3 Simple Lessons From Business Failure

SUCCESS IS NOT A GOOD TEACHER!

You learned the most when you fail. The greatest lesson in life lies in failure. Sad to say that our society doesn’t allow failure. And I failed many times in life.

I boldly say that I learned precious lessons from those failure which builds emotional and mental muscles. Those mistakes I shall not repeat, and it means I can only get better.

And I just failed in a business. Left the business, and starting from scratch. This is the post if you would like to know about it.

There are a couple of business lessons I got out from this failure. The thing is these lessons may not come from the “triggered” failure. Some come from the whole 1.5 years which I observed in the business.

Lesson #1: Lack of Marketing Skill

This is common sense which any newbie can shout it. That’s true! But not any newbie has the distinction on the LACK. And I’m no newbie.

Where should I begin on Marketing?

Keep It Simple! When planning your marketing message, keep it simple so much so that common consumer understands it. Keep away from jargons or only words that only you can understand.

One example of complicated is try reading an University textbook or a lawyer letter. Those paragraphs can definitely be simplified but they are not. You have to think through it like using the shortest road to reach home.

Complicated: If coaching is to gain credibility as a profession, it is essential that coaching practice be informed by rigorous and substantive theory.

Simplified: For coaching practice to gain credibility, it has to be backed by substantial theory.

But Not That Simple! With consumer getting wiser and more informed, your marketing message can’t be that simple that there’s no differentiation.

Too Simple: Transform Your Life

Not So Simple: Improve Your Life By Getting Your Desired Outcome Through Coaching

It’s about striking a balance between simple and complicated. You can test, test and test the message. Get feedback from others, re-read and re-write your message at least once.

Be Specific Not Vague! Marketing message that is vague attract vague audience or no audience. The message has to drive direct to the target market. What you are going to do for the audience has to be specific. How you going to do it has to be specific.

Generate the message from a down-to-earth perspective. Some messages comes from the cloud-in-the-sky perspective. Entrepreneurs see a vision. At times these vision is so far away, only they can see it. They got to create a down-to-earth message to sell their vision.

Vague: My product save the world, and you can live healthier.

Specific: My product reduces carbon omission by 45%; giving you are healthier environment

Services with intangible products easily falls into the the VAGUE trap. Services are only business ideas that can’t really be seen. It’ll take a bit more effort to describe services specifically. Do take note of this.

Lesson #2: Lack of Humility

Business is about people. People buys your products. Talk to people, all kinds of people; not selectively.

Make connection with individual, that’s how trust is built. People buy from those they trust. There are multiple ways of making a connection with today’s technology. Though each has its pros and cons, therefore, use all methods.

Many prospects buy from me because I got connected with them in the first place. Their feedback was trust in me resulted in easier purchasing decision.

Careful of being fallen into humbleness, but no connection situation.

This group are humble, they never felt that they are proud. But they just couldn’t sit themselves down to have a decent conversation with a stranger, or picking up a phone to call a prospect.

They don’t walk the ground to understand the masses. They lose touch with the ground, they do not know what the market wants. They are like the armchair general.

Their customers usually only buy once from them. There will be very little repeated sales or referred sales.

Have conversation without selection. Talk to people from all woks of life, build connection with people. Easiest way is to smile and say HI.

Lesson #3: Overly Optimism

Start saying that things are easy is the downfall of an organization. That’s because things are not easy. Saying things are easy get you into complacency. It gets you into carelessness.

The distinction is saying is easy, doing is not. Like a General in the army who says, “we need to move the troop from A to B.” It’s easy to say. But the execution is maybe a 20km walk.

If you hear anyone saying it’s easy to do this or that. Stay far away from them. Chances are they don’t have the experience of walking that 20km.

Check in with yourself frequently, are you being overly optimistic. Especially when business are doing well, the more frequent you should check in.

When your business is on the roll, you should actually be less optimistic. My dad’s business fell to the ground because of overly optimism. “Wow, the business is making lots of money. Everything we touch turns to gold. We are successful, nothing can go wrong.”

It’s when everything started to go wrong.

These are what I have so far. I will continue to add more lessons as I come across them in my daily life. Also I do know that everyday there are some who will flop in business. If you are one of them, just know that, it’s ok to fail. What will you do after you fail?

 

Connect and Love Everyone

We are connected as one!

My feeling for today is connect with people whoever they are, wherever they are from.

In the years of running businesses, sometimes I climbed that ladder so high that I forgot who is below.

At times success came in waves that I ride on the waves so high that I lost that connection with people. In fact I select who to meet.

Last few weeks was about connecting with people with no special agenda. Really just connecting, no business talks, no promoting etc. It’s just pure knowing people.

I just want to be with people without an agenda to get something from them. YES, I still have the corporate training and personal coaching business. And there will be an agenda when I meet people sometimes.

This is where I have to remind myself constantly, be with people with no agenda.

My cousin pointed out to me when there is profit to be made between friends, that’s not call friendship, that’s call business partners. If the profit is taken out of the equation, and both still hangs around, that can be regarded as friendship.

A very interesting point by her. So I realized many of my friendship is built on this friends with profit formula. I can’t avoid it totally, but I am aware of it now.

A feedback I got from many people recently, regardless of me being selective of people is “I TRUST YOU. And I only want to deal with you.”

That’s a consolation of what’s going on around my life. And thank you for those who trusted me.

 

Back Again

What a fall! A big fall!

7 weeks ago, I had a fall, or a failure to some of you. I left the program that I loved so much, I left the business whom partners were my good friends.

I was immobilize, couldn’t get anything done, I was lost. This was the greatest fall of my life. It was painful, and I cried whenever I was alone.

I felt abandoned by people whom I love so much. These are the same people whom I considered their feeling when a competitor offered an opportunity to me.

While it was extremely painful, it was a wake up call. It allowed me to see clearly the truth. The truth that I didn’t see in the past. The truth about people whom I was working with. The truth about the business and business model.

One very clear distinction I got was running a business and team. Though I screwed up in this team and business, it was the greatest lesson to me in terms of team and business.

First of all, having the right people in the right bus on the right seat is very important. But the problem is sometimes we won’t know until we invite the person onto the bus.

And if it turns out that the bus is not right, kindly invite the person off the bus – quickly. Any delay may resulted in the right people leaving the bus or worse, the bus comes to a complete halt.

It doesn’t matter if this person may be a good friend, wrong person – out the bus.

There are some whom are not actually the “wrong” person, but they are deadwood. They do not contribute, but they think they do. They don’t actually contribute directly to the success of the organization. The organization can definitely do without these people but they are there because no one ask them to leave.

I will be writing a special report in forming business team, more details will be cover there.

Beside team, I discovered the truth about business. Certain business model just doesn’t work no matter how hard you try. The business deal or model itself is already a suicide case from the beginning.

This great failure actually tuned up my business acumen. I am picking myself up from failure.

Now, I’m back! Start from ground zero and nothing. I will fall, but I won’t go down permanently. I am going to create new waves. Watch me!

 

Distinction of Adding Value

While building the business this year, I had new learnings about building a successful business. There are many aspects and factors to build a successful business.

In this post, I would like to discuss about adding value to customers.

Adding value is a part of business. It was said the amount you got paid, is the amount of value you provide. So the more value you add, the more money you get. This should be easy to understand. However to create customer’s loyalty, where customers will talk about your business positively or refer their family and friends to you; requires more than that.

If a business is adding x amount of value to customers for x amount of dollars (X Value=X Price), it won’t be easy to create customer’s loyalty. The customers will feel this is a fair exchange, They will make the transaction and they will most likely forget the business.

Let say another business can add 3x the value to customers (3X Value = X Price), that business created something called “Customer’s Gratitude” in the psychology of the customers. It’s beyond customer’s satisfaction.

That’s what happened to our business. We created 3X the value with 1X the price, and we created a group of loyal customers. Though not all will be loyal, but with a handful of loyal ones; they actually help us to grow our business by telling their friends.This alone saves us thousands and thousands of marketing dollars.

Also we never had that intention of the customers will do all those things for us. The main intention is to create lots of value to our customers to make them happy. Instead, we created “customer’s gratitude.”
If we had the intention of asking for any returns from the customers, most likely we won’t get anything from them.

Beside adding tremendous value, the intention plays a part. Do you best to give the best to your customers. You will receive many folds when you least expected.

 

Focus On One Thing

It’s been a while since the last update. Finally I got some time to write here after an exciting November. I was at Creating Wealth Program to learn from Dominique Lyone whom business is at A$100 Million turnover.

Though I attended Creating Wealth 7 years ago, going back for review this time got me thinking a lot. I’ve gain distinctions on the same lesson. And 7 years ago, I was so raw that actually I may not be ready for Creating Wealth when I attended.

After reviewing this round, I had new thought about running the current business of promoting Money & You.

Also during Creating Wealth, I took the opportunity to interview Wendy Tan for our newly launched eMagazine, 90 Degree. Wendy is a successful entrepreneur running an RM40 Million engineering company. She started this company in 1989, it was a RM100,000 company then.

She presented one word to me – FOCUS.

Focus on one thing at a time. Doing too many things get me no where. Actually this is my lesson of the year. T Harv Eker said, “What you focus on , expands.” If I’m doing too many things, it’ll resulted in no focus, therefore nothing expands.

I guess that’s also how Wendy built a successful business, FOCUS.

Then I looked at Dominique Lyone, he too focus only on his office supplies business. Only one business for more than twenty years. The result of focusing, A$100 million business.

Earlier this year, I made a decision to go full time in promoting Money & You. After hearing and seeing Wendy Tan and Dominique’s example, I feel I made the right decision. Focus on just one, instead of a few like I used to do.

Results actually got better after I’ve decided to just do one thing. I’ve gained a lot more trust and credibility, as they associated me more with Money & You now.

With this focus energy, more ideas were generated. I got an idea when I was attending a preview of a children’s program. And now, I have the energy to execute it properly and follow through.

The Money & You Business is starting to take a solid form. So my lesson of the year – FOCUS.

 

Today

Today is a new day

Today is a day of joy

Today is thanksgiving day

Today is filled with love

Today gives me a breath of new life

Today I’m fully rested

Today I felt breeze blowing onto my face

Today friends are showered with blessings

Today is a beautiful day!

 

Personal Growth

The past 2 weeks was filled with exciting events with fruitful results. Schedule was extremely tight, but I am enjoying it.

A new batch of Money & You graduates during 14 – 17 Oct. There was a little drama on the first night, however, all turned out well. One of the greatest joy is to see the transformation of the participants.

This is a calling from the Universe to take up this work. It’s not easy, but the fruit made it all worthwhile. Seeing their transformation, I knew this is what I’m meant to do.

Next is the 5-Days Instructor Training Program (ITP). This is not any kind of Presentation skill training. It’s about becoming a Powerful Presenter. The gradient is so high that there is no breathing space.

Kerry, the Lead Instructor really wanted us to GET it! I’ve been to some Train the Trainer Program but the ITP leads them all. ITP is the University. Something in me shifted and expanded.

I am at a new level now. I got EXCELLENCE and MASTERY. My level of excellence has gone up that ladder. Now I have a lot more responsibility to this work, but I’m committed to do it.

I’m glad that I continue my journey in this ITP. I’m blessed to be supported by all participants. This journey has not ended, this is only the beginning.

 

Last Burst of Fire – Money & You

We were squeezing the trigger all the way for Money & You Program, making sure we expended every single rounds that we had. 3 Money & You Previews in 3 consecutive days.

I’m grateful for the team’s commitment to make it happen. It’s a huge commitment to be there in every previews, staying till late night and doing the preparation work before the actual preview.

The last 3 previews was really fun and full of thrill. There was disappointment, but the end results was phenomenon. I really enjoyed the whole process.

In fact, during the enrollment for this Oct Money & you, there was stress, upsets and frustration. The team was at a low point few months back. Fortunately, the team held on together and became stronger. Frankly speaking, if I were alone in this journey, I would have fall. But with the team, the impossible became possible.

We created a new principles. UPSETS CREATES OPPORTUNITIES. With the upsets around, we generated a great business opportunity. This opportunity is currently taking its form.

Quote from Buckminster Fuller, “The Universe will provide in the nick of time.” True enough on the last preview, the Universe provided. When the Universe provides, it was like the floodgate being opened.

My learning over this period of time was no matter what the disappointment is, do your 100%. Give your best, you will definitely be rewarded.

I’m truly enjoying this journey. I’m truly enjoying my life. I’m truly enjoying the company of the team!

 

Chasing After Money

Having more money is the dream of many. Who wouldn’t want to have more money, enjoy the freedom of choice that money brings? That’s where all the businesses, investments, trading instrument aims to do – to make more money.

Making money is not hard work. You just need to understand some strategies and principles.

A key principles that I practice is giving the Universe an equivalent amount of value in exchange of the cash that you are receiving.

An example, if you want to make $10,000, you must provide at least $10,000 worth of value. The Universe works in an interesting manner. Taking $10,000 from the Universe requires you to replace a value of equivalent amount back.

In the event you didn’t place this value, the Universe will take it back in a later time, with compound interest. This is the principle of giving and receiving.

In the current economic environment, many wants to make money without any exchange to the Universe. Look at the number of trading derivatives and money game in the world. It’s an example of taking without giving. And look at the examples of people losing money in these derivatives.

Trading instruments engage in a zero-sum game. For you to win, someone has to lose. When someone win, you may lose. For those who engages in this kind of games, prepare to lose some money at some point of time. You can’t win all the time.

For those who win in a zero-sum game, bear this in mind; the Universe will collect what you owe in time to come. When that time comes, do not blame or point finger. Take responsibility instead, you will be happier.

 

Launch of Business & You

I never had imagined that I’ll be running a business program for adults. Who am I to teach others about business. What do I know that others don’t know? What can I teach that other programs don’t teach?Those were the thoughts when I was planning the content of the program.

Textbook knowledge was definitely out of the question. If they can learn from textbooks, they don’t need to attend this program. Where can I pull the content from? The only place to extract those content is personal experience. My personal experience will make the program authentic.

Reflecting my seven years of business experiences. Converting all the ups and downs I’ve experienced into a structural content does takes a little bit of time.

Not only that, creating new games and activities to reinforce the learning is another huge task. Creating games from scratch is not an easy task. Fortunately with the power of the team, we came out with powerful business games that drive the lesson home.

In the 1.5 days, the team added tremendous value to the participants. Sharing experiences, principles and know how of business.

The launch of Business & You was a success! The next one will be better as we are improving all the content and fine tuning the games so that the participants can get more values and experience business in Business & You.