Discover the crucial first step to launching a successful business

This might seem like the most basic thing, and that it's the least important part of launching a successful business, but trust me when I say it's the most important.

The number one step when starting any business that will stand the test of time is to get really clear on your why.

And, not just the "I want to make more money," "I want to be the boss of my time," or even stating that you want to help [insert your I help statement] as your why.

That's not your why...

Not that it's a bad thing to be motivated by. But when you state that your purpose or your why comes in the form of helping others, you're allowing your worth and drive to be defined by external forces, by other people.

Your purpose or your why should be something personal. Your "I help" statement changes often. The number one sign that it is not your why.

Let me give you an example...

My why is "living my younger self or inner child's dreams." This has nothing to do with who I help, and I'm not interested in someone looking down on me for "not being completely altruistic." If someone was truly altruistic, they wouldn't be charging to help someone, so I'm really not buying it.

I was always big on stories, reading them, creating them, writing them. They were my escape when I needed to be in another world, and they made the world seem like a brighter place.

But as I grew up, that passion was dimmed (mostly by teachers). I worked so hard in school and still only did okay. Later, I discovered that I had learning disabilities that went unnoticed, but all I was told from teachers that "maybe this isn't for you." In every subject, except PE and Law (riddle me that?).

It wasn't until my late 20s (until now) that I learned to love them again and to finally say yes to living that little girl's dreams. She had a hard life; she was constantly told she was a mix of "incredibly smart and our shining star" and "your grades show that you're only average."

Here are 3 reasons why knowing your why is the most important step to launching a successful business:

1. It acts as your driver through all of your most important decisions

When you aren't clear on your why or you say your why is your I help statement this makes using it problematic for decision making. When you're not clear or don't have one, you tend to make decisions spontaneously and based on what you want in the moment. When you're clear on your why, you can ask yourself, "Does making this decision support my why?" 

When you use your "I help" statement as your why, your decisions end up being based on what others want and not what you want. So, when things change, those big, important business decisions typically become irrelevant.

In my example, I always get to think, "Would making this decision be supporting little Sarah's dreams?" If the answer is yes, then I can feel confident it's not a mistake. But, if I always said my why was my "I help" statement, then things would have changed a lot of times.

2. It becomes your motivation and inspiration when things get hard

In business, there are a ton of hard times, trust me. There are so many days when you're feeling uninspired or have zero motivation. On those days, in order to keep going, to keep showing up, having a clear and strong why is the key.

Sometimes, we just don't want to show up. I have a client whose reason is to show her two girls that they are worthy of living all of their dreams. She often felt like her dreams weren't supported when she was growing up, and she knows the world still squashes kids’ dreams. She wants to not just tell them they can do anything they set their mind to, she wants to show them they can by living her dreams. This is incredibly powerful. Whenever she starts to slip in motivation, she remembers, "My girls are watching. I am showing them what they deserve in life and what they can achieve." 

That is a why that will never change.

3. It becomes a reminder that you haven't failed, you simply have to realign and try again

Feeling like a failure and wanting to give up are inevitable parts of life and business. Starting a successful business comes with many challenges, and it's okay to feel the rainbow of emotions. It does not make you weak or unworthy of having a business. It actually makes you incredibly strong.

But it's really hard to get through these moments with willpower alone. Being crystal clear on your why can become what you fall back on. You can see now why stating your "I help" statement as your why is problematic.

When you say your why is "a desire to help women grow a successful business," when you start to feel like your business is failing, falling back on that is not super strong. If you were to give up, there would be a multitude of other people who could help women grow a successful business. But, if your why is like mine, "little you," no one else can make little you's dreams a reality.

At the end of the day, there are a lot of steps required to truly launch a successful business. But, if you don't know where to start, getting clear on and creating a strong why/purpose will be your ticket to creating a foolproof strategy for getting through the hard moments.

If you liked this tip and want the next few steps, send an email to hello@skecreativemedia.com with the words GET STARTED to join the waitlist and be the first to purchase my new on how to start a wildly successful business as an introvert.