Reduce Business Stress

If there’s one thing I’ve learned in all of my years as a business owner and business coach is that there’s a heck of a lot of stress that goes along with running a business. If you don’t reduce business stress, you’ll have a really hard time making things work and feel as though they have to sacrifice time and time again.

There’s stress around money. Stress around deadlines. Stress around customers. Stress around employees, I could go on and on but I think you get the picture…

Getting that stress under control is one of the most significant challenges facing business owners today. It’s also one of the best things you can do for your business and for yourself.

It doesn’t have to be hard to reduce business stress, here are some simple steps to help you do just that:

Revisit the reasons you started the business. Why did you go into business? What were the things you loved about it? What had you hoped to accomplish? Get back in touch with those things now and make sure your daily activities include the things you really want to be doing and that you enjoy.
Get your business finances under control. Don’t be an ostrich! Face up to what’s happening with your cash flow, receivables and payables. Take action to remedy any problem areas before it eats you up alive.
Create a personal game plan to take care of yourself while you’re getting things under control. Most businesses produce casualties and often those casualties are to the business owner. We’re the ones who have to sacrifice on a myriad of fronts: you take no money when things are tight, you lose out on time with friends and family when work has to get done, you skip the gym or exercise class because a deadline has to be met. But, how long can you sacrifice before it catches up with you? Take time to create a personal game plan to take care of yourself so that you don’t burnout.
Enhance your sales and marketing skills. No business can survive if it doesn’t have enough sales, period. And, the businesses who find it easiest to succeed are the ones whose owners have good sales and marketing skills. Sure, salespeople can help, but if you’re serious about achieving business success and reducing your own stress level, don’t risk the future of your company by ignoring these essential skills.
Improve time management and productivity. It’s the rare business owner who doesn’t need an additional 10 hours in the day. If time management and productivity are an issue in your business, take action to make sure you’ve got this critical area under control.
Replace crisis management with strategic planning. If there’s one thing that really creates stress and backfires on you it’s the lack of planning. Many business owners feel they’re too busy to stop and plan. For some “shooting from the hip” has become a way of life. As a result, they get caught in the vicious cycle of crisis management. They’re so busy putting out fires, that they never do any fire prevention. If this sounds familiar, please, take some time to do some planning right now. It’s possible to stop the cycle if you put your mind to it.
Create systems and procedures to manage growth. Without them, things quickly get out of control. No company can grow properly if they don’t manage what’s going on. This crucial area can make the difference between success and failure. From managing production to dealing with money, employees, inventory or whatever; every business needs systems and procedures to help them manage growth.
Eliminate the personal issues affecting your business, and the business issues affecting your life. It’s hard to get your business under control if your life is out of control and vice versa. Deal with the problems that exist in all areas of your life, and you’ll find your stress level will drop dramatically.
Get your business on track and stay there! If things have gotten out of control, it may seem like it’s impossible to change them, but take it from me it’s not. Get centered, take time out and start developing a plan to get things back on track. You’ll soon find that you can reduce business stress more easily.

Want to find out more about how business coaching can help you reduce the stresses of business ownership? Learn more about work life balance coaching.

"Susan taught me how to think about my law practice as a business. She helped me to build confidence in my role as a business owner and boss, showed me how to use my financial records as profitability tools and focus my marketing on a select target market so I attract more of my ideal clients and cases. I would highly recommend Susan to anyone who wants to run a profitable, sane and productive business. Thank you Susan!" -Lisa Eisenberg, Immigration Attorney

"I am one of two partners in a small law firm. When I started working with Susan, I was completely wedded to the idea that I was a "practicing attorney" rather than a small business owner, which meant that I often failed do any long range business planning or to maintain solid control of my firm's profitability and finances. Susan cured me of that and has helped me create a business plan for myself and for my small firm, and the results have been dramatic." Erica Bell, Esq., Weiss, Buell & Bell

"Susan has helped me gain confidence in my role as a boss and to understand what I really need from my employees. She walked me through the hiring process and helped me to create a hiring and interviewing strategy. She has also helped me to see situations from the big picture perspective. Because of this, I'm able to be both firm and empathetic when dealing with difficult employee and client situations, which has been very useful." -Chris Page, Century 21 Solutions Property Management

"I had been running my own business for about three years with mixed results. While I had a great client base, I had trouble managing employees and was terrified of growing too much too soon. I was putting in way too many hours with little result. With Susan, I've reduced the amount of time I devote to management issues, so that I'm working less and enjoying it more. Now I can devote more time to providing better service to current clients, and have the confidence to let my business grow again!" Ean Murphy, Moxie Bookkeeping

"When I started to work with Susan I did not have a coherent marketing strategy or proper marketing material. Susan helped me re-conceive how I presented my service to potential clients. And it worked. Within a few months I was getting more business as a direct result of the actions she recommended that I take." -Edward Antoine, Antoine Education

"Before we worked together, my clients would often start to clear clutter but never stay around long enough to set up the systems to stay organized. I needed a way to get them to commit to the whole process for both of our benefits.With Susan on my side, I created packages that were met with immediate and overwhelmingly positive results. In fact, I have gained three new clients in the two weeks since I started offering them! My clients are happy and so am I. Thank you Susan!" -Matt Baier, Matt Baier Organizing

"Before working with Susan, I did all of my business online, never feeling comfortable enough to pick up the phone and speak directly with customers. Her sales coaching helped me helped me get out of my shell, to understand the difference between sales and marketing, and the importance of reaching out and focusing on people. Because of our work, sales are up, I'm more comfortable dealing with clients and new prospects and profits have increased 50%." -Martin Cross, Patent Translations

"Before I hired Susan, my business was suffering because I didn't know what to do next or how to do it. After working with Susan, and through her gentle but firm support and holding me to my goals, I have moved forward by leaps and bounds. My subscriber list has more than doubled ...I've produced a new product, re-designed my web site and have more balance and confidence in the future." Dale Kurow, Career Coach

"It's one thing to have services to offer. It's another to understand how to shape those services into a viable business. And Susan has helped me in every aspect of developing my business - from big picture tasks such as financial planning and maintaining client relationships to dealing with day-to-day challenges. She's perceptive, candid and intuitive, and has provided support that I can count on. I wouldn't hesitate to recommend her to any friends looking for business assistance."-Richard Staub, Richard Staub Marketing Services

"During the course of working with Susan, my approach to business has changed. She helped me to refine my professional and personal goals, and I've been able to deal with problems that had long gotten in my way. In a few months, I've seen my business and my confidence grow significantly. Thank you Susan." -Ruth Seidler

"Business Coach Susan Martin has helped me to manage my time, build structure and become more disciplined. Because of our work I have more business, improved relationships with clients, and learned how to better balance my work and personal life. If you have any doubts about the benefits of working with Susan, please don't hesitate to call me." -Carl Navarro, JCI Graphics

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Reduce Business Stress

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