CRITICAL SUCCESS FACTORS

CRITICAL SUCCESS FACTORS

Research has shown that about 40% of all businesses fold-up within the first year of starting. A staggering 80% of businesses fail within the first 5 years and of the remaining 20% that make it past the 5 year mark, over 80% of that 20% fail by the tenth year. In other words less than 10% of businesses that start up ever succeeds beyond 10 years.

Many people look at these statistics and say to themselves that with only a 10% chance of success, they are better off staying in their job for the rest of their life. It would be a lot safer. After all, they can never be smart enough or good enough to be in that small minority of 10%.

Firstly, I want to say that being among 10% of successful entrepreneurs is not only possible, it is very much achievable when you know how! You can be in the successful minority if you follow the critical SUCCESS FACTORS.

The reason most people fail in business is not because they lack a superior IQ. It is not because they lack luck or a special talent. The reason for all these failures is simply because they are making the same mistakes over and over again.

After starting so many businesses and consulting many business friends, I can tell you that success in business has nothing to do with your age, nothing to do with your level of education, little to do with how much capital you have and very little to do with luck.

It has to do with two main critical success factors that anybody can learn.

The critical success factors are entrepreneurial Mind Set and Entrepreneurial Skill Set.



ENTREPRENEURIAL MIND SET:

The first thing that sets successful entrepreneurs apart is their way of thinking (MINDSET). I have found that time and again, successful business owners think very differently from the rest of the crowd. When employees are given work to do, they see it as a problem. When an entrepreneur is given more work to do, he sees it as an opportunity to learn and grow from it. When a person with the employee mindset is sent for training, they often see it as a waste of time. The successful entrepreneur sees it as a valuable investment. When more people look at something challenging, they think of all the reasons why it cannot be done and avoid it.

Our mind set is the most important key to our success as a business owner. In fact, I would say that your ability to succeed in business is 70% psychology and 30% strategy. Your mindset affects your thoughts, which affects your behavior & actions and these ultimately affect the results you produce.

HERE ARE 3 ESSENTIAL MINDSETS OF A MILLIONAIRE ENTREPRENEUR:

MINDSET 1. Taking 100% responsibility & ownership.
MINDSET 2. Failure leads to success.
MINDSET 3. Constant and never ending INNOVATION.

100% RESPONSIBILITY & OWNERSHIP

100% RESPONSIBILITY & OWNERSHIP

Whenever I ask most business owners why their business is not as successful as it can be,

I usually get these responses:
1. I can’t find good people.
2. There are too many competitions.
3. The economy is soft.
4. The industry is tough
5. people are just not spending
6. I don’t have enough capital
7. if only I had more money things would be different
8. My partner is the problem
9. I have been down on my luck
10. I just don’t have the time to focus on marketing
11. I don’t have enough experience
12. I am too young or I am too old.

The problem with all these above reasons is that they are all aimed at blaming something or someone else. The majority of people with the above mindset tend to give themselves a lot of excuses and blame everything and everyone, except themselves, when things go wrong.

They blame the economy, the government, competition, bad luck, lousy staff, disloyal and difficult customers for their lack of success.

People with this VICTIM mindset will NEVER SUCCEED IN BUSINESS.

Successful entrepreneur mindset will never allow circumstance to control their fate. They have faced all the reason mention above. Success was in their thoughts and actions allowed them to retain the power to change their environment and their results.

Millionaire business owners believe that if there is something wrong with their business it is only because there is something they are doing or not doing in the right way. They believe and have 100% control over their business success and profit.
TAKING RESPONSIBILITY GIVE YOU POWER AND CONTROL

So, are millionaire entrepreneurs successful because everything is going their way? Are successful business owners found only in booming economies, industries and rich countries? Do all successful business owners start off with lots of capital? Rae they blessed with the most motivated and hard working staff? Are they gifted with special luck? We know the answer is a resounding “NO”. In fact, many of the successful and enduring entrepreneurs in the world started off in the worst times and with all the odds stacked against them.

When SOICHIRO HONDA started his company (HONDA) after world war 11, Japan was facing an oil crisis and twice the Americans bombed his factory. A few years later his factory was destroyed for the 3rd time by an earth quake.

When FRED SMITH started FEDERAL EXPRESS (FEDEX) his planes were almost repossessed twice by the Finance Companies because he didn’t have the money to pay the installment.

When RICHARD BRANDON wanted to go into the airline business, everyone told him that the industry was tough and that most carriers were losing money. And yet VIRGIN Airlines became highly profitable and took market share away from the market leader BRITISH AIRWAYS.

IF THERE IS SOMETHING WRONG WITH THE BUSINESS THERE IS SOMETHING WRONG WITH THE OWNER!

They believe that if they have challenges with their customers, it’s because they don’t understand customer relationship management. If they have a problem with sales, it’s because they don’t understand marketing. If they have money problems it’s because they don’t understand finance.Similarly, if they have operational problems, it’s because you don’t understand operations.If you have employee problem it’s because you are not doing the right thing in their recruitment, training and retention.

By taking 100% responsibility over your results you are acknowledging that you are creating it, either directly or indirectly. People with this leaders’ mindset believe that “FOR THINGS TO CHANGE,I MUST CHANGE FIRST”.