Serial entrepreneurs are often people with big dreams and even bigger lists of businesses they want to start. It’s easy to want to start several business at once and find that none of them are gaining the traction that you imagined they would. If you find yourself in this situation, the following steps can help you.
Step one: Do your businesses need more of your time and focus or are they doomed to failure? This is the big question. There are several things you can do to answer this question for yourself.
First, develop metrics to determine the health of your business. It’s best to have analytical measurable goals. Then, set reasonable goals for your next phase and give yourself a deadline. Be willing to stick to your deadline. I suggest reasonable goals because often businesses don’t grow as fast or in the exact way we first envision. These goals will be used to determine if you should continue the business or not. They should be easy to meet because the goals you are shooting for are actually much bigger.
Step two: Don’t keep pouring good money after bad. If a new business is not meeting the goals by the deadline you have given yourself, close it down. New businesses can be like our children. It’s can be painful to admit when it is time to stop and shut them down.
I find there are two types of people, those who want to shut down their new business too early and those who hold on too long. Know yourself and what your dynamic is so that you can develop a plan to help you find the middle road. Step three: Focus on one at a time. The goal is to get one business sustainable and running smoothly before starting the next business. The real challenge is figuring out which business to focus on first. Often it gets back to remembering why you wanted each business in the first place. It’s important to have faith that there will be time later to focus on your other ideas. The more time and energy you put into your business the faster it will take off so you can focus on your next business.
