The Sun Does Come Up

The Wall Street Journal recently ran a story which stated,”…entrepreneurs, as a group, turned slightly more pessimistic in February, according to the latest data from the national Federation of Independent Business.”

I can understand that pessimism by entrepreneurs. In this market only the strong will survive.

Actually, the economic times we are confronting will need a higher standard to meet success.  My reasoning is that this climate dictates that entrepreneurs have a more solid understanding of premises, theories and ‘hunches’.  It is not easy for a good idea to succeed, much less one haphazardly thought through, or data not vetted.

This brings me to the most challenging aspect that entrepreneurs face today…the proverbial ‘gut check’.  I believe that before the first step is taken in the entrepreneurial journey, prospective entrepreneurs needs to do a SWOT analysis of themselves.  Often, this may require assistance from a business coach or friend or business colleague.  Few entrepreneurs are able to complete this important self-analysis.  Therefore, the assistance from someone is crucial.

The reader may ask, “Why is it important for entrepreneurs to do this SWOT self-analysis?”  My answer would be because it can be costly in both time and money, if this self-analysis is not performed.

Too often, I have seen in my business coaching practice, entrepreneur’s vet everything but themselves.  The driving force behind any entrepreneurial effort is the entrepreneur himself.  If the entrepreneur does not possess patience, energy, intellect, people skills, perseverance, flexibility, vision and competitiveness success will be challenging and it will cost them more time and money.

Tomorrow … Business Plans are not scary.