When being made redundant and looking to start a new business venture, do you worry about being one of the many new start ups who fail within the first few years? Do you wonder what action others’ have taken to ensure success?

Remember the secrets of success are not the same for everyone, and will depend on your own very individual set of circumstances. Take Linda for example, she has recently recovered from a long period of illness and rather than go back to paid employment, felt the time was right to start her own business. An old hobby of Linda’s was aromatherapy massage, so she took a refresher course to brush up on her skills and updated some of her equipment.

Linda started very slowly, initially working with a maximum of one or two clients per week, taking plenty of rest in between times and gradually building up her appointments. This was to ensure that the pressures of handling a new venture, in addition to very physically demanding work would not give her a relapse and make her ill again.

By working to one of her strengths – engaging people, Linda was able to generate business during these tough times. Linda is one of those people who is very good at talking to strangers as though they are long lost friends, and if you are with her in a wine bar or restaurant, she will have the waiter sit down and talk through the menu, whilst at the same time extracting his or her life story.

Linda had some leaflets and business cards printed, and spent a couple of days going around the local hairdressers and hotels in her area, telling people what she was doing and asking whether there was any way she could work with the establishments to their mutual benefit. Just two weeks of doing this and she had the offers of spaces in three different businesses, with invites to two trade fairs where she could set up a stall. Now six months later Linda has a thriving aromatherapy massage business and she is getting ready to diversify in to other areas.

Now this approach would not have suited everyone – it was only Linda’s natural flair for getting on with people that made this a success. For someone else, extensive advertising may have been the right route. Or getting a piece printed in a local paper. The point is that one of the keys to YOUR success is working to your strengths, and tailoring other success factors to your own individual set of circumstances.

Are you working to your strengths?

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