS SOMEWHERE ELSE TO GO.
Let me explain…
Have you ever saved up a few coins for a rainy day, then all of a sudden, your car needs an expensive repair?
Or maybe, you just get out of the paycheck-to-paycheck cycle and your kid needs braces?
That is because the cash wasn’t being put to work. As a business owner, you need to make sure that revenue doesn’t want to start wandering around.
The answer is to re-invest it in cash-flowing assets to keep it busy.
Doing this builds wealth through passive income AND keeps your money where you want it — with you.
Maintain the Hustle
If you have been following these business commandments, you will have attained significant success at this point. So, what’s next?
Well, I have a saying that pretty much sums it all up…
GO BIG OR GO BIGGER!
Now is not the time to lay back and rest on your laurels. The hustle is what got you here and maintaining those successful actions is what will maintain this level of gains at the very least.
Nothing stays the same forever. The only way to keep up with changes is to continue expanding.
But how do you ride these constantly changing trends without being left behind?
Use and Trash Tech — FAST!
This business commandment is a balancing act.
On one hand, technology can make a lot of operations easier…
But on the other hand, you don’t want to become reliant on it.
A great example of this is social media. It is a fantastic, free tool I use for marketing and promotion. However, I am not reliant on any of those platforms to make money.
YouTube, Facebook, or LinkedIn could disappear tomorrow and my companies would keep going. But in the meantime, I’m going to use and abuse them to promote until they’re gone.
So, beat them up, get attention, and move on to the next.
Expand in Chaos
Owning a business is like anything else. There will always be excuses to retreat when times are hard.
Despite this, the secret to building an empire that outlives you is leaning into the adversity and finding the opportunity in it…
Outside of nuclear apocalypse, there are ways to make the best out of any socio-economic crisis. Whole companies are built from the new requirements of the environment. Look at delivery services during the pandemic, for example.
The point is always to find ways to keep your business rolling. You might even find a more effective way to make money.
But just because you never close up shop, doesn’t mean you are unwilling to drop some dead weight…
Release What’s Holding You Back
This last business commandment is uncomfortable to many entrepreneurs, but you need to start getting used to it…
HIRE AND FIRE STAFF QUICK.
I know this sounds harsh. Nonetheless, you are not doing them or your company any favors by keeping the wrong people around.
This doesn’t make you a bad or unkind person. In fact, it’s the opposite…
You are freeing up those people to find the right environment for them. And at the same time, you are safeguarding your business for you and the rest of your staff who depend on you.
This will leave you with a rockstar team ready for success. Now, it’s time to wrap them all together.
Bringing the Business Commandments Together
At first, all of these business commandments can seem overwhelming individually. So it’s understandable that you feel thrown for a loop.
That being said, some tools make things more manageable.
For one, I have built the 10X Profit Planner to outline the exact steps you need to hit your revenue targets. You just need to put in a few stats from your business, and it does the rest.
Check out the 10X Profit Planner here.
In the meantime, put these business commandments into action, and refer to them whenever you get stuck. They’ll guide you in the right direction.
Be Great,
Grant Cardone
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