by Scarlett Darbyshire

How to Regain Focus After Dealing with Difficult Clients or Customers

Every business owner or freelancer knows the sting of a bad client or customer experience. Maybe they ghosted you after weeks of work, demanded more than agreed upon, or sent an email so long it could qualify as a novel. Whatever the case, bad clients can zap your energy and make you question everything. But don’t let one (or a few) bad apples derail your entire groove. Here’s how to bounce back and regain focus.

1. Allow Yourself to Vent (Briefly)

Bad experiences are frustrating, and it’s okay to feel upset. But instead of bottling it up, let it out in a constructive way:

  • Call a friend or fellow business owner and rant for 10 minutes.
  • Write it all down in a journal (then close the notebook and move on).
  • Talk to your pet—they’re great listeners and always on your side.

Once you’ve let it out, don’t dwell on it. Acknowledge your feelings, then pivot to solutions.

2. Reframe the Experience

Yes, dealing with difficult clients is annoying, but every bad experience is also a learning opportunity. Ask yourself:

  • What could I do differently next time? (e.g., clearer contracts, better boundaries).
  • Was this truly within my control, or was this just a mismatched client?
    Reframing turns frustration into growth and prevents the same issues from repeating.

3. Take a Mental Break

Sometimes, you just need to step away to clear your head.

  • Go for a walk, do a quick workout, or meditate for 10 minutes.
  • Watch a funny video or listen to an uplifting podcast.
  • Treat yourself to a favorite activity—whether it’s baking, painting, or dancing like no one’s watching.

A fresh perspective often comes after some well-deserved distance.

4. Remember Your Wins

When one client or customer knocks you down, it’s easy to forget about all the great ones. Take a moment to reflect:

  • Revisit glowing testimonials, kind emails, or successful projects you’re proud of.
  • Make a “win board” or list of accomplishments to remind yourself that you’re awesome.
    Bad clients are the exception, not the rule—don’t let them define your work.

5. Set Clearer Boundaries

If difficult clients are becoming a pattern, it might be time to adjust your processes:

  • Review your contracts: Are expectations clear? Does your agreement include protections for scope creep or late payments?
  • Improve your onboarding: Use intake forms or discovery calls to weed out clients who aren’t the right fit.
  • Learn to say no: Not every client is worth the stress. Politely decline those who show red flags early on.

6. Focus on the Clients Who Light You Up

Bad clients can overshadow good ones, but don’t let them steal the spotlight. Dedicate your energy to the customers or clients who value your work and make your job enjoyable.

  • Send a thank-you note to a loyal client.
  • Share positive feedback or case studies on social media to attract more of your ideal audience.
  • Remind yourself that good clients are out there—and they’re looking for someone like you.

7. Give Yourself Permission to Move On

Dwelling on a bad experience won’t change it. Give yourself permission to let it go and focus on what’s next.

  • Create a ritual to “close the chapter” (e.g., deleting the email thread, writing a goodbye letter you don’t send, or simply saying, “That’s behind me now”).
  • Shift your attention to a new project, idea, or client that excites you.

8. Build a Support System

Every business owner faces challenges. Surround yourself with people who understand the ups and downs.

  • Join a mastermind group or online community.
  • Reach out to a mentor or peer for advice.
  • Share your experience with trusted colleagues—they might have tips for handling similar situations.

9. Revisit Your “Why”

Why did you start your business in the first place? What drives you to keep going?

  • Reconnect with your purpose and remind yourself that one bad experience doesn’t diminish your passion or expertise.
  • Revisit your long-term goals and refocus on the big picture.

10. Use the Energy to Level Up

Bad experiences often spark big changes. Use your frustration as fuel to improve your business:

  • Update your workflows.
  • Create new policies to protect your time and energy.
  • Raise your rates—because let’s be honest, the most difficult clients are often the cheapest ones.

Conclusion

Dealing with bad clients or customers is never fun, but it’s a part of business that can ultimately make you stronger. Vent, learn, and move on—but don’t let a bad experience hold you back. You’ve got this, and the next great client is just around the corner.

Have you had a challenging client experience? Share your funniest or most ridiculous story (anonymously, of course) in the comments below!

by Scarlett Darbyshire

Running a Business When You’re an Introvert: Surviving and Thriving (Quietly)

Running a business is challenging. Running a business as an introvert? That’s a whole different ball game—one where you’re the MVP but also kind of want to sit on the bench and avoid small talk with the other players. Don’t worry, though. You can absolutely crush it as an introverted entrepreneur. You’ll just do it without networking parties or loud self-promotion. Here’s how.

1. The Home Office: Your Fortress of Solitude

Forget about open-plan coworking spaces. Your home office is where the magic happens, complete with noise-canceling headphones, plants that don’t ask questions, and an “I’m busy” aura that keeps everyone out.

  • Pro Tip: Add a “Do Not Disturb” sign—bonus points if it says something like, “Introverting in Progress.”

2. The Email is Mightier than the Phone

For an introvert, email is the ultimate tool: no awkward pauses, no small talk, and all the time in the world to craft the perfect reply.

  • Pro Tip: Use “Let me follow up via email” as your escape line for any unexpected phone call.

3. Networking, but Make It Introvert-Friendly

Traditional networking events are a nightmare (free snacks aren’t worth the small talk). Instead, try these introvert-approved alternatives:

  • Join niche online communities where you can lurk before engaging.
  • Build 1:1 relationships over virtual coffee chats (with your camera off, if possible).
  • Let your website and social media do the heavy lifting—hello, automated DMs!

4. Marketing Without the Megaphone

You don’t need to shout to get noticed.

  • Content Marketing: Write blogs, create guides, or start a newsletter. Share your expertise without ever stepping into the spotlight.
  • Social Media: Post engaging content at your own pace—no need for constant stories or lives.
  • Word-of-Mouth: Let your happy clients do the talking for you (because, let’s face it, they’re better at it anyway).

5. Client Meetings: The Introvert Survival Kit

Client meetings can be draining, but with a bit of strategy, you’ll come out unscathed:

  • Schedule Smart: Book meetings during your most energetic hours (a.k.a. not after 3 PM).
  • Prep Like a Pro: Have an agenda so you’re in control of the conversation.
  • Recharge Afterward: Block off post-meeting quiet time to recover.

6. The Power of Saying “No”

As an introvert, your energy is sacred. Protect it by mastering the art of saying “no.”

  • To unnecessary meetings: “Can this be an email?”
  • To overcommitting: “I’d love to, but my schedule’s full.” (Full of introverting, of course.)

7. Turning Your Introvert Superpowers Into Business Strengths

  • Deep Focus: Your ability to work solo for hours is perfect for tackling big projects.
  • Listening Skills: Clients love feeling heard—your thoughtful approach builds trust.
  • Creativity: Those quiet moments? They’re where your best ideas come to life.

8. Social Media? Post It and Ghost It

The thought of constant engagement on social media might be exhausting, but here’s the trick:

  • Create content in batches during your “extrovert moments.”
  • Schedule posts using tools like Buffer or Later.
  • Log off and let the algorithms do the work while you recharge.

9. Team Building (for When You’re Forced to Have a Team)

If you need to hire, build a team that respects your need for quiet time. Bonus: Introverts make excellent leaders—calm, thoughtful, and great at letting others shine.

  • Pro Tip: Implement Slack channels or Trello boards for communication so you can avoid unnecessary meetings.

10. Celebrate the Wins (Your Way)

You don’t need a big party to celebrate your success. Order your favorite takeout, binge-watch a show, or enjoy a solo dance party (dogs and cats allowed). Success looks different for everyone—especially introverts.

Conclusion:
Running a business as an introvert isn’t about changing who you are; it’s about building a business that works with your personality. Lean into your strengths, set boundaries, and embrace the quiet confidence that makes introverts so uniquely effective. You’ve got this—just don’t forget to schedule some alone time afterward.

What’s your best introvert-friendly business hack? Share it in the comments (or don’t—no pressure).

by Scarlett Darbyshire

50 Ways to Market Your Business When You Have No Money

The first thing a business normally cuts when it has no money is the marketing budget. You know this, and I especially know this. The problem with this is when you cut marketing, you in turn cut the chance of getting any new customers. You’ve all heard that wonderful quote from Henry Ford – “Stopping advertising to save money is like stopping your watch to save time.” – and it is absolutely true.

We have just had a pandemic and are now knee-deep in a a cost of living crisis. Businesses are going to go, redundancies made… it’s just not a nice time to be a business owner, or worried employee for that matter. I’ve tried my best as a business owner to help with businesses with little budget for social media marketing, there’s a 400 page guide you can download for free, ideas on how you can get in touch for free help and i’ve made a lot of one-off services cheaper so you are not worried about getting tied into a monthly contract. This is all well and good, but sometimes there are times when a business has actually no money whatsoever to spend on marketing. If that’s where you find yourself now then you’re going to be on the lookout for free marketing tactics to boost your business and get some more business through the door. As if by magic, here they are! These fifty inexpensive marketing strategies will help you engage and leverage your customers, build lucrative relationships, and ultimately keep your brand at the top-of-mind when it comes to people searching for the product/service you have to offer.

Learn How to Ask for Referrals: You’re much more likely to get something if you ask for it! Don’t just assume your clients will pass along the good word-of-mouth about you. So do you want to get more clients? Get over the fear of asking and force yourself to get in the habit of asking for a referral from every satisfied customer.

Learn the Most Likely Places to Find Clients – and go to those places: Think of the obvious places your target audience will be and go to those places to drum up new business in person or simply just leave a stack of your business cards there.

Host a Workshop, Event or Class Related to Your Products/Services: People love to learn so classes on topics related to your products and services can bring big gains. Plan an event or class to host, then print out flyers and post them in your local community and areas where target clients will see them. Bulletin boards, libraries, coffee shops, and adult education centers etc.)

Create a Brochure: Brochures can be great sales tools as they are relatively cheap, give you some in-hand marketing material when you’re discussing your products or services and also give potential customers who want to think over your pitch to have something to take away with them.

Get Free Publicity for Your Business: Do this by involving the media (including social media!) in your big business events such as grand openings, new products launches, moves, or charity events. Don’t have one of these happening in the near future? You can always get involved in someone else’s charity event by becoming a sponsor.

Create a Website for Your Small Business: If you don’t already have one, it’s a vital necessity nowadays for a business to have a website. Even if it’s a basic one that simply presents the who, what, where and why of your business at least it gives you a home on the web and a chance of coming up in local search – critical for getting your business found nowadays. There are lots of great website building platforms out there, with WordPress being one of them.

Create a Blog for Your Business: Blogging can create a bigger market for your products or services if you share valuable, regular and engaging content consistently. You should also cultivate your blogging community by visiting and commenting on other relevant blogs regularly. (Be smart; pick the ones your customers are likely to be visiting too.)

Develop a Social Media Marketing Plan and Implement it: Developing a presence on social media is a great and vital low budget marketing strategy. Download my free eBook that has a great social media strategy template (if I do say so myself!). Or if you have a little money in the bank and you would like one professionally done for you, I have an offer on at the moment!

Spend Money on Social Media Advertising: All the major platforms offer forms of inexpensive advertising, often with incredible targeting options. Learn about Facebook ads and Twitter ads in the free eBook download too.

Become a Radio Guest: Radio can be a very effective way of targeting your potential customers and is a much more inexpensive form of advertising compared to other channels such as television. Get in touch with your local radio for potential deals on airtime ads/interviews.

Develop Business Partnerships: Cross-promotion is a great way to tap into a wider audience, cut down on the cost of advertising and can create valuable relationships that benefit all the partners involved. This can be done locally offline through some kind of special event, or online with a webinar or promotional giveaway

Send out Promotions with your Invoices: A no-brainer that’s often forgotten! You’re sending out a document anyhow so why not include a promotion?

Learn How to Write a Killer Sales Letter: Whether it’s direct mail or email, once you’ve written one, be sure to learn how to maximize the response to your sales letter.

Create an Email Newsletter: This gives you a great opportunity to stay in regular contact with your customers, sharing business news, latest offers etc.

Join a face-to-face Networking Group: There’s no faster, easier way to make contacts and get known in your local community.

Participate in Local Business Trade Fairs: While trade shows are far from easy, they can be one of the most rewarding forms of marketing when approached with the right strategy. Your attendance will be rewarded with rapidly expanding your database of sales leads, meeting and connecting with prospective customers and learning about new developments in your industry.

Apply for Business Awards: Getting a business award under your belt is a great way to build credibility and generate positive PR. There’s nothing wrong with a nomination from a friend or even nominating yourself – just make sure you’re entered!

Advertise Your Business on Your Vehicle: Be seen whilst you’re out and about by putting a vinyl wrap on your car with your logo, business name and contact detail and/or place a plastic business card holder on the side of your vehicle.

Pamper Your Existing Customer: Make sure you’re not neglecting the people who already know and trust you, as typically it’s five times as expensive to make a sale to a new customer as it is to an existing one. For example you could take your best customers out to dinner using the opportunity to ask them about how to improve your business or write to your customers to reward them with exclusive benefits such as a new loyalty program or an invite to sneak preview your latest product.

Utilize Your Business Setting: Your building and surrounding land or sidewalk are great places to put up signs and banners.

Push For PR: A media story is much more valuable than an advertisement because of the credibility it gives your business. Journalists’ are looking for a compelling story to tell so help them by letting them know about an interesting story of yours involving an innovative product, unusual customer contact or gamble that paid off.

Turn Employees into Ambassadors: Your employees are part of the community and have all sorts of contacts that could help you so think of ways you can keep them motivated and utilize them.

Give Back: Channel into your inner good by sponsoring your local lads football team or having a charity collection jar by the cash register. You’ll feel good by doing your bit for the community but will also benefit by generating goodwill with customers. As an example for less than the cost of a 1/4 page ad in a local paper, you can buy team uniforms for your local sports teams and not only will you get the team, and their friends, family and fans attention but it will show a very wide audience that your business is a genuine part of the local community.

Create Instructional Videos: Video content is really valuable, but it needn’t be costly to get quality YouTube videos produced. You can research the plenty of guides out there to help, or you can get others involved on a budget by using sites such as Fiverr.

Get Ad Promo Credits: Big ad campaigns may be out of your budget but there are often discounts and coupons floating around out there for paid Facebook Ads or Google ads.

Create DIY Infographics: Infographics are very powerful marketing tools as they’re visually appealing, easy to digest, and people love to share them. All in all they’re a great way to drive up referral traffic and links. There are plenty of free vector kits out there for Adobe Illustrator. Check out Visual.ly for inspiration, they have many examples for you to browse through.

Recycle Your Content: Breathe life into your old content by turning them into new creations! For example, you could turn a collection of blog posts into an eBook.

Develop a Customer Referral Program: Word-of-mouth is a powerful tool, so encourage your existing customers to spread the word by offering a free product, free month of service, or some other reward for referring new customers.

Hold a Contest: Contests are an inexpensive, effortless and exciting way to grow your business and increase online engagement as you often only need to worry about the costs of monitoring the contest and prizes.

Guerilla Marketing: An advertisement strategy designed for businesses to emphasize the creativity and promote their products or services in an unconventional way with little budget to spend. Take a look at these successful examples.

Business Card Draw: This simply idea involves you putting a big glass bowl at your place of business with a sign asking visitors to drop their business cards in for a chance to win something. At the end of the month when you’ve collected loads of business cards, you draw a winner. The real winner here is you however as there’s no reason those other business cards you’ve collected have to go to waste! Use the email addresses provided to let users know that while they haven’t won this time, they are more than welcome to join your mailing list, which will notify them of future giveaways and special offers.

Email Marketing: A great way to get new visitors engaged with your business and maintain relationships with your existing customers. The key to success is to get new website visitors to sign up for your newsletter by offering a bonus content piece for subscribing (e.g. free ebook) then slowly nurture your subscribers via email until they are ready to become paying customers. MailChimp is a great free email marketing service.

Give Away Balloons at Local Events: For a few hundred quid you can rent a helium tank and get a few hundred custom balloons printed with your business name. This is great as a summer imitative at a fair or community event as you’ll have a bunch of happy people marching around with your brand floating above their heads.

List Your Company on Google Maps/Google My Business: Google Maps/Local presence is important for many reasons as It directs customers to your establishment when they are in the area, and your business typically appears higher in Google search rankings.

Use Google Products: Google has provided businesses with a toolbox of marketing goodies (Analytics, Google+, Google my Business etc.) that will only help your business grow. By following their terms of service and best practices, you can help your business gain recognition.

Learn From What Your Competitors Do: It’s important to look at what your competitors are doing as you can get a good sense of how they have become successful, and where they are lacking in their marketing efforts. Both of which you can apply to your own efforts.

Revisit Your Landing Pages: Landing page design can have a huge impact on your conversion rates. If you’re doing any kind of advertising or email marketing, your landing pages are where people who are interested in your offerings decide to “convert” into a lead or a customer or not so you need to regularly update and maximise them to make sure they are fit for purpose.

Make Reporters Come to You: Instead of always sending boring pitching reports with story ideas, go straight to the horse’s mouth and schedule a coffee meeting with the local relevant reporters in your market. Start the conversation by genuinely attempting to make their lives easier without trying to sell them your story and you will become a valuable resource.

Freebies: Everyone loves a freebie and there are many ways to produce freebies that cost next to nothing. For example: a free eBook on a topic of your expertise, small samples of your product, or discount coupons people can obtain in exchange for their email address.

Be Active in Forums: Join discussion forums where people are actively talking about products and services like yours, topics in your industry, and businesses relevant to your brand. This will help spread the word about your expertise, gain credibility in your industry, and build your network.

Get on Online Directories: This is one of the most efficient and inexpensive forms of marketing your brand. Many of these directories are free to register, and enable users searching for your products and services to quickly find you.

Give a Speech: Many organizations are actively looking for qualified, subject-matter experts who can present to their groups. Get over your fear of public speaking, think of the benefits and volunteer. You don’t have to be a pro as long as the information you share is helpful to the audience. Make it easy for people to associate you and your business with expertise in your field.

Be Generous: To keep customers loyal to you, don’t make the mistake of thinking that promotional items are only for conferences and tradeshows. Send your customers small “surprise” gifts as they always work to instill loyalty and retention. They don’t have to be expensive, consider items such as tea bags, pens and pads, small flashlights or things very target specific to your industry, like small packets of flower seeds for a gardener.

Team up With Larger Firms in the Industry: Find larger companies, or more experienced businesses and invite them to lunch with the intention of asking them to consider referring their smaller cases or business they don’t have time to handle, to you. With every successful referral they give you remember to send them a genuine thank you. This will help you easily build your customer or client base.

Feed Them!: Anything involving free food gets attention. Partner up with local businesses and a restaurant/ Café to throw a special event, complete with free food. Combining your database with other businesses will expose you to an entirely different segment of people for a fraction of the price.

Write For A Trade Magazine: If you want to get people’s attention and have them call you, there’s nothing like writing an article for a trade or local magazine to gain credibility and get the exposure you want. Demonstrate your expertise and position yourself as the go-to person for your product or service with this service and it will make you appear credible because a recognised publication is publishing your content.

Write A Book: The status of being a published author provides you with unprecedented access to media, speaking gigs, and other opportunities like nothing else can and the best part is that it costs nothing other than your time.

Online Reviews: Online reviews are a critical component of your business’ reputation and can do wonders for converting new customers. Let your fans review your business, then incorporate their reviews in your blog post, on your website, promote them on social media and anywhere else that is relevant and will be seen.

Host Educational Events: Partner with businesses that target the same audience as you to host “educational” events. Split the cost and the work that goes into creating the event, including inviting prospects and clients. It’s a cost-effective way to market to the other firms’ clients, to prospects, and to build a relationship with these other partners in order to gain future referrals.

Join in on Weekly Hashtag Hours like #ThrowbackThursday: To build your social media following, you need to be an active participant in the community. A great way to get your content seen by many eyes is to join in on a relevant fun weekly social media hour that already has a loyal audience. There’s a hashtag for almost anything, check which ones you could join in with here.

Go Back to Basics: In an online age, there’s still something to be said for going back to basics and conducting some ‘real life’ marketing. For example you can go old school with flyers and poster in local cafes etc.

BONUS! Get on Social Media and get posting. Social media is one of the most valuable marketing tools out there. And it’s free!

by Scarlett Darbyshire

40 Social Media Content Ideas for Your Restaurant

We all know how important social media is a tool people use to make purchasing decisions. This is especially true when it comes to choosing where to eat⁠ — people just seem to love sharing and searching for photos of food. So much so in fact, according to TouchBistro, 41% of people have decided to eat at a specific restaurant based entirely on positive social media feedback.

So you’re a restaurateur that’s sold on getting social and you’ve created your profiles, but what next? Anyone who has ever created a social media account will, at some point, know the difficulty of coming up with fresh content. Many find it overwhelming to navigate the world of social media as it is, but throw in trying to run your actual business at the same time as well… well it can all just get a bit overwhelming can’t it.

Restaurants are one of my favourite businesses to work with as social media content is literally everywhere! It’s just that you may not be recognising it as such. That’s why I’ve created this handy PDF that’s free to download that you can reference whenever you’re feeling a bit uninspired for content. Why not try one of these fresh ideas for your next Facebook, Twitter or Instagram post…

Restaurant Content IdeasDownload

Still feeling a bit overwhelmed with it all? Why not book a meeting so we can talk it through? Or if you just want social media off your plate… I can help you there too.

by Scarlett Darbyshire

Not Enjoying Self-Employment? Here’s How to Fall Back in Love With Your Business!

Stressed Business Owner

From winning new projects, a diary full of promising meetings, to even decorating your new office and picking out all your fresh new folders and stationary… those first few development years of business ownership are exhilarating and full of adventure! No two days are ever the same and with every day comes a new experience and learning curve… and you loved every minute of it. But now? All of a sudden, those long hours you love to put in, are now a chore. Your focus is gone. Maybe your personal and home life are suffering as a result of the constant stress. Like everyone else unhappy with their job, you sit there with a sense of despair on Sunday night at the thought of another Monday back at your desk. Ultimately, everything about your business has become a burden. A burden that you undertake with zero passion.

You’re not sure how or when you started to feel this way. You just know something doesn’t feel right anymore. You’ve suddenly become one of those people who dreams of escaping your mundane unhappy work life in the quest for something more exciting. Starting your own small business is a bit like falling in love: it’s exciting, exhilarating, and new. You don’t mind putting in the hours and effort during the beginning because you feel like you’re building something good. But just like in the affairs of the heart, when it comes to business it’s all too easy to let the passion slide. Take off the rose-tinted glasses and after the adrenaline rush subsides the reality sets in and you may discover that not everything about running a business is so wonderful. There are tasks you absolutely hate to do, activities you find stale, technical difficulties to test your patience and clients and vendors who you may not get on with at all.

Before you make the huge decision to dump something you’ve worked so hard to make a success, consider how you can rekindle that lost spark. All people from all walks of life have those moments and periods of wanting to pack it all in, its completely natural. However, you owe it to yourself and your business to decide whether this is just a wobbly period (99% of the time is!) or your mind is made and that’s it you’re done.

Does this all sound familiar to you? Let’s highlight some of the danger signs and if you find yourself nodding along and saying ‘yep, that’s me’ then read on for top tips to get you feeling the love!

  • You’ve taken on too much, you’re wearing so many ‘job hats’ that it’s overwhelming
  • You no longer have the time to ensure you are keeping your clients/customers happy.
  • Business plan? Haha what is that… I haven’t looked at in ages/ever!
  • Your cash flow is a serious problem
  • You’re working long hours and hate every second of it
  • You’re putting things off and finding everything else to do but solve your problems.

Thankfully, you can rekindle the flames of passion for your business by making a few subtle (tried and tested!) changes in how you work and think. Here are seven tips to help you love your business again!

  1. Take a holiday! Most business owners rarely take a break, and if they do, they are still not fully switched off… they still answer emails, have the laptop available etc. Repeat after me … ‘YOUR CLIENTS CAN LIVE WITHOUT YOU FOR TWO WEEKS, THE WORLD IS NOT GOING TO END!’ Get a holiday booked that’s purely for you, designed for lots of rest and relaxation. No worrying about answering emails, listening to answerphone messages and dare I say it… no social media! You might find a holiday to escape from it all, and one that gives you (and your brain!) a chance to relax and slow down, is just what you needed to fall back in love with your business. Don’t feel guilty either – everyone needs a break and your clients will understand. Just give them plenty of notice and away you go.
  1. With your newly refreshed state of mind… start again! After a holiday you always feel relaxed, rested and re-motivated. Before you go back straight into work and catching up – take a day to spring clean your business. Use this new-found positivity to clear out the garbage (ineffective procedures, bad clients and maybe even literally clear out the garbage if you have a messy office!). Simply ask yourself questions such as; what can I get rid of that’s not working/making me unhappy? What’s something that’s costing me lots of money? Can I get rid completely or find a cheaper alternative? What can I do to make my business more efficient? What ideas can I implement to make my clients happier? What skills can I learn that will benefit my business? By examining your life and reviewing your typical work day/week/month you can work out all the areas that are good/bad and act on that to help you solve many of your business issues and set yourself up for success!
  1. Streamline processes to relive overwhelm! If the main problem within your business is that you feel overwhelmed, running around doing 1001 jobs, then you will really benefit from looking objectively at your business to identify the areas in which your time is being taken up unnecessarily. You can majorly improve your productivity and free up a lot of your time by implementing software, delegating tasks, hiring a freelancer and other tactics designed to be utilized by business owners like yourself to improve workflow and yield better results! Constantly chasing up invoices? Implement a software to do it for you. Absolutely hate answering the business calls? Hire a company who’s job it is to do that. You can easily free up your time by streamlining your current processes and delegating the ones you hate to someone else, leaving you happier, less overwhelmed and of course your business becomes more productive and professional as a result.
  1. Remind yourself why you started your business! If you’re unhappy with your life and business, it’s easy to forget why you launched your own venture in the first place and the huge benefits you receive from it. When it comes down to it, you‘re the boss. You can take time off when you want, work the hours that suit you, pick and choose your clients and have control over your future. Ok so you are thinking of quitting self-employment, for what? To go back to the rat race working for someone else, 9-5, a condescending boss, traffic and working all the hours under the sun to make someone else rich! That’s crazy to want to go back into! If you need to fall back in love with your business, take a few minutes to be humble and grateful. You are living the life that most people only dream they had to guts to do! Yes it may be stressful at times, but surely all the massive positives outweigh the negatives you experience sometimes.
  1. Have good support around you! Running your own business can be a very lonely affair, especially if no one in your inner circle runs their own business so can’t relate to how you are feeling. It needn’t be, however as there are so many business support networks around in the form of monthly groups, networking opportunities, online communities etc. where you can meet up, get out the office and talk to like-minded people who can offer advice, support and a new way of thinking about things. Don’t underestimate a simple coffee with a friend or family member too! A nice chat to whinge and whine to get things off your chest can do the world of good – as they say a problem shared is a problem halved! – so make sure you have a lot of people around you who you can talk you when things are getting too much as this support can make the difference to help you succeed.
  1. Work out your plan! If you are on a weight loss plan, for example, how great does it feel when you hit your weekly/monthly target and keep knocking those targets out the park! How motivating it is to see yourself working hard to achieve this positive life changing goal. The same logic can be applied to building and making a success of your own business. Take the time to work “on” your business by setting time aside to plan your goals and create a bigger picture of what you want to achieve. Identify realistic goals and objectives and create a roadmap that guides you towards that success! Make sure you regularly review your master plan and check your progress toward achieving your goals. When you see yourself hitting those goals you will feel a sense of motivation and fulfillment knowing you are one step towards where you want to be. Importantly, don’t feel sad if you don’t hit your goal, simply assess what you missed and learn what you need to do to make sure you hit it next month… you’re only human remember!
  1. Book your next holiday! The logic here is that you will always have something to look forward to. Taking a break, even if its just a few days away is so important for a business owner. A holiday refreshes you, gets you a change of scenery, reminds you how good you really have it (after all, you didn’t have to ask anyone else’s permission to go on holiday – you just did it because you could as you’re the boss!) and that time away even gives you a chance to miss your business! All of which gear you up for an ultra-positive stint for when you get back to your desk!

What are your top tips for staying motivated as a business owner?