In the first year of start ups, 90% will fail. Only 10% will make it to year 2. In year 2 it seems even harder and the pressure is on... why do we get it soooo wrong?

Here's the reasons why people fail in both start ups and down the line.

1. LACK OF BUSINESS KNOWLEDGE.

Many people start businesses with an employee mentality or with zero knowledge at all. They start their businesses with a lalalala land thinking that the idea they have is amazing and that it will work.

To make it in business you MUST get the knowledge on what to do, how to do it and when to do it. You cannot succeed unless you understand the steps required to get started and to build it.

2. LACKING IN SALES EXPERIENCE.

To understand turn over and money coming in the door, you must understand or master selling. When you are the business, you bring in the bacon. You create the turn over. I love it when people start a business and tell me they hate sales. That is death of a business. It doesn't matter how great your products are, someone must sell them.

To employ sales people you need to be able to train them and understand their lives.

3. LACKING IN CONNECTIONS.

When you've worked hard at networking and have built up a portfolio of "connections" you will always have someone to get the best referral or advice from in a given area or sector. You can't be a hermit in business. You need to meet greet and nurture relationships.

If you are not extending your hand and shaking another hand frequently, your network is too small and you're losing business hand over fist. Get beyond your front door every day!

4. YOUR IDEA JUST AINT GOOD ENOUGH.

If you want to compete, you have to have a hot idea or that idea must be marketed exceptionally. It's best to sit with an expert and find out honestly how great the idea really is.

80% of business owners are struggling to sell their ideas. They have skewed belief systems that are not converting and magically believe it'll come right .. NOT !!!! Stop wasting time and get another idea or product.

5. YOU'RE DOING ALL THE WORK.

When your head is buried in your business all day you miss out on opportunities all around you. Employ people to help you and lighten the busy load. Being a business owner means finding others to do the work,.. not you!!

Usually when you don't have enough business coming in the door you will be scared to employ as you see huge bills piling up in salaries. So learn how to get customers and staff will start rolling in.

6. YOU'RE A CONTROL FREAK!

Nobody can do it as well as you can. You believe others will mess it up and they won't do a proper job. The problem here is you only have 24 hours in a day and you can't control the world. Learn to let go.

Some people call it perfectionism, whereas I call it lack of leadership. You have to learn to train people and then allow them to shine. If you dominate you squash their creativity. This means more stress for you and them.

7. YOU'RE NOT AMBITIOUS ENOUGH.

Lazy people like to start businesses because they believe it'll be plain sailing. Building a company takes blood, sweat, tears and creativity. If you are not ambitious enough you will make excuses, default on goals and blame the world for your failure and quit.

I NEVER quit and work harder than anyone I know. I also never stop learning, growing, fighting and changing.

MY FIVE CENTS WORTH:

If you are in business, then pull your head out of your .... Start learning the newest techniques on business in the 21st century .. I laugh when people tell me they know it all, yet cancel their medical aid due to not enough funds in their bank account.

5 categories that most business owners are struggling with:

1. Getting new customers .

This has changed over the last few years. Handling out of fliers, printing brochures, advertising in local newspapers, radio ads, etc are ALL BOMBING. They do not work anymore ...

2. Cross selling to existing bases.

Plenty of businesses have databases but they are losing sales to competition due to them not handling existing clients well enough. This is also a new way of client retention. Resell to clients for years and years .. .

3. Reach based sales.

The wrong techniques leads to little or now reach.

4. Business Automation.

Do your businesses run seamlessly without you? If not, you're working too hard in your businesses. Now is the time to learn how to GET out of your business and allow the systems to do the work.

5. Cashflow problems.

Cashflow is king. No money coming in makes for a tough month every month. Once you develop a money "in" machine.. everything changes.

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