Let’s Talk Exit Strategy
And Tweaking Our Mindsets
Last week I ran a workshop through the Chamber called “Marketing with Style” and in it I talked about the most important question you must consider when marketing any product/service: “So what?”
Your service is amazing… so what?
You have 574 years of experience… so what?
You can make toast… so what?
Facing Reality Head On
We’re all selfish (especially as consumers). It’s just human nature. Another reality is that customers are lazy. They don’t (and definitely won’t) want to spend the time and brainpower to figure what how what YOU are trying to sell them will benefit them.
When it comes to your customer deciding between buying from you or your competitor they will pick the one that answered the “so what?” question the best. They will pick the business that clearly and simply explained what’s in it for them.
So what does this have to do with exit strategy?
Everything. Because your exit strategy is how you get to what’s in it for YOU.
Why did you go in to business in the first place? What was your purpose? Did you have dreams, goals, and ambitions?
Chances are that you went into business with a very specific vision in mind with regards to your ideal lifestyle. And I don’t know about you, but mine didn’t include working 80 hours a week to keep my business running.
And this is why having an exit strategy is important. It’s succession planning. It’s growth planning. It’s business automation. It’s figuring out exactly how it is that you can get out of the trenches and into the box seats.
Without An Exit Strategy You’re Trapped
Without a proper exit strategy you could be trapped inside your own business forever. A lot of entrepreneurs don’t think about this. Allured by the siren call of being their own boss they eventually find themselves stuck being their own employee with no light at the end of the tunnel.
I don’t want to be that person and I sure don’t want you to be them either.
Mindset Hack
That’s why I want to see if I can change how you go about thinking about your “mission and vision” (because I think all three are intimately related).
A trap I routinely find myself, friends, family, and clients falling for is believing they’re supposed to have only one mission and one vision.
That’s a lot of pressure. Deciding on one sole purpose for the rest of your life? No thanks. Maybe it’s just me being afraid of commitment, but I don’t know how anyone knows what their “one true purpose in life” is without first following their many other smaller callings.
Breaking down your “mission” into small “missions” is almost exactly the same process I talked about in my blog post about Celebrating The Little Victories. You’d be amazed how well this works in application.
So today I challenge you to start thinking of your life as a culmination of missions and visions. And just observe if that relieves some of the stress and anxiety of “having it all figured out”.
Feeling brave? Share one of your missions and/or visions in the comments below.
Matt Higa is the founder and CEO of Pineapple Empire. A software company helping entrepreneurs and start-ups build, grow, and conquer.