[dropcap]E[/dropcap]ntrepreneurship is not for the faint of heart. Starting your own business takes focus, determination, and resilience. For too many aspiring entrepreneurs, procrastination gets in the way of achieving their business goals. How many times have you told yourself, “Now is not the right time to start my business. I’ll do it when I have more startup funds” or “I’ll do it when I have more time.” It seems that there is never a “right time” to start your business, and you continue to push it off.
It’s a hard habit to beat, but if you can conquer procrastination, your goal of running your own business and being your own boss can be within your reach. Here’s how to make it happen.
Understand Why You Procrastinate
The first step to beating your habit of procrastination is to understand what, exactly, is making you put off starting your business. Sometimes, there may be legitimate excuses. Perhaps you’ve experienced an issue with your family that requires your undivided attention for a time. But, more often than not, there is no good, tangible reason to continue to delay. So what’s stopping you?
As stated in an article on Forbes.com, the root of that procrastination is usually fear—fear of change, of failure, or perhaps even fear of success. “[L]eft unchecked, those fears can drive us to cling on to the hope that if we procrastinate long enough, our situation will improve, or our misgivings will magically evaporate and be replaced with newfound clarity and courage. We tell ourselves that ‘one day’ we will be ready to make a change, or take a chance; that ‘one day’ the timing will be better, our confidence stronger, our circumstances easier.”
But that doesn’t happen. Your fear will simply grow, and odds are that they will continue to keep you from achieving your dream of running a business. But if you can recognize your fear, acknowledge what it is you are afraid of, and overcome it, you’re one step closer to ending the cycle of procrastination.
Use the 2-Minute Rule
You can’t start a new business in two minutes. But you can start on the path to building one. James Clear, a popular speaker and writer on the topic of habits, suggests using what he calls the “2-Minute Rule” to form new habits. Essentially, instead of putting your goals off, start working on them for two minutes at a time. Want to exercise more? Do it for two minutes, right now. Want to read a book? Read it for two minutes.
How does this work for starting a business? The answer is simple—inertia. Once you begin something, it’s easier to continue doing it; an object in motion tends to stay in motion. So decide to do something to work towards starting your own business right now. Spend two minutes setting up a crowdfunding page. Take two minutes to create a survey that people can take regarding the product or service you want to sell. Spend two minutes researching your competition.
Simply beginning the action of working on your business now is an incredible motivator to continue working on it. Before you know it, you’ll be on your way to your first sale.
Be a Little Selfish
We’re taught from a young age to not be selfish. It becomes so ingrained in us that many of us have a hard time saying no, even when doing so is in our own best interests. But if you’re working towards starting your own business, sometimes, you need to be a little selfish. As entrepreneur Tai Lopez stated in his podcast on November 6, 2017, being a little selfish can be a major motivator in beating procrastination.
Rather than putting off your own goals to help your friend with theirs, it is perfectly okay to say no sometimes, and focus on yourself instead. Learning to say no will help you to focus more on yourself and your own entrepreneurial goals, and give you one less reason to procrastinate.
If you follow these three tips, along with other basic goal-making habits, you can conquer procrastination and be on your way to owning a business.
