Step 26 - The 8 Key Reasons Why Businesses Fail

Here we are with our penultimate step and I want to focus just for a few minutes on something slightly negative (sorry!)

The 8 Key Reasons why Businesses fail

1. You started your business without a passion for the work

Of course all businesses need to make money. And it's great that you can be your own boss and manage your own time. But you also need to believe in and enjoy the work you're doing.
We have no doubt that you do, in fact this shouldn't really be an issue for therapists and practitioners.

2. Lack of business experience

Do you feel confident in your business acumen? Are you aware of the gaps in your knowledge?
Complete your skills with the online virtual classroom in business skills Passport to Business Success, for the special price of £39.95 (usual value £62.50, worth 5 CPD points). This 6 hour online film-based workshop covers a wide variety of topics from designing your marketing material to trade marking and legal issues.

3. Insufficient funding

This is a very common mistake that can prove deeply stressful and ultimately fatal for the business. It may be lack of planning or awareness or perhaps things are just taking longer than expected to take off. Plan your finances carefully.

4. Indecision about what/when/where

Decide what your business is, and then stick to that for the time being. Are you a mobile therapist? Are you renting a room, working in a spa, working from home or a combination? What therapies do you offer and how do you combine them?

5. Lack of Planning

Fail to prepare, prepare to fail. Business planning can seem a million miles away from your dream of providing therapies to improve the world's health. But it is critical if your therapy provision is to survive.

6. Too much too soon

Overstretching yourself, overexpansion of the business, is particularly serious for a Complementary Therapist. Don't confuse success with size but focus instead on steady growth. A business mentor can help you envision your future and make it a reality. Trying to do everything yourself is another form of over expansion so ask for help when you need it.

7. The law of cause and effect

If you look at people who are consistently successful (no matter how you define that success) you will find that they consciously choose and cause all the good that comes to them.

This is as true for Victor Frankl author of “Mans’ Search for Meaning” who survived living in a prisoner of war camp, as it is for any millionaire. Those who are successful are willing to do what’s hard which means life will become easy.

Those who live at cause believe “I create my life”
Those who live at effect believe “Life happens to me”

To become a mover of the game and not a pawn examine:

• Your beliefs
• Your actions
• Your judgements
• Your thoughts
• Your actions

“Action is the bridge between the inner world and the outer world” T Harv Eker

For a day experiment with being at cause by:

1/Spending time in nature and notice how plants grow, brooks babble and that there is abundance without any noticeable effort

2/ When things happen, imagine you are just observing and maintain a distance. Avoid getting involved or emotionally caught up in the event. (This doesn’t mean ignore things, it means by staying slightly removed you can make better decisions and take better actions).

3/Keep asking: what is the message, what can I learn?

4/Take the path of least resistance

5/Ask what is the opportunity

8. Have no continuity plan

Make sure you don’t put all your eggs in 1 basket. Always have a plan B in case things don’t do according to plan

Sometime to think about! Be ruthless and scrutinise for any fatal flaws and take action to remedy any weaknesses now!

Good luck!

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