5 Business Lessons I've Learned As A 7-Figure Entrepreneur
After over 15 years as an entrepreneur and over 10 years exclusively working for myself and running several successful businesses, I’ve learned some important business lessons that every new entrepreneur should know! I really wish someone had taught me these lessons 15 years ago!
I’m sharing 5 business lessons I’ve learned as a 3x successful service & product entrepreneur to save you from all the heartache and headaches that come with being your own boss.
The Customer is NOT always right
The customer is not always right. Believe it or not. One of the things that I’ve learned from fulfilling over 26,000 orders is that some customers will never be happy. And that’s okay!
What I’ve come to realize is that some people are just hell-bent on being right. They must win the battle with your company because they think that they, as the customer, are always right. You can bend over backward, refund them, ask them how you can make it right and even give them a solution for their problem… some people will still be mad.
With customers like this, it may be that they aren’t winning any other battles in their life, so they’re choosing the one battle they think they can control because society has taught them that the customer is always right.
So what do you do in the case of an irate, disrespectful customer for whom you’ve offered all the solutions, tried to make it right and they still aren’t happy? Be transparent, firm yet cordial and fire them. It’s okay to let clients or customers go if they’re not the right fit or cause too much of a hassle!
Take calculated risks
Take risks, but calculate the risk first. It’s okay to take risks. In fact, I often describe myself as someone who loves to jump off cliffs and figure out the parachute on the way down.
But before I jump off the cliff, I take a number of things into account:
How high am I jumping from?
Where am I landing?
What’s the weather like?
Have I used the parachute before?
Has anyone died from jumping off this cliff?
Jumping off the cliff is a risk, but when you take things into consideration or calculate them, you can make an informed decision. The same goes with business. Ask questions like:
Are you solving a problem or resolving a pain point?
Is there competition? Are they making money?
Is anyone doing it the way I would do it?
If someone has failed, why did they fail?
Should I quit my job to dedicate myself to this idea full time?
Find mentors that have had success doing what you want to do
Learn from people who have done what you want to do. You don’t go to a Chinese restaurant to buy burgers & french fries. You go to a restaurant that specializes in burgers and fries. The same principle applies to running a business. No matter what type of business you’re wanting to start or are already running, go and learn from people who are actually doing it.
I’m sure your uncle who ran a corner store means well. Still take his advice. But if you want to learn how to run a skincare business, learn from someone who runs a successful skincare business.
In my case, I observed 6, 7, 8 figure eCommerce entrepreneurs in the beauty space. I asked questions, listened, and then trial and error my way to 7 figure success. Outside of doing the actual work, learning from people who have done what I wanted to do is one of the best lessons I’ve learned.
Don’t listen to negativity
Or, in other words… don’t listen to the lobsters. Bestselling author and motivational speaker, Jon Acuff tells this story in his book Do Over, where he sees a pile of old lobster traps.
But instead of lobsters, he sees sparrows flying in and out of these cages. When he looked closer, he saw that they were making nests inside of these old lobster traps. Now, if you asked the lobsters if those cages were good to build nests in, they’d say hell no.
But for the birds...they were perfect.
How many of you fill your lives with people or lobsters who tell you things like:
“9/10 businesses fail.”
“Your dream business sounds really difficult.”
“Quitting your job is too risky.”
“Following your dreams is too selfish.”
And after years and years of listening to lobsters, have you started to believe in that negativity as well?
But it’s not that the lobsters are wrong; it’s that you're a bird. This story is a perfect example of how two people can see the same thing and see it from 2 different viewpoints. So when you’re pushing for your goal like starting a business, surround yourself with “birds” — the people who align with your dreams, see your vision and support you as you move towards it. TRUST ME.
Remember that failure is an event
The road to success is littered with failure. But you have to remember that you can’t be a failure. Failure is not a person. It’s an event.
Really, you have 2 choices. You can spend time seeing failure as this catastrophic event or you can look at it as a valuable lesson that you can learn and get better from.
How do you see failures? I don’t know about you, but I see all my failures as practice for success.
Of course, in true Viv fashion, I have to wrap up with a bonus lesson!
Don’t be afraid to start where you are. There’s no need to go big or go home. Just start.
Start small.
Start where you are
Start and make mistakes.
Start with what you have.
Start with what you know.
Start despite whatever it is.
Start by taking that next step.
Start by taking the next step after that.
Just start.