Throughout my career I had a burning desire to find out why some people,  although highly educated and with great work experience, couldn’t make  decisions or make actions that would lead them, their team or business to successful outcomes while, others, having the same qualifications, or  experience, or even less, could reach goals successfully. And of course, the  process of finding the right answer to my question started from taking a closer  notice to myself. What motivated me to achieve some goals while I felt  unwilling or demotivated to try to achieve others? The answer is quite simple,  under one condition; that we’re fully aware of what we want to do and why we  want it or why we are so resistant to even try to achieve a goal.

People are the core element of every business or organization and I believe that the most important investment entrepreneurs should make is in discovering who they are, what their true needs are and what role their fears and limiting beliefs play in their way of thinking, when it comes to making decisions and taking actions. Because leading other people effectively, and being able to motivate them to contribute in our company’s success, demands being able to lead ourselves firsts. So, if you want to build a strong and successful business, start by building a strong and successful self firstly, by  focusing on the following points…

Find out why you do what you do

When you set a goal, you make a decision or you take action towards achieving an outcome, what drives you to do so? Which need acts as motivator for you? Is it the feeling of contribution, or of significance, for example, or safety is behind a specific decision or action you take? Maybe variety is what excites and motivates you, or the feeling that through what you do you’ll feel connected or loved by other people. Knowing why for everything you do, is the starting point that will define the outcome.

Identify your strengths and weaknesses

What do you do well and feel confident about it? Write down your strengths. I know that you’ve probably heard this a million times, but I’m also sure that most of us rarely have taken the time to actually create a list with all of our strengths. And, on the other hand, which are these points that you consider as your weak points? Write them also down and think of ways that will help you improve them.

What role do your fears and limiting beliefs play in the decisions you make and the actions you take?

Identifying your fears and your limiting beliefs will help you become aware of the factor that lies behind your decision or action. For example, are you making a decision about your business, based on the real outcome you want to achieve, or you mislead yourself from this and you decide based on a fear you have, or the limiting belief, for example, that you will not take a risk, because you failed in the past and this is why you’ll fail probably again? Knowing exactly, the root of your decision, will help you make better decisions for your business, your team and ultimately for yourself as a businessperson.

So, if you want to run a successful business, take the time to discover yourself first, in order to find out who you are and what you can do, and to obtain the right mindset that will help you use your skills to the maximum, overcome your mental obstacles, make better decisions and improve your relationships with your team, your partners and your clients, as you’ll start to communicate better with them, having learned to communicate better with yourself. And as Warren Buffet said “Invest in as much of yourself as you can, you are your own biggest asset by far.”

Valentina Kordi is a columnist, a speaker and a Coach empowering and helping Executives and Entrepreneurs achieving their professional and business goals, by developing the soft skills that will get them to success. Valentina studied Mind Programming and Success Conversion Coaching at Express Coaching School in Canada. She holds a Business Administration Bachelor degree, from Newport University, in California, and a Master’s degree in Human Resource Management from City Unity College. After working for 15 years as Business Executive, she decided to go after her dream and start her online business as a coach. With her Mindset Makeover program, she helps businesspeople around the world achieve the success they desire and deserve, by adopting a positive mindset, overcoming their mental obstacles and gaining the self-confidence they need to achieve their goals.

Connect with Valentina… www.valentinalifecoach.com , Facebook , Twitter , LinkedIn , YouTube