A Common Entrepreneurial Mistake and Three Questions to Help Avoid It

Jan 22, 2015 | Entrepreneurship, Success

It’s a tripping point for many an entrepreneur: spurred by one initial success, you get so excited that you try to build the entire shopping mall instead of focusing on the boutique.

An entrepreneur’s instinct is to look for new opportunities, chances to innovate, and problems to solve. What often happens is that the initial success of one idea makes an entrepreneur overeager to expand into new arenas. It is hard to resist the temptation to do more and more and more. The common entrepreneurial mistake is to then branch into new possibilities more from sheer enthusiasm than thoughtful strategy.

One of the essential reasons for LexION‘s success is that we are the boutique. We aren’t a one-stop shop for every single financial need a person may have. We focus with laser-like precision on doing one thing – wealth management – and doing it extremely well.

As an entrepreneur, you’re constantly thinking about ways to grow your business. I, for one, certainly find inspirations for LexION 24/7, in all sorts of unlikely places. I force myself to put these new inspirations in a tickler file: a file of ideas and possible future directions, for which I have a timed reminder to check in. This keeps me focused on the near-term projects and work at hand, but ensures that I don’t lose track of all those ideas.

Every new business idea, no matter how much you may love it, must be vetted through a robust rubric of questions and thought as to whether it is strategically wise.

  1. Does this make sense for our brand?
  2. If it does make sense for the brand, is it feasible for the business? Can we support this at our current rate of growth without compromising any of our other areas of focus?
  3. If not, what will need to happen before we are ready to implement this idea?
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