5 More Keys to Success: Why You Need More Than Business and Marketing Skills to Build a Thriving Online Business

Building a successful online business requires that you understand business and marketing fundamentals and take action.

This is why, each week, I love sharing actionable tips with you to help you start, grow, and streamline your online business.

At the same time, an understanding of business and marketing fundamentals isn’t enough to build a successful business.

There are five other factors that you must have covered to ensure your business is successful. Master these five areas — in addition to business and marketing — and you have the golden formula!

These five factors are exactly what I’m going to cover today.

Let’s get to it.

Success Factor #1 – Stay Motivated

Running a business is challenging, and you must stay motivated!

To stay motivated, find the reason you are committed to your own success. This commitment must extend beyond any doubt, fear, and frustration that is guaranteed to arise when challenges come your way.

For many people, they find motivation from their WHY or their deeper reason for being in business.

For me, when I was first starting out, my motivator was the desire to not go back to my corporate job. I didn’t want to go back so badly that I was willing to do things I was terrified to do and didn’t like to do (like attend a weekly, in-person networking event!) in an effort to make my business work.

The desire to be self-employed and pay my bills through my business was so strong that I was pretty much willing to do anything. Talk about a strong motivator!

You must find why you want to make your business work and stay focused on it. It will help you work through any challenge. Tweet that!

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Success Factor #2 – Keep Your Head in Check

When we learn or attempt anything new, we can quickly get doubtful and fearful that it won’t work, we’ll fail, or we’ll fall flat on our faces. Fear and doubt can prevent us from taking action or moving forward… if we don’t keep our heads in check.

Since fear and doubt are bound to happen, you must learn to deal with them. There are many different ways that you can do this, and here are three of my favorites.

1. Use a scientist’s mindset

Learning to approach business with this kind of mindset makes it easier to try new things and face new challenges. You’ll realize that failures really aren’t about you, and instead see that they’re learning opportunities designed to help you build a successful business.

Go here to learn how to use a scientist’s mindset in your business.

2. Hire a coach, like Bev Barnes, fear-fighter extraordinaire

Bev Barnes was one of the first coaches I worked with, and I’ve learned countless self-coaching techniques from her. She is also a master fear-fighter and loves helping business owners conquer their fear so they can do their work in the world.

Check out her free Fear-Busters Facebook group here.

Bev is one of many great coaches who can help you face your fears and keep moving forward. A coach like Bev is worth her weight in gold!

3. Brooke Castillo’s Self-Coaching 101

This book is a must-read all business owners… and all humans! You’ll learn how to identify, manage, and permanently shift the thoughts that are holding you back in your business and life. It’s a game-changer.

Check out her free downloadable book here.
Or buy a copy on Amazon here.

However you keep your head in check, just know that you must find a way to ensure that fear and doubt don’t run the show. If it does, your business will go nowhere! Tweet that!

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Success Factor #3 – Continue to Learn

If you want to run a successful business, you must keep learning. The online business world is changing, and you meed to keep pace. Also, as your business grows, you’ll need to learn new skills and approaches to tackle the challenges at each growth phase.

I always look at where I am in my business and the next goal I have mapped out in front of me. I identify the gap I have between myself and that goal and then identify what will fill that gap. Sometimes this is a coach or a training program or a book or something else.

I must keep learning to keep moving my business forward, and you do, too. Tweet that!

Success Factor #4 – Be Persistent and Determined

Although I say business doesn’t have to be so hard, I never promised it was easy!

As I said earlier, learning new things is challenging, but you must not let the challenges stop you. No matter what, you must keep going. And keep going. And keep going.

I always tell my clients that when they set a goal, they must create 7 (or 27!) backup plans for hitting that goal.

Too many people try one or two ideas once or twice and then give up, claiming that what they wanted to do won’t work.

That’s hogwash!

The problem isn’t that the goal is unachievable or the tactics didn’t work. The problem is that you gave up too early and didn’t persist.

If you’re not achieving what you want, it’s likely that you haven’t tried everything yet in just the right way to get the results you desire. Keep going. Keep trying new things. And work through all 27 of your backup plans to make it happen!

You must must must remain determined and persist toward your goals.

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Success Factor #5 – Get Support from Others

Finally, get support! Business is challenging enough; don’t go at it alone!

It’s important that you don’t work by yourself, in a vacuum, from the little office in your home.

You must find people (either in person or online, whatever suits your style) with whom you can talk, brainstorm, troubleshoot, learn, create backup plans, keep your mindset in check, and more.

These people will be your lifeline!

I’ve been a part of many different groups since I ventured into self-employment in 2009. Although the people I lean on change, the essence doesn’t. We’re committed to helping one another get all five of these success factors to keep growing, learning, and changing the world.

Bottom line: Make sure you have a support group you can lean on when you need help!

You Need All *FIVE* of the Success Factors

To build a successful business, you need all five of these factors plus a foundational understanding of business and marketing, as all of these things interplay together.

For example, when you’re setting a goal, you must get your mindset right and not let fear takeover. You need to create your backup plans and persistent in following through on every single one. And you might need to learn new things along the way to execute on those backup plans.

Support from others often helps you develop your backup plans, keep the right mindset while you’re taking action, and fill in learning gaps as you take action.

And throughout all of your action taking, you must remain motivated to keep at it no matter what.

You can’t just have one key; you must have them all.

How to Get All *FIVE* Success Factors

Fortunately, there is a way for you to get all five of these success factors plus the business and marketing training.

For me, I developed these five success factors before I learned about business, so once I found the perfect business training for me, my business took off like a rocket.

However, many business owners I know learn the business and marketing first, then flounder to master the other areas (or never do, and their business doesn’t go far).

This is why I’m so excited to offer an opportunity for you to get all of them at once; the business and marketing training PLUS the five success factors.

If you know you could use this full-circle support for building your business, I invite you to join Make It Work Online, a 12-week coaching intensive for business owners who sell one-on-one services online.

I’ve crafted Make It Work Online bonuses to give you the complete success package. The unique combination of actionable training, group coaching, masterminding, and ongoing, personalized feedback was deliberately designed to help you get what you want most: a steady stream of new clients and a predictable, consistent income.

Are you ready to step up and do what it takes to make your business work online?

Go here to learn more and apply for Make It Work Online.

How Do You Rank?

Now that we’ve covered the five success factors, how do you rank?

Where are you strong?
Where do you need to develop?
What area will you start focusing on this week to increase your chances of business success?

I can’t wait to hear about it in the comments below!