IT is commonly known that becoming an entrepreneur is no theme park ride, few take the plunge and fewer still succeed.
As an entrepreneur myself, who has over two decades of experience and a business exit at 33 years old for US$30 mil. I can definitely relate to this as I have experienced both paths.
Micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) have experienced the repercussions of the COVID-19 pandemic, causing a panic to the industry, especially for entrepreneurs.
Though entrepreneurs’ successes are often documented, their hardships and struggles are rarely discussed.
As a coach and mentor of 45 founders from Singapore, Malaysia and UK, I have witnessed the journey of many bright minds during the past two years in the pandemic, it has been difficult for them.
However, I believe this year will be the turning point for business owners to scale their businesses to greater heights.
Here are some crucial building blocks that any enterprising businessman should consider.
Before starting a business, one must ask themselves: What’s the value that their business is providing, and for what purpose does it serve? From there, they can start to adapt and enhance their business models.
With the advent of COVID, technology is now placed at the forefront of many businesses’ strategies because of its ability to deliver change, deliver results, and connect with customers.
For example, companies can pivot to digital tools and digital platforms that empower everything from communication, logistics, marketing, or fulfillment to radically change the way that they deliver value to customers.
When it comes to expanding business in 2022, people and processes are the crucial factors to any successful business, and I always tell my business coaching clients that they have to understand their business fundamentals in order to expand successfully.
We shouldn’t necessarily just expand based on what is trending in the market right now, but rather, focus on what is driving consumer needs and demands. Only then, we can create a business that is both sustainable and viable.
This means that businesses should look at clarifying their business vision, communicating it effectively within their teams, learning how to empower their teams, building out a solid management layer in their business, and creating more efficient processes.
From what I see in any successful entrepreneur, they all share the same traits when conducting businesses, and customer-centricity is the first on the list. It is the most important trait as it allows you to keep what’s important to your customers as the main reason behind all of your company’s efforts, allowing you to grow the business in the right manner.
Otherwise, entrepreneurs will start realising that they will invest in the wrong areas and the wrong direction, dooming their business to an eventual failure.
Next up is having the hunger for success. Running a business is never an easy task. Entrepreneurs should see running a business as a marathon, not a sprint.
The key thing that keeps them going throughout this journey is hunger. Without that, it’s difficult to maintain the levels of motivation and action necessary to build a successful business.
While it may be a marathon, entrepreneurs cannot take their own sweet time while making decisions. They have to be decisive.
A lot of times, especially during a crisis, it is a split-second decision that is necessary. Entrepreneurs must be able to take action when times call for it, otherwise it’s going to be difficult to see progress in their business.
Entrepreneurs have to be open as well. We do not operate businesses in a void. What is necessary is for entrepreneurs to be willing to not just take feedback and advice, but to also help elevate others and coach their team to perform effectively.
This allows them to build up a solid team and a helpful network of business associates, which can be helpful to boost their business.
Business owners should keep in mind that obstacles and struggles are bound to happen while running a business.
Many of my coaching clients have discovered that a lot of the obstacles to their growth have ended up being the limiting beliefs that they hold in their minds. This is difficult to overcome because we are blind to the things that we think are true, and we need someone else to help us out.
As such, any entrepreneur needs to be highly aware of these fallacies and stop them before they cause more damage to their business.
As much as these traits I have shared are needed in creating a successful business, this only makes up a fraction of the journey.
After working on my own business for two decades, my mindset and actions have greatly changed to allow me to understand how to run businesses at a much higher level. I hope other entrepreneurs are able to use these methods to successfully revive and scale their businesses in 2022. – Feb 20, 2022
Alvin Poh is the founder of Super Scaling.
The views expressed are solely of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Focus Malaysia.
