One of the greatest benefits of entrepreneurship is freedom. It gives you the freedom to use your passion and to exercise your gifts but it also gives challenges. When first starting as a business owner the process of getting started and becoming successful can be slow. Trying to figure out how to find clients, how to market well, and discover how to create systems that can actually help you scale and grow your business can feel like a lengthy, unglamorous process because many of us don’t wake up automatically knowing these things. The greatest thing that you can do in the world of entrepreneurship is “find your fit.”
1) Take on projects/clients that align with your core values. Economic frustrations often challenge us to make decisions we would not normally make. If you end up chasing money that could take you down a path you were never meant to travel which won’t be satisfying in the end. But, in order to be led by your core values you need to know them. To discover your business core values, spend some time with yourself and your team, and write out a list of the things that you want to uphold and a list outlining what you won’t compromise.
2) Discover where your future clients are. Where do they gather in the digital world (social media, online magazines and papers) and the physical world? To what groups or organizations do they belong? Those will be wonderful places for you to advertise. The key, of course, is knowing who your ideal client is.
3) Stay within your scope. The temptation of entrepreneurs, particularly solopreneurs, is to take on more and more work, especially when they are desperate to find customers.
Don’t make desperate decisions. They will take you far off course and are often places where people compromise. Stay within your scope of work and if you have a client who needs a service that you don’t provide, explore forming a partnership with a business that provides that need. This will allow you to be there for your client as well as stay within your zone of genius where you do your best work.
Finding your fit can be really challenging especially if you are afraid but God has not given us a spirit of fear so I encourage you to operate in bravery and in faith as you find your fit.