Entrepreneurs, coaches, authors, and speakers are very creative.
We create ALL the time.
Especially when we’re in growth mode and looking for ways to increase our revenue.
The challenge is, EVERYTHING WE CREATE WE MUST MAINTAIN.
In a big company, with departments and teams, some people create and other people maintain. But in a coach, author, speaker space the lines are blurry. Everything you create takes space in your brain OR on your calendar:
- If you create a team, you need to manage & maintain it.
- If you create a membership site, you need to run & maintain it.
- If you create a coaching program, you have to deliver it monthly & maintain it.
- If you build a community, you need to nurture, grow & maintain it.
- If you sell a mastermind program, you need to run & maintain it all year long.
SO WHAT DO YOU WANT TO MAINTAIN?
I’ve always been a fan of passive income. In all of my previous businesses, I focused on “creating and forgetting.”
When I started my last company, I was so excited by the idea itself I didn’t even think about what my life might look like after it was up and running.
As the initial excitement passed and the weekly routine set in, I realized that I was no longer enjoying it. I had a lot of fun creating it, but now I needed to maintain it. Yes, I had a team, but that just became another to maintain.
Business got too serious.
And I know I am not alone in this.
In the last few months I spoke to dozens of successful business owners who have been feeling the pressure of having to maintain what they’ve created. They’re on an entrepreneurial treadmill and cannot stop. I could feel their pain and exhaustion. Their business is wearing them out and they’re feeling trapped.
They created a “monster” and now need to feed it.
So here’s some food for thought as you’re growing your business:
- Before you add or create anything in your business, ask yourself “Do I want to maintain this?” Then see if you still want to move forward in that direction. This question will add instant clarity and guide your decisions more powerfully.
- Sometimes we have to try new things and even make mistakes to discover what we don’t want to maintain. And sometimes we have to experiment with new ideas in case we end up absolutely loving it!
- You may not always know the answer. I never knew that I wouldn’t like having a big team. Or that I would eventually get tired of recording a weekly podcast. Or that blogging would only be fun when I am inspired to share something, not as a weekly commitment.
That’s why, as I am starting my new company, I am very careful about what I say “yes” to. I want to make sure I can sustain and maintain what I create. I ask myself at every decision point:
“Do I want to maintain this? Will I be happy doing it this way six months from now?”
The key is to be totally honest with yourself – anything else will lead you to unhappiness in business. And you may end up being “trapped in paradise.”
I’d love to hear from you now…
- What do YOU want to maintain?
- If you’re currently maintaining something you don’t enjoy, how long are you willing to tolerate it?
- And what needs to happen before you’re ready to make a change?
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