Building a Business? – Learn These 10 Lessons from Some of Australia’s Richest People
It’d benefit a business owner to turn to expert advice every once in a while. Discover the best business tips from some of Australia’s most successful leaders.
By the time you finish reading this sentence, a new business will be first seeing the light of day somewhere in the world. Every day, numerous aspiring entrepreneurs start their journey into business in the hopes of becoming the next big thing.
But this doesn’t mean that it’s easy. Anyone can start a business, but not all of them can grow and run it successfully.
The good news is that there are those who can let you in on some valuable secrets that you’ll want to listen to. There’s no shortage of successful people in Australia, and they can be invaluable in your quest to duplicate or even exceed their level of success.
Take a look at some of the best tips that they have to share.
1. Write a Business Bible
Matthew White, the owner of Ergoflex, believes that there’s an abundance of useful business information out there. He’s absolutely right, as it’s never been easier to access all the knowledge needed to achieve success at any levels.
This is why he suggests that you keep your eyes and ears open. More importantly, he advises that you keeping a notebook around for recording the most valuable advice and ideas that come your way.
Even if it might not be all that useful right now, you never know when you might be able to take advantage of it. You’ll want to create your own knowledge database that you can consult whenever you need help.
This is a great opportunity to start.
2. Know When to Outsource
Most aspiring business owners mistakenly think that they have to do it all. This is natural, as you’ll have to cover a lot of ground if you want to have a successful business.
But trying to be everything to everyone and doing it all alone often turns out to be a costly mistake.
This is why Rhys Roberts of Viridity, a top accounting firm, advises that you focus on what you do best. For everything else, your safest bet is to outsource.
This is all about playing to your strengths while making sure that others make up for your weaknesses. Find an expert who can do the job right and focus on offering things that nobody can provide but you. As you go about this, you’ll gain a definitive competitive advantage.
3. Be Ambitious and Persistent
It’s easy to get caught up in the day-to-day tasks of building a business. There are all sorts of decisions that you have to make on a daily basis if you want to become successful.
However, you must not forget to focus on the big picture. You’re a business leader, and therefore it’s your job to think about the future and aim as high as you possibly can.
This is why Rochelle Miller of fashion retailer Another Love advises:
‘Believe in yourself and your strengths. Don’t take ‘no’ for an answer. There will be bumps along the way, but everything has a solution or another option.’
It takes a lot of time and effort to build a business that floats above the sea of competition. But if you match ambition with hunger and drive, you can reach consistent, lasting growth.
4. Leverage Social Media
This is a given, yet many business owners seem to overlook it. Instead of being proactive and setting up their social media from the get-go, they leave it for later. In doing so, they lose time and customers.
Anthony Kittel of REDARC sees this as a big issue. In his words:
‘Our brand is everything, so whatever we can do to promote that brand and consumer awareness is critical.’
Your brand is what sets you apart from the crowd. It should be a magnet that draws strangers in and turns them into buyers. Your biggest goal here is to send a message that you can do something better than all others.
And social media is the best channel for doing this. There are countless opportunities for showcasing your unique work on the leading social media platforms, so make sure to take full advantage of them.
5. Focus on the Execution
Viable and innovative ideas are the first step to success. But they’re far from the most important. Unless you follow up on those ideas with the right strategy, all your creativity will likely amount to nothing.
Daniel Flynn, the founder of Thankyou Group, advises that you shift your focus from the idea itself to how you’ll make it a reality. He says that anyone can come up with a good idea, but not everyone can execute properly.
Flynn also explains that you need the right team on your side to do this. You need to surround yourself with people who will support one another and your ideas.
This ties back to not trying to do it all on your own. If you have the right people, they’ll have fresh perspectives that you might not be able to see on your own. So, take the idea, gather people around it, and execute until it comes to fruition.
6. Create a Winning Culture
Speaking of your business teams, there are few things as important as setting up a strong company culture. Without it, everyone runs around without direction. It’s just a matter of time before this results in failure.
Cyndi O’Meara, the founder of Changing Habits, explains:
‘Business, no matter what size, is about culture and trust. Build a culture that aligns with what you do and become a trusted leader in your field and community.’
Your company culture unites your people under the same values and goals, which you should all strive for collectively. If you build a culture of trust and support, your team can be unstoppable.
7. Have a Long-Term Game Plan
When you start a business, you need to know your industry inside out. In fact, you should do all the necessary research before you even start. No matter your niche, chances are the rules of the game will change rapidly. It’s just how today’s business world works.
This is why Andy Sheats, the founder and CEO of health.com.au, advises that you look into the future of your industry. This will give you a chance to create a roadmap to a sustainable future for your business.
This encompasses every important aspect of your business. You need to think about costs, value, customers, and a host of other things. The key here is to predict trends and learn how to jump on the promising ones before others.
You’ll need to arm yourself with an arsenal of weapons to fight off the competition, which requires planning ahead. If you wait for others to make their moves before responding, they’ll always be one step ahead of you.
8. Don’t Grow Too Quickly
However counterintuitive it may seem, growth can be a bad thing. Or rather, rapid growth. More clients, more products, more money.
If you’re not careful, this will backfire. Your business can outgrow you and slip away from your grip.
Total Balance’s start-up coach Kate James explains that this can be a major problem, which is why you should never let your business grow too fast. It’s way better to keep it manageable. Bigger isn’t always better, so make sure that you’re growing sustainably.
9. Make Disruptive Moves
There will come a time in an industry when it’s ripe for disruption. Customers get bored of the same old and start craving for fresh ideas. If you position yourself well in this scenario, you just might become the next big thing.
This was what Kate Morris did when she founded Adore Beauty, Australia’s longest-running online beauty shop.
She realised that customers found department stores intimidating. After borrowing $12,000, Morris set out to change this. She’s now a multimillionaire running one of Australia’s most successful businesses.
Morris advises that you have the willingness to break barriers. She also suggests for you to get things done one step after another. Don’t rush it, but rather think things through and introduce something new that people will love.
10. Believe In Your Offer
If you’re not confident about what you’re selling, how can you expect others to be? Before you even start selling, you need to plan carefully and perfect your offer.
Kayla Itsines, a fitness expert and entrepreneur, says that this is the single most important thing. She spent months planning everything thing out before she even thought about releasing her first guide. It wasn’t until she was fully confident that she launched her business.
As she puts it:
‘Do you believe in your product? I think that’s really important, because you need to have a vision, but you should also wholeheartedly believe in what you’re trying to accomplish.’
Itsines is in her 20s and her net worth is around $46 million, so one could assume that she knows something. What’s more, she started her business from the ground up, so she’s been where you currently are. If you borrow her approach and plan until you believe in your offer 100%, you just might put yourself and your business on the right path to success.
Slow and Steady Wins the Race
When you first start your business, it’s normal to be impatient and want everything right there and now. You’ll have put in a ton of work and you want to see the results as soon as possible.
But if there’s one thing that Australia’s most successful people can teach us, it’s that you should never rush this process. Your energy is much better spent thinking every move through and finding ways to standing out from the crowd.
This is only the tip of the iceberg of things that you can do to succeed. If you follow the above advice, paving the way to success can become much easier. After all, the whole point of listening to experts is to take shortcuts based on their experience. The more of these shortcuts you run through, the faster you’ll get to the rewarding part of running a successful business.
At CUB our ambition is to unite those who are changing the world through their businesses. We support these people by building a private community of Australia’s next titans of industry. And we bring these titans together to accelerate the achievement of each other’s ambitions.
If you wish to be considered for membership, please feel free to request a club introduction on our membership page: www.cub.club/membership
