12 Fatal Lies That Are Killing Small Businesses in Sekondi-Takoradi.

• WordPress
• WhatsApp
• Facebook
• Twitter

Now, this is not meant to scare anyone. But to let you know exactly what not to do so you could have business success in this promising city.

With a population of almost 1.1million and as the third largest city in Ghana; Sekondi-Takoradi does have many opportunities – especially for small businesses.

But what if I told you that the city also has some of the worst numbers of failing businesses in the country.

What even more sad is that, those numbers don’t include what I call the ‘walking dead’ businesses.

I’m talking about those small businesses that’re stuck at a mediocre level, unrewarding, has no future and slowly killing or making their owners’ lives miserable.

Yep! We have lots of those.

How’s that possible?

Well, it’s a human thing.

You build with what you know and what you believe in – even when your beliefs and knowledge are all fatal lies.

Lies born out of fear, pride and mostly, ignorance.

Now, this is not meant to discourage you from starting your own business. But to rather let you know exactly what not to do to have business success.

Here are 12 fatal myths that I’ve discovered over the years talking and working with small business owners.

1. any skill is a business skill

Now. let’s start with the mother of all myths – the original sin, the ‘OG’ fatal lie.

The lie that states that, if you’re really good at (let’s say) making furniture, that also means that you’re also good at running a furniture business.

This isn’t just a massive lie – but also a very dangerous one.

Just because you know how to do something really well, that doesn’t necessarily mean you’re also good at the business side of it.

The technical side of what you do is totally different from the business side.

Those two things are not the same.

Unfortunately, many people fall for this lie and confidently go into business; with no idea of how to run their businesses.

Heck, some people don’t even think they need business skills.

For them, success relies on prayers, luck, hard work and wishes – instead of strategies and planning.

2. hard work pays

Many people over here see hard work as a badge of honor.

We celebrate the idea of hard work; and believe the more hours you work, the more you get things done.

Obviously, that’s a fatal lie.

Because many people are still failing no matter how hard they work.

The truth?

Hard work is not sustainable; it’s inefficient and creates more problems than it solves.

In fact, being a business owner isn’t a 24/7 job. Only lazy people work 24/7.

Yes, you may need to get your hands dirty from time to time. But sweats, muscles and working overtime are not going to build you the business you want.

Your actual role is to innovate, manage, and lead your business to success. And your work is ideas, solutions, strategies and planning.

It’s smart work – not hard work. For it’s the smart work that makes the hard work:

• much easier
• more effective
• more productive
• and pushes your small business forward.

3. do everything yourself

Many small business owners have this “nobody can do it better than me” attitude, because they belief they must do everything all by themselves.

Now, there’s a little truth in this fatal lie – a twisted truth.

Yes, it’s good to do everything but just for a little while in the beginning of your business.

It gives you the chance to understand every part of your business and how it works – and that’s it.

The fact is, you have limited time, ability and focus.

You can’t do everything you want to do – and do it well.

It’s hard enough to do one thing right. Let alone trying to do ten things well at the same time.

Besides, how do you focus more on the important stuff, if you’re busy trying to do everything?

4. you’re the business

Again, thanks to the ‘OG’ fatal lie, many people think that you (the owner) are the business.

They believe that everything must rely on you (the owner), and nothing gets done without your say-so or approval – even the little things.

A big fat dangerous lie.

But as a result of this lie, we have too many small businesses which are either failing or stuck just because the owner:

• got sick
• took a leave
• died
  
• went on a vacation

The truth?

A business is not a person or product. It’s a system. A system that delivers value and makes profits – with or without you around.

A system made up of good strategies and processes; and the right people in the right positions.

This means, it doesn’t need any particular person (you or anyone) or thing to be able to run.

If your business relies on you, and that means it can’t run itself and can’t make you money when you’re not around.

That’s not a successful business.

5. business is for fast money

Everyone thinks owning a business can help you make money or put food on the table.

Well, that’s absolutely true.

But it’s a lie if you believe going into business will make you an overnight success and quickly make you money.

Yes, owning a business is an opportunity.

But it’s rather an opportunity to build.

Yep, I said build.

To build something that doesn’t only make you money but also give you the freedom to live the life you want – doing and spending time on things that brings you true happiness.

Besides, making money takes time.

It’ll take some time for your business to get going and a while before you can even start to see profits.

Unfortunately, many people get charmed by this lie of quick money. Only to later realize that they lack the patience for building a business – let alone the skills for making money.

6. it’s the market’s fault

Over here, any bad thing that happens to a business is the fault of the market.

They’d blame the market for anything, from poor sales to everything.

For them, business is simply all about doing, making and selling stuff – again, thanks to the ‘OG’ fatal lie.

For that reason, they work hard, make what they can and sell as many as they can – and so, they feel anything that goes wrong isn’t their fault.

Nope. That’s a lie.

You’re the master of your own ship.

Any bad thing that happens to your business is 100% on you – whether you could or couldn’t have stopped it.

Besides, you can’t stop bad things from happening.

However, you could:

• see it as a challenge
• pivot or change strategy
• look for opportunities that the bad situation may also bring.
  
• learn something new from the whole situation

But what you shouldn’t do, is to keep doing what you’re doing and then, blame the market.

It’ll only turn your business into a failing mess.

7. more sales means growth

Many people strongly believe that, the more your sales go up, the more your business grows.

Again, lie. Another big fat dangerous lie.

More sales only mean one thing. It shows that people really like what you’re offering and are excited to buy and buy more – that’s it.

Of course, that’s exciting. But it doesn’t mean your business is growing.

Rather, growth is about having systems that allow your business to consistently make customers happy, make profits and do more.

In fact, without such systems, it’s only a matter of time before your huge sales runs you into the ground and kills you.

Look, you could make $1million worth of sales and still make no money. Or, attract many customers and still fail to make anyone happy – let alone make them come back.

Sadly, that’s how most promising small businesses here fail. It starts with:

• a great product or service,
• customers go crazy,
• sales shoot up
• and then suddenly, everything becomes too much and the business implodes.

8. serving everyone is everything

First off, serving everyone is a really bad idea.

It’ll neither boost your sales nor make others think that you really know your craft.

But, over here it’s more than that.

Over here, people also believe in a fatal lie that serving everyone will bring them business all the time and avoid failure.

For that reason, they think it’s stupid to focus on the one thing that you know how to do best; the one thing that you can do better than anyone else.

They’re so scared of failing that they run away from the very things that would’ve made them:

• do things different but better than everyone else,
• unique and more exciting,
• specialists in their craft,
• charge more for their work.

In the end, their small businesses still become boring, unproductive and lazy like any other failing business out there.

Do one thing great. And not a thousand things terribly.

9. everyone is a threat

People need people; and in business, you simply need people to get things done.

You’ll need people:

• to do things you can’t do, as well as, things you can – but better or faster.
• for resources that you don’t have.
• to keep your business running.
• if you want to expand.

But over here, many believe in a lie that anyone and everyone is out to steal their business; and so, they see everyone as a threat.

And why won’t they?

Thanks to the ‘OG’ fatal lie, many people believe that their technical skills is what keeps their business running.

For that reason, they see anyone who can also do what they do as a threat or an enemy. They:

• see their own employees as threats
• don’t work on anything with anyone
• avoid strategic partnerships with other businesses.

That’s no recipe for business success.

10. small businesses are side hustles

Many 9-to-5 workers over here believe a small business is nothing but a side hustle.

But that’s a big fat fatal lie – a lie born out of fear and failure.

A lie created by people who’re scared to quit their jobs and at the same time, have failed in business.

People who’ve realized that it’s almost impossible to build any business you want while keeping a full-time job.

So, instead of building a sustainable business, they leave it at a mediocre level and then make excuses to save face.

The truth?

First off, you can keep a full-time job and still build a business – but not every business.

Some businesses do demand lots of time, energy and attention to build than others.

So, you can either do a “proper” side hustle or find creative ways to work less time and still be more productive in your day job.

In that way, you could have the freedom to go build any business you want.

11. advertising + sales = marketing

Among the many business things that lots of small businesses lack and their owners ignore, marketing is the one that they do wrong the most.

People here believe in a fatal lie that marketing is something you only do when you feel like it or want more sales; and that, you do it through advertising.

It’s true.

Marketing used to be like that – but like 40+ years ago.

Things have changed – massively.

Today, everything you do in your small business is marketing. In fact, your whole business is marketing.

It’s in your day-to-day activities, how you train and lead your team, how you manage your finances – in your whole operation.

In fact, your ability to anything will more or less depend on how you do marketing in your small business.

12. asking for help is weakness

Now, with all the problems caused by all those lies, you would think small business owners over here seek help quite a lot.

But they don’t.

Again, tricked by another fatal lie. A lie born out of pride.

Many belief that if you seek help then you’re weak.

For many small business owners, asking for help is like saying, “I don’t know what I’m doing” or “I don’t know my craft”

For that reason, many people would rather fail with pride or be miserable, than seek help – help from mentors and professionals.

Then again, asking for help isn’t weakness; it rather shows you really know what you want and how to get it done.

It’s smart, genius and a strategy for success to surround yourself with talented people who:

• have spent years refining their skills
• know things you don’t know
• can do things you can’t do
• and have first-hand experience in the business you want to build.

Wrapping Up

When people have a belief, they usually connect to ideas that support it – and in this case, more lies to support it.

Even when their belief is the very thing that killing them.

Yes, you may be surrounded by a lot of people who strongly believe in those lies.

But in order for you to build the business you want; a different and better business, your way of thinking needs to change.

And it starts with avoiding what’s popular and what everyone is doing.