Statistics show that 90% of all new businesses fail within the first five years. A lot of reason have been proffered as to why this is the case, however I find myself disagreeing with those reasons.
People want to blame external factors for their failures every time. People rarely stumble and choose not to blame the path for been so treacherous.
People would rather blame government, the market, a powerful competitor or even their staff members when the business collapses.
That is not the way of the wise.
If your business will remain standing in 5 years time, I have determined that you need 2 vital traits: MISSION and LEADERSHIP.
Did you find that weird? Please let me explain.
Most people, easily the 90% that will fail, they start their business out of necessity to make money (and this is totally cool), but you cannot survive in business for the long run if your only motivation is to make money.
If you prioritize making money over having a solid mission, you will make poor decisions that will eventually bury the company.
The reason Facebook went from University hostel project to global phenomenon is because they built it around a mission and they stuck to the mission. Do not join the bandwagon of people who think Facebook survived because they got investors money and they are not based in Nigeria… how many companies who got investors money survived 5 years? Not so much.
So, start your business anyhow, and for whatever reason. However, if you want long term success, develop a mission.
I am confident I will still be here in 5 years time because my mission to help Entrepreneurs and Professionals like you build systems to rapidly scale their business – impact, influence, income – into MultiMillion Naira Empires cannot be done in 5 years time.
I have actually been around for over 10 years and going stronger.
I hope you understand that. You can re-read or drop me a message to explain further.
The next trait of a business that survives is exceptional leadership.
To grow your business and remain in business, you must become a leader. If you cannot lead yourself, you cannot lead your staff and your business will suffer.
It is easier to blame your staff and fire them rather than admit to your own incompetence and so, you want to look inward and ensure you are all good before you blame your staff for incompetence.
Leading people is never easy. It is such a challenging trait to develop and it is extremely rewarding.
If you can develop MISSION and LEADERSHIP around your business, even the big blue sky cannot limit you.
