How to Turn Hard Work into Successful Results

Have you dreamed of running your own business for years and now you have it, but something isn’t working the way it should be? Do you spend every day pouring your heart and soul into this business but still find yourself running into issues you don’t know how to solve – like incomprehensible financial documents and unpredictable cash flow? It’s easy to fall into the trap of the same old routine work and to divert all your efforts in the wrong direction. 

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ Business Employment Dynamics, as reported by fundera.com, 20% of businesses fail after the first year of operation. That may not seem like an alarming statistic, but it continues to grow as the years pass by. After five years of operation, only half of small businesses remain. Only 30% of companies continue on to success after 10 years of operation. That’s a 70% failure rate. 

So, what gives? How do you turn your hard work into the results you desire?

THE COMMON DENOMINATOR OF SUCCESS

The Common Denominator of Success, as identified by Albert E. N. Gray, is the formation of habits that lead to pleasing results. Originally written as a speech in 1940 for life insurance professionals, this ideology has lived on as a basis for many successful individuals and businesses.

“I realized further that the secret for which I was searching must not only apply to every definition of success, but since it must apply to everyone to whom it was offered it must also apply to everyone who had ever been successful. In short, I was looking for the common denominator of success.” – Albert E. N. Gray

We often work alongside good people who achieve little more than the bare minimum, and you’ve probably found yourself in the same situation. So why is that? According to the common denominator principle, it has to do with your motivation. Unfortunately, it has been proven repeatedly that success is only achievable for a minority of people because only a minority are willing to do what it takes. 

While this principle dubs there to be two types of people: failures and successes – we believe there is a grey area, and we want to help people become a part of the latter category.

An essential part of this principle is the realization that while successful people might seem like they enjoy these tasks, it’s more likely that they’ve simply created habits out of them. We are all human, meaning we are all susceptible to the whims of our own desires. It can be hard deciding to stay late at work instead of going for drinks with coworkers, but that choice could be the difference between mediocrity and excellence. 

This principle can be applied across all parts of life, but we’ve taken it and applied it to the successful businesses we work with. We took the time to identify common factors that each company practiced in order to help other businesses. 

LET’S NOT WASTE TIME. HERE’S WHAT WE FOUND:

1. They understood their numbers, they could interpret what their numbers were telling them and they could use the information to make informed decisions.

2. They knew where they were and in which direction they were moving at any given moment in time. 

3. They had identified what threatened their survival and were able to change course when necessary.

4. They knew what to concentrate on and what to avoid. 

5. They knew what was happening in their business and why. And perhaps more importantly, they knew what they could do about it.

Five common denominators, five proven strategies for success. Does your business have a financial action plan? Check out this free guide! [Free Resource: Action Checklist]

Overall, the common factor between these businesses was a sense of awareness and preparedness – awareness of what’s going on in their business, an understanding of the numbers given to them by professionals, and the ability to look ahead at future effects on their business. There’s a lot more that goes into each of these, but we’ll save that for later.

WHAT’S YOUR MOTIVATION?

So, how do we go about creating new habits? Maybe you’ve attempted something similar but inevitably failed to make any progress. The difference in this principle is that the focus is on the result, not the process. While the common denominator might point out the overall factors that make a successful business, the real substance is in why they created those habits in the first place.

We’ve said before that success isn’t for everyone because the process can be uncomfortable. Failures continuously make the easier choice without thinking of the future since that’s what feels good at the moment. Here’s the secret to success: change your mindset. Is it not more pleasing to achieve a bigger goal and watch that success trickle down?

The first step to the Common Denomination of Success principle is deciding on a motivating factor. This can be a sales goal or an overall business adjustment. Without this motivating factor, it seems pointless to create new habits or change the way you run your business, which makes you more likely to fail in the process as well as the results. It’s essential to make this a goal that’s personal and important to you – not just practical for your business. If we focus on something that we can connect with emotionally, it makes the whole process run smoother. 

IDENTIFY WHAT YOU’RE MISSING AND MAKE A PLAN.

Now that you have your motivation and know the common factors of successful businesses, what’s your plan? What habits are essential to meeting your goals? Whatever they are, we can help. 137 Awareness has the experience and knowledge to help you improve your business and meet each of your goals. We pride ourselves on our ability to educate the business owners we work with so they’re better equipped to help themselves. 

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