The Four Fears that Owner/Operators have About Growing their Business and How to Overcome Them

When we talk to owners/operators they express four common fears about marketing to grow their business. This article is going to address these four fears and how to overcome them so that you can build your mental confidence and push past the barriers that are holding you back.

#1 I’m afraid to market because Mo’ Money= Mo’ Problems

What you tell us: Marketing will make me have to manage more processes. I’ll have to add accountants, employees, equipment purchases, etc. That initial jump from doing well as an owner/operator to hire will take a lot of work and risk.

Our Response: Owning and running a business takes hard work and investment upfront, there’s no doubt about that. The real question you want to ask is how much work do you want to be doing in the long run? If you are the sole employee in your business, you will only make money when you’re working. This leaves lots of money on the table because you are missing out on the other revenue you can earn by running a multi-truck operation at the same time.

By scaling your business you can significantly grow your revenue, client base, and your overall capabilities. This will make the operations of your business sustainable and help you reach your goals much faster.

If you run a multi-truck operation you will have to invest in quality employees, but over time they will generate a return on investment far greater than you could ever do by just working on your own. This includes hiring a manager for your company. There are many talented people that have managerial acumen that can run the day-to-day operations of your company.

Do this to overcome the fear:

• Make the investment and hire the right employees- I’ve covered hiring before, but what you should know here is that if you hire the right employees, they will get the job done. They will represent your brand and company in a professional and competent manner with excellent results.

• Let go of control- It can be nerve-wracking to place so much trust in other individuals to do things the right way. What if they mess up? What if they are unprofessional? What if they don’t clean the way that I would? Yes, anything is possible, and all businesses are going to have growing pains but this can be overcome with the right level of training and support structure.

• Place trust in employees- When you hire employees, show them respect, and give them opportunities to grow, they will reward you with a quality performance that pays dividends for your business. Trust is something that is built over time, so yes, it’s an investment. But if you are willing to make the investment, it can result in you running a multi-truck operation that delivers consistent and reliable income.

#2 I don’t have the soft skills or strength to manage teams

What we hear: Managing teams and working with people is hard. I’m not a good communicator and I haven’t developed the soft skills to lead a team or manage people.

Our Response: It makes sense that you have this concern. Everyone has different skillsets, and growing in a new area can be challenging. Fortunately, there are ways to overcome this deficit in order to have a team that is an integral part of your business. 

Do this to overcome the fear:

• Invest in yourself: There are plenty of inexpensive options to hone and exercise a managerial skill set. There are countless books and free courses online taught that will help you build your managerial skill set.

Here are some of the best free courses online that can teach you leadership and management skills. These courses are free University level open-access courses taught by experts. All you have to do is create an account, and you can access thousands of materials at no cost.

• No substitute for practice: At the end of the day though, there’s no substitute for putting the things that you learn into practice. You have to commit to it and be dedicated to making it happen. There’s no shortcut for hard work and elbow grease. You will mess up along the way because that’s just part of learning. The important thing is that you make strides to grow every day.

• Hiring a Manager: If these options aren’t for you, the alternative is hiring somebody to manage your operations. There are plenty of websites such as Indeed, ZipRecruiter, and Upwork where you can hire talented individuals that will meet the needs of your business. There is a ridiculous amount of talent that is available for hire online.

#3 Fear of the Unknown

What we hear: There are so many new things to learn and there are so many things that can possibly go wrong. There’s too much risk involved, and I would rather just stay where I’m at.

Our Response: It’s understandable to be afraid; life doesn’t ever have as much certainty or guarantees as we want. We won’t sugarcoat it: there is risk involved because the risk is inherent in the business and life in general. The decision that you have to make is whether it’s worth it or not. What is best going to help you accomplish your goals?

Do this to overcome the fear:

• Write out Your Goals so that you understand what it will take to get to where you want to be Maybe you write out your goals and determine that you are already where you want to be as an owner/operator. If you write out your goals and you already have what you want, then good! You’re already doing everything you need to. If you write out your goals and this isn't the case, then you need to start marketing. Something has to change in order to get different results.
  
  
• “It isn’t the mountains ahead to climb that wear you out; it’s the pebble in your shoe.” – Muhammad Ali -This is one of my favorite quotes. Climbing the mountain might be attainable, but the daily grind wears us down. As a cleaner, it’s easy to envision where you want to be, but exhausting to imagine all of the things that you have to do on a daily basis in order to get there.

To get past this, focus on doing one new thing each week. Maybe the first week you write out your goals, the second week you start watching leadership courses, the third week you start pricing out how much it will cost to hire a manager, etc. The point is to make small investments in yourself every day.

Don’t underestimate the power of a small investment like this. It will compound and the reward is oh-so-sweet!

#4 Lack of knowledge

What we hear: There are too many things that I don't know in order to get started.

Our Response: Everyone starts off by not knowing something. Practice and a willingness to learn new things will fuel your growth and enable you to achieve results that were previously impossible.

Do this to overcome the fear:

• Everyone starts off not knowing- We all start from a place of ignorance and not knowing. Think back on everything that you have ever done in your life—you originally didn’t know what you were doing and had to learn it. Don’t be hard on yourself for not knowing. We all have to start somewhere. The greatest factor that separates somebody that’s educated from somebody who isn’t is the willingness to learn.
  
  
• Learning happens best on the job. Don’t be afraid to fail and make mistakes- Mistakes are inevitable. Not only are you going to make them, but it might actually be better that you DO make them. Successful people are just people that learned from their mistakes as fast as possible. Learn by doing. Learn by getting experience. Fail and fail fast. That is the path to success.
  
  
• If knowledge were truly the limiting factor we'd all be rich and have six-pack abs- The truth is that we are afraid of success, we lack discipline, and we lack the dedication to commit to what we want. You have to truly say “yes” to success. Once you’ve done that and want it with everything you have you will obtain it. It will come over time as you put in the work.

Conclusion:

Any investment involves risk and can be scary. If you are afraid of failure, one of the best things you can do is learn from the patterns of those who have been successful. They were once in your shoes and had to go through the same growing pains.

These contractors overcame the difficulties of growing their businesses with a willingness to take risks, face the unknown, and set goals. There is a learning curve that will involve making mistakes, but you have what it takes if you want it bad enough.

The best thing is that many people are willing to help you be successful. You can reach out to us any time and we will help you identify specific pain points that you’re having, as well as a plan to overcome them. We will help you for free.

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