You've probably heard that you have to be bold to be a successful business owner. You have to be daring enough that means you're willing to take the risks and make firm decisions. The decisions you make require that you maintain boldness regardless of how hard or simple the decision might be. You make can either make or break the future of a business hence due diligence is necessary before making any moves.
We asked entrepreneurs and business owners how they are bold in their business and here are the responses.
#1- Trusting my own instincts
I would say the boldest thing I do now, that I had great difficulty when I was younger, is trusting my own instincts and decision-making. Too many times when I was younger would I concede to an employee who felt “strongly” about what he/ she felt we should do. But at the end of the day, I am in my position as CEO of an 18-year firm providing IT support, cloud services, vanity numbers and CRM software because of my strengths. Listen and consider everyone’s opinion, but follow your own.
Thanks to Akiva Goldstein, Onsitein60NYC!
#2- Constantly producing new content
While that is something that is common for most people, I like doing things at least 100 times before I stop to take a look around and gauge my results. It could be 100 YouTube videos, 100 courses, blog posts, posts on social media, whatever it is. This does a few key things. It allows you to keep going even though the sticky times in the beginning, and most importantly, it allows you to build up momentum where pumping out content becomes second nature. And if you're utilizing organic traffic or social media? Then the ROI can be astronomical. As long as you keep producing heavy-amounts of relevant content in the right spots, you'll eventually surpass many of your competitors naturally.
Thanks to James Canzanella, Internet Marketing Nights!
#3- Embracing change
Any entrepreneur will tell you that they took a risk when they started their business. Risk-taking comes with the territory of business building. However, staying in business is all about being courageous and confident. I’m bold in my business when I accept and embrace the necessity of change. Because not everything runs to your business plan and not everything works out the way you first intended. When I realised that my business wasn’t quite hitting the targets I initially set, I went back to the drawing board and changed some goalposts. It’s tough admitting that things aren’t going quite as well as you envisaged it would, but it’s accepting this, applying change, and moving forward that makes you bold in business.
Thanks to Storm McManus, Storm Marketing Consultancy!
#4- Saying no to bad behaviour
I once resigned an account when I realized a nonprofit organization's founder was blatantly misusing donor dollars. I have walked away from workplaces where leaders are toxic and employee morale low. I have turned down projects with companies and people who are not aligned with my core values. Making these decisions has enabled me to work with hand-selected and inspiring clients. It may sound bold but it's been key to my success and serenity. Saying no to bad behavior is one of the smartest business decisions I have made.
Thanks to Patricia Jones, Paws PR!
#5- Participating in networking groups
Being a female entrepreneur is a bold choice in and of itself because as most data suggests that women receive less business funding, face more workplace and professional criticism, and receive less support than men for career growth. To tackle these issue in Chicago, I participate in networking groups and events that primarily attract men, such as CEO Roundtable, to represent successful businesswomen, create awareness to men in being allies to women in their respective roles, and to open the opportunity for other women to join like groups. I have participated in, supported, and been invited to join many female-focused groups, but I have found that the most effective way to achieve equality is to actually have enough courage to join an executive breakfast or a sports-themed event, where I may be one of a handful of women among a sea of male executives. Having a seat at the table, asking questions and offering opinions has already started to make an impact in normalizing the presence of women in leadership positions. More and more women are being invited for opportunities like these simply because of my female colleagues and I, who have decided to take a deep breath and walk boldly into the room in the first place.
Thanks to Mimi Bosika, Delos Therapy & Delos Robotics!
#6- Showing up with a smile
I am bold by showing up every day with renewed energy and enthusiasm to find new customers and continue to delight the ones I already have with my smarts, humor and attitude. It takes persistence, humility and guts to show up every day with a smile, strategy and a plan so I think entrepreneurs are bold by definition.
Thanks to Paige Arnof-Fenn, Mavens & Moguls!
#7- Moving forward despite the nos
Entrepreneurship is not for the weak at heart. I learned this very early when I started my entrepreneurial journey. In fact being bold in my business was my key to success. I wake up everyday and I wear my boldness by moving forward even when the nos are plentiful and the yeses are scarce. With every no, I work harder by putting in longer nights and earlier mornings. It took 365 days of rejection before I receive my first client. Without boldness I would have given up a long time ago. Sometimes, only you can see your vision and you must make your vision your reality.
Thanks to Frelecia King, GO-TAB Luxury Event Childcare!
#8-I am completely open to change
I believe being bold also means to stand back and to listen. Every one of my staff members and competitors as well have insightful input into certain aspects of a business – everyone has a part to play and they excel somewhere. I have taken a great interest in Gallup's strength finder. I ensure every one of my team members completes the questionnaire in order to discover their true strengths. We sit down and work together to come up with a means to ensure that these unique skills are utilized in our day to day business.
Thanks to Andrew Taylor, Net Lawman!
#9- Taking risks and not being shy about promoting myself
That may sound like a simple thing, but after years of acting as a brand ambassador and spokesperson for other organizations, always promoting another's vision or service, it has taken me a while to adjust to the notion of promoting myself and my vision for Spark + Buzz Communications. I love promoting others and helping them develop the story that differentiates them in the marketplace, but I also recognize I must equally promote my own story. I believe there is a way to authentically connect with others, share your passion and skills, without that interaction becoming a cringe-worthy sales pitch. Now that's truly bold.
Thanks to Courtney Malengo, Spark + Buzz Communications!
#10- Not running after the trends
By detecting and recognizing norms, trends, herd mentality, and understanding when to break free from it. Technology has a lot of noise / Hype in it, reality of the potential of technology needs a consistently grounded view of the world in which potential clients exist in and whether technology complicates or simplifies the client’s business. Bold Is not running after latest trends, While focusing internally in knowing what your firm’s core product/service is, and externally going through The noise of what your business needs.
Thanks to Ahmad Alokush, Ahmadeus Technology Boutique!
#11- A number of ways
In order to be bold in your business, you need to make bold decisions. As a business owner, you need to have total confidence, courage and conviction in your decision-making skills. This often means making decisions, that from the outside, may not make sense to others and who may question you. Being bold for me means pushing past naysayers and moving confidently ahead especially when I know I have made a decision based on data and gut instinct. Being bold also means knowing that things may not always turn out the way you want but knowing you have the ability to bounce back and course-correct as you move forward. Finally, being bold also means bringing a fresh perspective on the way things are done, especially when you are an industry outsider bringing in new changes like digital disruption to a traditionally offline business, where transactions are done in person.
Thanks to Sukhi Jutla, MarketOrders!
#12- Surrounding myself with an inspiring team of advisers
I am consistently bold with my business by surrounding myself with an inspiring team of advisers that don't always agree with my perspective. As a business owner, I don't want to hear that all of my ideas are great. I want to be challenged, and I want to be able to see other ways of doing things that I may not have thought of. It is bold to be so vulnerable; having a team and support system that's always trying to get to the best possible solution. Different perspectives are key to creating a truly unique company, and I am so grateful for my business partner every single day. We have very different backgrounds, so having her mindset with launching our skincare company has been truly invaluable.
Thanks to Alexandra Haigis, Phenic Natural Skincare!
#13- Letting my passion guide me
First, I fell in love with SEO and internet marketing ever since I was able to rank my simple website for my brand name. So I chose SEO for my niche even though I knew it was crazy competitive. So I”m bold because I let my passion guide me, and I haven't chickened out into an easier niche that maybe I'm less passionate about, or worse that I entered just because of the money. Never do things just for the money. It's a hollow goal that leaves you empty once you fulfill it. Second, I was bold to choose SEO for my niche, and now I'm bold to stay in it. I know myself. I know that what I set out to do- I do. Therefore I'm confident that I'll be able to carve out a tiny slice of a niche from my behemoth competitors that are ranking right now.
Thanks to Nikola Roza
#14- Taking action
Being bold in business means taking action in the direction needed to reach goals and being prepared to face challenges along the way. I reminded myself this many times as I began to build an online business focusing on SEO, marketing, and other software technology. I knew I had to take risks to be successful and reach financial goals. Before starting our company I was $60,000 in debt working long hours and had almost no time off. I spent my evenings learning the best techniques and tools for SEO in the new digital marketing world, taking courses and watching tutorials as I stayed up late before work the next morning. I began to apply my new software skills and quickly observed what was going to work and what was not. After 6 months of practice and commitment to success, we scored our first big client as a business. Working with excellent communication and constant progress, we were on the right road financially. Our service became of need to others that were looking for help and we kept taking risks to meet our customers needs.
Thanks to Sarah Franklin, Blue Tree AI!
#15- Standing unwaveringly for something
Starting with our company namesake, the prophet Isaiah from the Old Testament, our company tries to stand boldly for the gospel of Jesus Christ. We believe that, whether they are Christians or not, in this day and age consumers rally behind companies that stand unwaveringly for something whether that is a commitment to the environment, justice, their faith, or something else. As an owner of the company, it also allows me to seamlessly connect the business with my personal life and beliefs. Sometimes our boldness allows us to enter into faith conversations with others, which we find to be a blessing. Some of the ways we show this boldness include our Core Values and our annual Christmas message, but also just in our daily interactions with others which are driven by compassion and love.
Thanks to Todd Miller, Isaiah Industries!