What glass ceiling have you created for yourself in your life and business?
There are 3 main reasons why entrepreneurs aren’t succeeding. And you might be surprised by what they are.
Do you ever wonder why entrepreneurs aren’t succeeding? Have you asked yourself why some entrepreneurs thrive and others struggle to start and grow businesses?
Let me ask you a few questions:
Where are you on your entrepreneurial journey?
Are you struggling to start your business?
Is your business growing at a rate less than what you had hoped for?
Can you relate to other entrepreneurs who aren’t succeeding?
Raise your hand if you feel like you are stuck, spinning in circles, doing all the things but with minimal or no results.
Have you been trying all the things, contests, giveaways, PR, and so much more, to grow your audience but your soulmate clients still aren’t coming, they can’t find you?
Even with being on social media ALL of the time, you aren’t connecting with and converting clients.
Why? I believe that there are three reasons why entrepreneurs aren’t succeeding and why You are holding Yourself back.
The three reasons why entrepreneurs aren’t succeeding, (in my opinion):
- They are relying on earthly tools like social media instead of leaning fully on Christ to guide them.
- Their thoughts are producing their results.
- They haven’t acquired the help they need.
And these three reasons are intertwined.
This is true whether you are just starting your business or have been making over six figures. Even if you had success previously you can become stagnant and lack growth, and get stuck in a pit of mire because of negative thoughts. Or lose sight of your calling and forget to seek guidance from the Holy Spirit.
Let’s go deeper into each reason why entrepreneurs aren’t succeeding.
Relying on earthly tools instead of leaning fully into Christ
Hmmm. This is a big one. I’m guilty and I know so many others who are too.
If you are like me, you’ve been sucked into believing that you have to do all the things and be on all of the platforms to build a business.
It’s a lie!
You’ve heard me say it before, that if God is calling you he will equip you. And he absolutely will.
Let me share this story with you.
My dear friend and former coach sat down with me for episode 207 of The Robyn Graham Show. At the time of our conversation, I hadn’t yet done my sabbatical from Instagram. The sabbatical was in September. To date, I’ve only done one post to the platform and shared a few stories since then.
When I first went off Instagram I was nervous about what would happen to my follower count and my business. But nothing happened. In fact, my follower count went up. And my business grew.
My business grew without social media
The reason my business grew was that I was spending more time in devotions and growing closer to God, trusting him over trusting what the Instagram “experts” were saying. My level of clarity around my business increased dramatically. I became more productive, I got opportunities for speaking engagements, and podcast interviews, and attracted new clients.
My energy level went from mediocre to positive high energy because my clarity allowed me to become more confident in myself and my business. I made many CEO-level decisions and my business began to transform.
When my focus changed, my clarity increased
And instead of making decisions based on what I was seeing online and thinking I had to keep up with the trends, I started focusing on what God was leading me to do. Where he was leading me to be. I got quiet and listened and finally heard him.
I went back on the platform in October, but only posted a few stories. And then, I felt myself fall back into the old habit of mindless scrolling. I felt God calling me to get back off and focus on creating meaningful content for you based on my own intuition and the guidance of the Holy Spirit.
And then this morning, Stefanie popped into my email and shared the divine message she received this week to completely take her business off Instagram and shared Bible verses from Deuteronomy that led to her decision.
There was my answer right there in black and white. I didn’t need to think about being on Instagram for one more minute. The scripture verse I focused on this morning was also from Deuteronomy.
The answer was right there in the scripture
“Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or terrified because of them, for the Lord your God goes with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you.” – Deuteronomy 31:6
I don’t know exactly who “they” are, maybe the people saying one has to be on Instagram to be successful, but I do know that my fears of missing out or losing followers or losing opportunities have led me to be distracted by the platform. And I’m off it again.
There is nothing on Instagram that can lead me to success the way Holy Spirit can.
I share this story with you because I want you to realize that there is nothing standing in your way. You do not have to be tied to creating content for a platform that someone else owns and where you are going to be pulled away from the focus God has been pulling you toward.
I will never tell you not to use Instagram, because you may be called to be on Instagram. Your soulmate clients may be on Instagram. Maybe God wants you to witness it on Instagram. If being on Instagram aligns with your values, great, use it. It doesn’t align with me and I have been very specifically told to leave it. I have this blog and I have a podcast. I own both platforms and I can share or preach, whatever you want to call it, on both.
Pay attention to how God communicates with you
I will tell you, however, that it’s time to pay attention to how God is speaking to you. It could be through emails, podcasts, conversations, or books you are reading. When you spend time with him and ask the Holy Spirit to help you discern what you hear and read, he will guide you and you’ll be well on your way to making decisions to grow your business God’s way, which is the best way for ultimate success and to have the positive impact he is calling you for.
Your thoughts are producing your results
It’s true. Your thoughts produce your results. This statement refers to mindset. We know that what we believe will influence our thoughts. And our thoughts are what determine our emotions and feelings. Our emotions and feelings determine our behaviors and actions which in turn produce our results.
If you avoid spending time with God because you are too busy but are spending your time on social media to garner wisdom from experts, you are at risk of being misled.
Instagram is a hotbed for comparison and imposter syndrome. What is right for one expert is not necessarily right for you. And often, what the expert is telling you to do is going to cost you both money and time. Two things that most people trying to start and grow a business don’t have a surplus of.
This is where discernment comes into play. Because if you are consuming content and that content is making you think in terms of comparison and imposter syndrome, the negative thoughts are going to make you feel bad about yourself, cause you to lose confidence and trust in yourself, and result in you making poor choices and not taking positive intentional effective action toward your goals.
When you don’t achieve results, you will become frustrated and spend time in analysis paralysis, inaction, and procrastination. A vicious cycle will begin.
Recognize the need for help
If you feel like you are spending time, money, and energy on your business, but you aren’t growing, it’s time to assess the need for help.
What is it you need help with?
Are tasks wearing you down and making you feel frustrated and overwhelmed?
Is a lack of direction holding you back in a cycle of procrastination?
Are your thoughts keeping you stuck?
Make a list of all of the tasks you currently do in your business. Which do you enjoy? What tasks are difficult for you? Which tasks do you avoid until the last minute? When you recognize what you must do versus what you can have someone else do, you will open up time to start doing things that can produce more results in your business.
For example, if you are spending hours on end doing your books but that is not your strength, hire a bookkeeper.
If trying to build a website is daunting and causes delays in starting your business, hire a professional website designer.
Do you want to start coaching? Hire a coach to learn from.
If you want to create a group program, register for a group program to learn how they are run and what you like and don’t like so you can create a program you are in love with.
Want to create online courses? Take some online courses so that you understand how they work, and can learn systems used for creating, publishing, etc.
Need copy for your website and social media content but hate to write? Hire a copywriter.
Evaluate where it is best to invest in your business and spend your money where it will best serve you and your business.
You want results faster so you need to do things that will help you accomplish that.
No shame
There is no shame in hiring the help you need. In fact, when you spend time communicating with God, work on a positive mindset, and invest in the help you need, you won’t have to worry about why entrepreneurs don’t succeed, because you will be well on your way to success.
In fact, many people focus on the cost of hiring someone, an assistant, or a coach, but the real question is what is the cost of not hiring someone and being in the same place a year from now?
And truly, hiring the help you need, either an assistant or a coach is an investment. The value will not depreciate but will transform your business and therefore your life, not to mention save you hours upon hours. Priceless!
A free resource to help you achieve success as you start and grow your business
Download my free eBook on The Purpose to Results™ Method and my success equation. It all begins with building a solid foundation, mapping your processes, and creating a personal brand and brand marketing strategy with a positive mindset.
