Every person I've helped successfully go from employee to entrepreneur has been someone who asked, "How can I make this work for me?" instead of, "Will this work for me?"
That means when faced with a problem, they automatically look for ways to solve that problem and they don't stop until they've solved it. Giving up is not even an option that occurs to them.
For example, if they speak with a potential client and don't make a sale, they analyze what they could have done better. Then they use what they learned to improve their next pitch. Whereas their ultimately less successful counterparts might take that rejection as a sign that they should stop trying.
To quote Stephen King, "Amateurs sit and wait for inspiration, the rest of us just get up and go to work."
Building a successful business requires you to show up and do the work every day, whether or not you feel like it. That includes times when you don't feel inspired or motivated, when you're tired after a full day at your job, and when all you want to do is hide from the world and wallow after an obstacle or rejection.
If you're serious about building your business, you have to view it not as a hobby that you work on when you feel like it, but as a second job (even if it's unpaid at first). That means set times to work on your business without fail.
Here's a common scenario: I'll give someone exact steps they should follow to get started in their business. Then, I'll check in with them a few weeks later and ask how they're progressing.
Too often, that person will tell me that they didn't get around to it for one reason or another.
My most successful students though? They'll have already finished implementing everything we discussed and have gotten back to me within days.
They don't waste time wondering if it's the best use of their time or if there's something else they should be doing. They also don't waste time worrying about failing or getting rejected or looking stupid. They just do it.
That's because they understand that they don't need to get it perfect; they just need to get it done.
This might seem a bit counterintuitive. Here's what I mean: building a successful business takes a lot of time and hard work. And especially in the beginning, when you're starting from scratch, that end point of having a profitable business might seem inconceivably far away.
So if you're measuring your progress against that ultimate goal, it can often feel incredibly daunting and even impossible.
For example, let's say you've made one sale in your business for $1,000. And your goal is to make $20,000 in sales before you feel comfortable turning in your notice.
Looking "forwards," you might think to yourself, "I've only made $1,000 in my business, and I need to make $19,000 more." And that might feel incredibly overwhelming.
However, if you are looking "backwards" you would instead think, "Wow, I went from having no idea if anyone would even want to pay me to making my first $1,000. Look how far I've come!" And that would probably excite and motivate you.
The truth is that every successful entrepreneur starts from the same place: zero. Zero clients, audience, or brand recognition. Those who succeed don't do so because they're luckier or smarter than the rest of us.
If you're willing to problem solve, prioritize your business goals, take consistent action, and be disciplined in your thinking, you too could be turning in your notice sooner than you might've thought possible.
Luisa Zhou is the creator of the Employee to Entrepreneur system, which teaches people how to leave their day job and start their own six-figure plus business working for themselves. She's been featured in Forbes, Inc, Entrepreneur, Success magazine, and more. Get her free blueprint for building a profitable online coaching business that frees you from the 9-5.
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