I have a confession to make...I’ve been talking day in, day out, to my clients about telling their story through blogging, and I’ve neglected to do it myself! So no more hiding for me. Six months after launching Be Your Brand and I’m excited to be sharing our first blog!
As soon as I wrote this first blog, I wanted to write ten more and that's because the hardest part of doing this was getting started. So that's what we're talking about today - the importance of starting...
“Dream big. Start small. But most of all, start. ”
The hardest part of the startup journey is taking that first step and getting started. Simon Sinek is a hero of mine and I love this quote of his. If you’ve got an idea and you want to start a business, change your career or take it to the next level, you need to put this up on your wall, your screensaver or go right ahead and tattoo it on your forehead because this one is important and here’s why…
1. Dream big.
As humans, we have this wonderful ability to dream. It’s truly such an incredible gift. Big dreams are so important if you’re starting a business or wanting to grow your personal brand. You need that dream to be big and almost scary to motivate you to pursue it.
What’s your big vision for where you want to take your brand? How many people will you impact? Where do you see it in five years from now? How is it changing the world?
Take a moment now and close your eyes and picture that big dream has become reality. Really...close your eyes.
How does it feel? Does it feel exciting and scary? If it feels a little scary, you’re spot on. Trust me, if you’re too comfortable with your big dream, you need to go bigger because a little bit of discomfort and feeling a little fear can take you a long way with driving your idea forward. When I think about my dreams for where I want to take Be Your Brand, I goosebumps and butterflies.
2. Start small.
So you’ve got an idea and a big dream but not sure where to start? Does the thought of getting all the right systems or people in place feel overwhelming? I know exactly how you feel. The truth is, you’ll never be completely ready.
Take comfort in the fact that no one else is ready either because you won’t really know what you’re doing until you start. And that’s why it’s important to start small so that you can learn, iterate and keep propelling the brand forward.
Since starting my business last year, I’ve already re-branded and changed the business model. That’s not an unusual startup pattern. You need to test what works and move on from what’s not working quickly. Starting small is the best way to do this as things will change rapidly in your first 6-12 months.
3. But most of all, start.
"Stop talking about ideas and get started." I remember very clearly when my friend Ryan Kohn told me this. I was living in London and working in marketing for British Airways but I was forever coming up with new business ideas but not putting them into action.
While sipping on cocktails one night at Soho House, Ryan told me that unless I was serious about doing something about these business ideas, there was really no point in talking about them. He told me that I wouldn't know if I could make something of the idea until I got started.
At the time, Ryan had just Co-Founded Propercorn. Three years on and Propercorn has been just been listed as the fifth fastest growing business in Europe by the Financial Times - and yes, they make popcorn!
Ryan was right, you really won’t know if your idea will fly until you put it into action. How will you know if your idea is any good until you throw yourself behind it and get started? You won’t, so you just need to start. I can promise you that all the focus groups in the world cannot tell you if your idea is going to succeed or not. You just have to put it out there, start and keep moving forward.
So what are you waiting for? No more talk, just action. It's time to "Dream big. Start small. But most of all, start."