Overnight Success

People tend to look at successful businesses and think they were an overnight success. But, the reality is, only a very small percentage of businesses have a fast rise to the top. You probably know that old saying “what goes up must come down”, some of the businesses that race to the top also fall just as quickly to the bottom.

My two businesses, Motivational Steps and the Small Business Community Network (SBCN) have both had slow growth, due to the strategy I decided on, and are continuing to grow and thrive.

 

What Came First, The Chicken or The Egg?

Deciding what you should do first when planning to start your business is often a task that people tend to rush. Once again it works in your favour to have a strategy to determine the answers. A business plan will help, but remember nothing is set in stone, circumstances may change, so will your plans and goals.

Here are a few ideas that you might want to consider when planning those first important steps:

  • Business Plan, which includes your strategy, goals, and of course your vision.
  • Financial plan.
  • Brand implementation.
  • Networking.
  • Sales strategy.

The above is a basic overview of some of the most important things you have to plan ahead for, before you even start selling.

Networking

I cannot stress enough that business and social networking is crucial to build strong trusted relationships, credibility, showcase your brand, and of course become memorable.

People came up with my name, “The Social Sweetheart” and I decided to start using it, another part of my brand. Those people recognized me as a natural connection, someone who was very social, and of course someone who would connect and introduce people to each other.

When your clients, or the public become your brand ambassadors you know you are headed in the right direction.

How I Became a TV Host

This blog post came about because everyone has the same question since I became a TV host. That question is “How can I have my own TV Show”?.

I have been in business 18 years, during that time I have added to my business offerings. Let’s talk about Motivational Steps. I realised I could not rely on speaking engagements for the rest of my life, so the next step was obvious, I would offer workshops. What I did right was to plan ahead carefully and know when the time was right. If I had rushed the process I would not have been ready, due to the fact my brand would not have been recognized. In order for people to become our clients they have to have a reason. In order to have a reason they have to know about you, and recognize you have a solution to offer them. In the first years of building a business you may be well known in your inner circle, but that’s can’t sustain the growth you need in order to be financially successful.

The Next Step For Me

Once I had achieved the success as a professional speaker and workshop leader I moved on to business consulting. I had the skillset needed, my lived experiences, along with an intuition that serves me well.

Over time came three published books. I say “published” because people tend to share the fact they have written a book, but failed to actually get it published. Newsletters, podcasts and of course videos followed over time. Social media is one of my biggest assets. I am an early adopter of all forms of social media and with time I became recognized and seen as an influencer.

I have a passion for everything in life I do, and I enjoy tremendously business consulting with small to medium sized businesses in all areas, such as growth, branding, networking, and of course sales.

 

TV Appearances

Knowing the media was an important step in my progress I appeared on many TV shows, by invite, and gained the confidence to know I would one day create, host and co-produce my very own TV show.

I was also invited to be a guest on radio shows and that was also fun and of course beneficial for me to showcase my business.

My success is very much about planning, prioritizing, and preparing for the next step. Rushing the process can lead to going backwards in order to move forwards.

Over time I became seen as someone who had credibility, was professional and knew my stuff. The solid trust I have with the people I took the time to build relationships with is a lasting trust that continues to grow over time. This is very much part of my continued success.

Becoming a TV Host

I came up with an idea; I planned, prepared, prioritized, and I invited a trusted business and personal friend I had known for many years to be my co-host. There were hoops to jump through when we shared our idea with the TV producers who would make the final decision on whether we could go ahead with our TV show. We were patient, continued to plan our guests and format for our first season of the show and it worked out in our favour. I had come up with an idea that no one else was doing on TV in my local area. I knew the guests who would impact our viewing audience.

We are into our second season of The Small Business Show and are very excited to plan for our third season. You can check out a YouTube video of one of the guests on The Small Business Show https://youtu.be/MOvHPRFKSUs .

                           

If your vision is to work in broadcasting plan ahead. Whether you are a student, or a business owner you can turn your vision into your reality.