Building a Sustainable Business: 4 Signs You’re Doing it Right

When building a sustainable business, there are a few “tricks of the trade” that are so important to know. Actually, they aren’t that tricky, which you’ll see in this post. However, they are simple. In this world where we’re constantly looking for the “next best thing,” we often discount simple solutions because they’re “too easy.”

Isn’t it funny, we want things immediately, yet we get skeptical when they come to us easily. But that’s a post for another day! For now, use this as a checklist to discover whether you’re building a sustainable business and simple tweaks to make yours that much more everlasting.

You’re Out of Feast or Famine Mode

One of the earliest memories I have of being in business was feeling like I had tumbleweeds blowing through my office. Then, I’d get an influx of clients. Except once their contracts were up, it was back to tumbleweeds. This feast or famine cycle is anything but sustainable!

The problem here is that there isn’t consistent growth, so you’re oscillating between flush, then scrambling, then flush, then scrambling again.

If you’re not feeling like this, and you have a waitlist or a steady stream of clients coming to you, then you’re on your way to having a sustainable business!

The Next Right Step to Take Today

A simple way to halt this feast or famine cycle is by doing one small thing every day to keep your marketing and/or referral network full so you can have a steady stream of potential clients coming to you and build a waitlist.

Commit to writing a reach out email, scheduling one get-to-know-you coffee per week, pitching yourself to a podcast or speaking opportunity each day, or even actively engaging in relevant Facebook groups (like the Aligned Business Accelerator). Bit by bit, these small actions will add up!

Related Reading: Rome Wasn’t Built in a Day…And Neither Was Your Sustainable Business

You Feel Comfortable to Take a Break

Like being out of feast or famine mode, feeling like you’re able to take a break is a great sign that your business is sustainable and has a stable foundation. You can step away and the systems you’ve set up will keep things working even without you working all the time.

The Next Right Step to Take Today

One simple step towards feeling like you can take a break is to examine why you feel like you can’t at the moment. Perhaps you worry that you won’t have enough time if you step away. Maybe you feel like if you aren’t always working, you don’t deserve to have clients coming to you. Or even it could be that you aren’t confident in the systems you’ve built (or you have yet to build them).

Once you see why you feel as if you can’t take a break, take one step toward believing that you indeed can take a moment for rest. Address your time, your mindset, your systems… you get it.

Thinking of the Future Makes You Excited

When you think of the future of your business, do you feel excited and expansive or more like “If I had to do this for the rest of my life…I don’t even want to finish this sentence”?

If you feel excited and curious about what comes next, it means you’ve built a solid foundation for growth and can’t wait to use that to springboard you into the future. However, if you’re wondering if this is all there is, even after getting out of feast or famine mode and taking some time to recharge, perhaps your business isn’t as sustainable as you’d like it to be.

The Next Right Step to Take Today

Pull out your journal and do a little writing. Ask yourself….

• When you think of the future, what are you doing?
• What would make you excited?
• How are you making an impact in the world?

These answers could guide you to an idea of what you would be excited about so you can take the next right step along that path.

You’re Actively Looking for Ways to Grow

Once you’ve come to a sustainable place in your business where you’re feeling able to manage things as they come, even those curveballs that pop up because you have strong systems in place, it’s time to grow!

“Grow” here doesn’t have to mean adding more team members (unless you want to, of course!). This could be looking for other coaches, experts, and leaders to learn from. It could be as simple as investing in a course, a mastermind, or retreat for yourself.

Related Reading: Hiring 101: 3 Things to Consider Before Hiring a Team Member

The Next Right Step to Take Today

If you hadn’t considered growth until now, or it felt far away and you were unsure of how to get there, one small step you could take is to consider where there may be a gap in your knowledge and what you can do to learn more about it.

A starting place you may want to think about is Business Baseline, a 6-month coaching experience for purpose-driven business owners who want to create a solid, sustainable foundation for their business and expand their profits, impact, and dreams.

This hybrid learning platform / group business coaching experience helps you dive deep into the core elements that you need to perfect so you can reach your audience and effectively share your business with those who need it the most.

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