According to a Harris Poll, sponsored by Zapier, 61% of Americans have had an idea to start a business and yet 92% did not follow through. Interestingly enough, a study conducted at The University of Scranton , and written about in Forbes, found that 92% of people also fail to achieve their New Year’s Resolutions. In other words, 92% of people do not follow through on their goals and if that goal includes starting a business this year, only a small percentage of people will take action. The question becomes this, if so many people fail to start, how do you start your own business in 2022?
‘92% of people do not follow through on their goals’
Hal Gregersen, author of the book Questions are the Answer, and a professor at MIT Sloan School of Business where I am currently studying, writes, “the best way to encourage more of the behavior you want is to create the conditions in which that behavior will arise naturally.” What Gregerson is suggesting is that if we are to achieve our goals, in this case starting a business this year, then we must align our environment with what it is we are intending to do.
‘…starting a business this year, then we must align our environment with what it is we are intending to do.’
Furthermore, as someone who has spent decades mentoring people to start and scale businesses, and has started several successful ventures, having an environment that is conducive to action combined with placing ourselves in situations where we are obligated to perform an act that moves us closer to our goal of starting a business in 2022 are the two main factors that determine whether one starts their business.
My dear friend, Rebecca Zung, best-selling author and global expert on narcissism, was transitioning from her full-time career as an attorney. She had read Russell Brunson’s book, Expert Secrets, and decided that his proposed funnel building model could work for her. Instead of overthinking how she would build her learn-on-demand course, she booked the videographer and worked backwards in developing the course content. Because she had scheduled the video session, she was committed and had no choice but to take action.
In my own life, I am preparing to launch an elegant, simple, and effective learn-on-demand course for people who want to start a business. I have scheduled the videographer, researched the top questions people have, and am building the course content. Because the session is scheduled, I am committed and the degree of readiness I have on that day will be determined by how much time I invest beforehand in preparation.
When we have an idea, it is essential that we take some form of committed action. That could be registering, and paying for, a course. It could be filing the papers for our new corporation. It could be letting the world know on social media that we are starting a business. In my humble opinion, bold action yields bold results and those who fail to achieve, the 92%, are those that spend more time thinking about what they want than actually going for it.
When we take one committed action, especially one where we have committed time or money or both, and done so by letting others know, forces us to continue forward or risk some form of loss. One of the reasons those in the 92% do not take action is because they haven’t put anything on the line.
‘One of the reasons those in the 92% do not take action is because they haven’t put anything on the line.’
When Kara Goldin, founder of Hint, was just getting started, she reached a point of critical mass where the fledgling beverage company was either going to grow or perish. Goldin, and her husband, required an infusion of capital and while some investors were interested, they were waiting until the company hit certain milestones before writing checks. At this point, Goldin took a committed action. She sold her home in pricey San Francisco, took the equity and invested it into the business.
That committed action left Goldin and her family which included four children under the age of six, renting in a less expensive area while she dedicated her efforts to grow Hint. Against the odds, as the majority of beverage companies fail, today Hint is worth an estimated $150 million.
The bottom line is this – if you want to start a business this year, take some form of committed action; one that requires you to either dedicate your time, money, or reputation. The longer you wait to get started, the more likely you are to end up in the 92%.
‘…if you want to start a business this year, take some form of committed action; one that requires you to either dedicate your time, money, or reputation’
One of the questions I constantly pose to my community is, ‘do you want to be in the same place physically, financially, emotionally, and spiritually next year?’ Ultimately, we all want to grow and as scary as it is to take that first step, I will end with the famous words of Lao Tzu, ‘a journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.’ Take that step.
‘Do you want to be in the same place physically, financially, emotionally, and spiritually next year?’
