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It’s not hard to scale your business to seven figures. But it’s not easy either. At the very least, maintaining a seven-figure business and continuing to scale won’t be easy.
After building a few businesses and growing them to seven figures and beyond, I’ve learned this — as well as mentoring and investing in more businesses. It’s weird how easy it feels once you build some momentum. Growth leads to growth, and everything seems to be fine. Until suddenly, it wasn’t.
Having gone through this cycle myself, I’ve discovered some common mistakes that most of us make growing up. I share these in the hope that they will not only inspire you to take your business to new heights, but maintain those levels so you can continue to break glass ceiling after glass ceiling.
Related: 4 ways to build a seven-figure brand and a marketable business
1. You’re hiring too fast
No matter what industry you’re in, it’s important to grow your team when growing your business. You can only do so much.you have to delegate and work superior business instead of trying to do everything yourself. However, the timing around it all has to be right. If you push too hard too early, you may overwhelm and stop all momentum.
So while you need to grow your team — and keep thinking about the different types of roles you need — you must be clear about your priorities. By honing in on the roles that provide the greatest return, you can ensure that you stay motivated without putting too much pressure on yourself, your existing team members, and most importantly, your cash flow.
2. You create too many offers
I see this error all the time, usually because entrepreneurs get caught up in the process of comparing themselves to other business owners. You’ve heard advice before to diversify your portfolio and add multiple income streams. That’s a good suggestion, part. However, you have to proceed with caution as putting too many offers too early can put too much pressure on you. Worse yet, it creates a disconnect between you and your audience because they don’t know what to do next.
Should they buy your course? Maybe hire you to mentor them? What about memberships they can subscribe to? Or other courses, programs or products?
The last thing you want to do is be overwhelmed and confused. Adding new revenue streams is important, but you don’t have to do it all now. Make sure you become a “go-to” authority in one or two fields and provide tremendous value to the people you serve.
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3. You increase your expenses
This mistake is a byproduct of the first two, as your payouts grow exponentially as your team grows and new revenue streams are added. At first it seems to be in control, but soon it gets out of hand. I’ve experienced this first hand as my monthly expenses are doubling almost every month. Unless you’re clear about your financial situation, it’s a disaster waiting to happen.
This is an ongoing habit you need to develop, making sure you check your income and expenses monthly. It’s not that you shouldn’t spend more instead of earning more, but you have to give everything you invest. Whether it’s a new team member, improving your lifestyle or putting new resources into your business, you always have to have a reason to spend your money. If not, you can use it up quickly.
4. You will no longer invest in your business
This was a huge mistake, and another one I’ve made. There is a lot of advice on how to invest your money. The problem is, most of it has nothing to do with entrepreneurs, because most of it encourages you to take money out of the business and put it elsewhere (stocks, stocks, bonds, pensions, etc.). This makes a lot of sense for someone with a predictable income. But for an entrepreneur? no way! The best thing you can invest in is your business because that’s what you have the most control over. So, before you give your money to someone else to invest, make sure you fully support your business with the time, money and resources you need.
related: 4 Ways to Invest Deeper in Your Business
5. You won’t take money from your business
Continually investing in your business is important, but you must continue to invest in your life, lifestyle and personal growth. Early on, I also advise entrepreneurs to invest as little as possible and reinvest as much money as possible into their business. However, this can only last so long. Once you’ve built momentum and entered a period of growth, you have to embrace that for yourself — not just as a business owner, but as a person.
I see this mistake often played out when successful entrepreneurs try to take a step back and enjoy life. It’s a good balance, but an important one if you want to find harmony. If you start to resent your business, the alternatives can quickly become harmful. It’s an easy fix because all you have to do is commit to growing as a person as your business grows. This means that you also need (and are worth) the investment: money, time, energy and attention.
The roller coaster you ride is full of ups and downs. Just because you’re expanding and hitting seven figures and above in the fast lane doesn’t mean you’re free of obstacles in your path. Avoiding and overcoming these five mistakes will help you on your way to success.