Making big business decisions takes a lot of time and discernment.

But often, the more we think about whether we should do something or not, the more inclined we become to put the idea on hold.

“Maybe next time.”

“It can wait.”

“I’m just not ready.”

There are so many reasons why “now” becomes “next time” (and maybe eventually “never”) when you’ve lost the time, interest, or hope in getting it done.

With the current COVID-triggered recession being the biggest economic plunge in Australian history, it’s no wonder that small business owners are hesitant to take the next big step for their business and that aspiring entrepreneurs are losing all motivation to even start.

And it doesn’t help that all the statistics seem to be pointing towards inevitable failure. According to Inside Small Business, more than 60% of small businesses in Australia close within their first three years.

Watching market data like a hawk isn’t as encouraging either, because many end up disappointed that what they defined as “the perfect time” seemingly just never comes.

There’s also that looming fear that aspiring business owners can never compete with the big businesses. Large corporations are already good at what they do, so why would anybody need you?

As if all this discouraging news isn’t enough, the media just keeps rubbing salt into the wound with all its doom and gloom - a painful reminder to many that their current situation feels more hopeless than anything.

Because of all of these factors, people keep believing that it’s the wrong time to act. Decisions that would supposedly propel you towards success start to look like a threat that will push you off a cliff.

But the thing is, no situation will never completely be in your favour. There will always be bad news, obstacles, and circumstances that are far less than ideal along the way.

So if you’re waiting for that perfect time, then you’ll never be able to do great things - because that right time doesn’t exist and will simply never come.

That’s why if you want to succeed in your business, you have to prepare yourself to face your fears, and that time should be now.

5 ways to ensure you’re ready to achieve your goals

Being ready to face the world and its challenges doesn’t happen overnight.

Sure, there are bouts when you’ll feel like you’re ready, but then the next day you’ll find yourself backsliding and crawling back into your shell. I know that feeling; I’ve been there before too.

But while playing it safe can help you avoid unfortunate events, it is also your biggest hindrance to reaching the top. No business has ever boomed without being prepared for risks and actually taking them.

So here are five effective ways to boost your readiness and act with 100% confidence:

1. Improve your mindset

A mindset is a set of beliefs that shape your thoughts, attitude, and habits.

According to Verywell Mind, there are two types of mindsets: a fixed mindset and a growth mindset.

People who have a fixed mindset believe that qualities like intelligence, talent, character, and creativity are unchangeable. They assume that the qualities you developed in childhood have no way of improving.

Therefore, a fixed mindset is what causes people to avoid challenges and give up easily. They won’t try to do better because they genuinely believe that they can’t. They don’t have any confidence and belief in their untapped potential.

On the other hand, people with a growth mindset are those who believe that these qualities can be improved and developed.

Having a growth mindset allows you to learn from your mistakes and criticisms. It gives people motivation, knowing that their efforts will one day bear fruit and aid in their personal and career growth.

A growth mindset is what you should train yourself to have if you want to be ready to face the obstacles blocking your path to success. 

If you currently have a fixed mindset, here are four steps on how to change your beliefs and improve your mindset, which I deep dived into in a previous blog:

1. Become aware of the different parts that make up your beliefs.
2. Release the emotions held in those beliefs.
3. Shift your perspective so you can see your initial belief as false.
4. Break the bonds of beliefs that make an idea or thought powerful.
   

By following these steps, you’ll be more open to believing that your efforts are a path to mastery and that you can overcome challenges through commitment and hard work.

2. Create good habits

According to author and entrepreneur James Clear, habits are “the small decisions you make and the actions you perform everyday.”

Basically, the lives we live now, our behaviours, and our personalities are a sum of what we do repeatedly. So that means your habits greatly impact how happy and successful you can become.

For this reason, it’s important to build and cultivate good habits as a business owner. 

We’ve seen how having good habits have led to the success of Olympic athletes. It wasn’t only their physique or natural talent that led to their collection of medals. What sets them apart from other athletes is having the right habits that keep them disciplined and motivated to work their way to the top.

Michael Phelps’ coach, Bob Bowman, said that the key to winning was creating the right routines. These routines consisted of habits that had nothing to do with swimming and everything to do with solidifying a growth mindset, fortifying resilience, retaining calmness, and building focus.

It’s because of habits like these that many famous athletes also succeed in the business world, such as Grant Hackett, Shannon Miller, and Brian Saranovitz.

3. Be productive

Taking action is an important part of being able to overcome what’s weighing you down, but that only gets you started and there’s a long way ahead.

The climb to the top can be a real grind, so it’s important that you learn how to work productively. Otherwise, you’ll get distracted by shiny objects and end up wasting your time, energy, and money on things that don’t matter in the long term.

So here are a few ways on how to operate more productively:

1. Eliminate things that in your workday that won’t lead you to any results. The 80/20 rule suggests that only 20% of what you do in one day results in 80% of the results. So list down steps that are necessary in getting a task done so that you don’t waste any resources.
2. Stop multitasking. Do one task at a time. Multitasking will make you lose focus and therefore make you get things done much slower.
3. Rest. Contrary to what many people believe, being productive doesn’t mean working your butt off nonstop. Take breaks. Find time to relax. This will help recharge and relax your mind so that you can continue on with your task with a refreshed headspace.
4. Systemise what you do. Having a proper system for your business removes all of the guesswork, reduces distractions, keeps everything organised, and therefore streamlines the delivery of your work.

4. Believe in yourself

You can’t be prepared for any opportunity if you don’t even believe that you can handle it.

As a business coach, I’ve met many talented and intelligent people who had what it takes to make it big in the business world. But I noticed that they didn’t have confidence in themselves.

They were too scared to make a wrong move, because they believed that they’d just end up failing altogether. They held themselves back and decided against even trying.

Self-confidence is an essential trait that every business owner should have. It’s belief in yourself that will push you to actually want to start taking action. 

Building confidence is part of building a growth mindset. Here are some tips on how to gain self-confidence:

• Take ownership of who you are. Don’t compare yourself to other people, and don’t limit yourself to your circumstances. Other people’s success doesn’t mean your defeat. Compete with yourself instead and always strive to be better than who you were yesterday.
• Affirm yourself with positive viewpoints. Look in the mirror every morning and tell yourself “I’m strong, I’m brave, I can do this.” It might sound silly, but it works. Constant self-affirmation, especially when you’re down, will help you build the motivation to get things done and do them well.
• Don’t fear your mistakes. Making mistakes is normal and is good for your business. Mistakes help build us up and make us stronger to face the tougher challenges in business and in life.
  

“Confidence comes not from always being right but from not fearing to be wrong.” – Peter T. McIntyre, New Zealand painter and author.

5. Embrace the challenge 

People often think of a challenge as something that’s tough, difficult, and an addition to their list of problems.

But the thing is, great things never come easy, and life will always be full of challenges. So, part of developing the right mindset is to realign your viewpoint on challenges from something negative to something that will help you grow.

Here are three valuable things that you gain from facing challenges:

• Resilience. Facing adversity builds resilience, which will help you develop grit to get through any difficulty you encounter in the future.
• Lessons. Challenges are lessons in disguise. By overcoming your fears and obstacles, you gain a wealth of knowledge that will improve your character, your skills, and all the qualities that will help you become a better leader and business owner. As they say, experience is the best teacher.
• Perspective. Challenges enable you to think in different ways. Since facing a challenge involves a lot of problem-solving and critical thinking, you are pushed to see things from various angles, which will better equip you in making the right decisions for your business.
  

As Martin Luther King, Jr. said, “The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort and convenience, but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy.”

Because of fear, uncertainty, and self-doubt, many people tend to shelf their ideas and plans for the “right time”. 

But the right time is a myth. There will never be a point in time where everything goes the way you want it to go - there are just too many factors that are out of your control.

So moving forward, you have two options: stay in your comfort zone and shut out opportunities for growth, or act now and take the steps to improve and prepare yourself for greater things.

If you want to succeed, choose the latter.