The word “courage” is thrown around loosely these days, but have you ever thought about what it means to you and your business?
Before you even opened your doors to customers, you demonstrated courage as a business owner. And that courage is tested regularly — while weathering bad markets, considering expansion, or hiring new employees.
Fear is also an ever-present part of running a business. And while fear is perfectly natural and expected, it can cause some business owners to fall into traps. We often see fear manifest in a desire to hide weak points in a business — even from us, though we’ve been brought in to examine and help fix those very same problem areas. This “cleaning up for the maid” mentality can take over and prevent real, positive change. Getting off the same hamster wheel you’ve gotten used to can be a daunting thought, requiring courage and faith.
Opening up and allowing a trusted advisor to see the rough edges takes the kind of courage that will win out over the long haul of a business’s life cycle. Regularly taking a close look at how parts of your business can be improved, and taking action to make those changes, takes faith in yourself, your business, and your future success.
Chuck@eaglecorporateadvisors.com
(702) 451-3250
GPS: Timely Support: Fear versus Faith
A useful metaphor to describe how we all go about life is the pendulum between fear and faith. We are constantly moving toward fear or toward faith. You can only move in one direction at a time, and we all go back and forth between these competing forces. No one lives without fear or without faith.
Turbulent times in life or business are the norm, so continuing to operate and invest in yourself and your business requires faith — in yourself as well as your business, your staff, your product, your service, and your procedures.
Questions that cause the pendulum to swing back and forth, with fear and worry on one side versus faith and courage on the other, include:
- What is my business worth right now — and what will it be worth when I am ready to walk away?
- How much will my business provide for my loved ones when I die or if I become disabled?
- What does it take to move beyond “the grind” and fulfill my dreams?
If a few of these questions have you scratching your head, you are not alone. Asking questions like these takes courage because they deal with the unknown. You can be in business for decades and not know some of these key things about the company you’ve worked hard to build and maintain.
Getting answers to these and other questions, and formulating an action plan based on those answers, can put fears to rest and renew your faith in your business — which can pay dividends in many ways:
- Solid information helps you separate real dangers from vague, unlikely ones, and react unclouded by fear.
- Faith in a business is contagious — employees who are not stifled by fears are more excited and more likely to have and share good ideas.
- The biggest weak spot is believing there are no weak spots — being confident enough to admit there are areas to improve is the only way to strengthen the business as a whole.
Introducing Lenella Cooper, Administrative Assistant
Lenella grew up in Las Vegas and graduated from Chaparral High School in 2019. A year into her church mission in Orlando, Florida, which focused on meeting and serving large populations in person, things suddenly became far more challenging with the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. Lenella was able to continue her team’s outreach projects by finding new workarounds using online and social media platforms. Since her return to Las Vegas, she has been pursuing a degree in public health, with a focus on business, through Brigham Young University’s online BYU-Pathway program. Lenella’s drive for excellence in human connections and professional relationships will be an asset to Eagle Corporate Advisors. We are happy to have her on as a full-time administrative assistant. Say “hello” if you see Lenella around the office!
It can feel like a solitary uphill battle running a business, and isolation is a natural breeding ground for fear and worry. Even the strongest entrepreneurs encounter challenges that exceed their resources. Reaching out for help or a new perspective is not a sign of weakness — it’s a move that takes faith and courage, one that can pay dividends immediately as well as over the life of a business.
We can be that helping hand, working with you to breathe new life into your business and renew your faith in yourself, your team, and your mission. It’s how we serve.