Every entrepreneur has to go through the startup stages, but for newer business owners that are just getting to grips with the idea of operating their own company, it can be difficult to break out of your comfort zone. This is usually because people are too afraid to take risks. If you can’t bring yourself to try something new, then it’s normal to feel like you’ve hit a dead end and can no longer grow your business. Fortunately, there are plenty of ways around this if you’re willing to put in the time and effort to break out of your safe bubble.
So in this article, we’ll be looking at a couple of signs that show you’re still in your startup comfort zone and really need to break out of it.
1. You still refer to your business as a startup
Stop that. You’re no longer a startup if you’ve made a couple of sales and have started marketing your business. You’re officially a small business–start acting like one!
2. You’ve not made any contacts outside of your local area
Businesses understand the importance of spreading their wings and attracting new audiences, but they also know the importance of getting to know other businesses. This could be to form working partnerships, it could be to learn more insider knowledge or it could even be to find new employees and specialists to join you.
3. Many parts of your business are handled by other people
Whether it’s investing in your own cheap VPS to host your website or taking the business’s bookkeeping into your own hands, there are lots of ways to take back control of your business so you can ditch all of the outsourced help and freelancers. Instead, it’s time to start hiring and bringing people onboard for the long run.
4. You’re playing all the safe cards
Taking risks is a vital part of growing out of your startup phase. If you’re failing to take on new challenges and are too afraid to take risks, then you’re still in the comfort zone. You need to get accustomed to braving new challenges, tackling more complicated tasks and also learning the skills necessary in order to make those jobs easier.
5. You’ve not experienced failure yet
Every entrepreneur experiences failure in every business they’ve ever owned. If you’ve yet to have a bad day, you better brace yourself and get ready to manage it.
The definition of a startup is clear; it’s a company that’s still going through its initial planning and setup phases. Once you’ve started marketing your business and getting customers in, you’re officially a small business. The label of a startup no longer applies to you and it’s important to start taking things seriously. You need to start motivating yourself to try new things so you can grow your business to new heights. In order to do this successfully, you absolutely need to break out of your comfort zone and start taking risks.
