Entrepreneurship is not easy – and demanding, to say the least.
Every day, either you are trying to get new customers or playing your A game to retain your best clients. And, while it looks rosy to say you want 50 new clients on board this year – it’s a feat to deal with when planning your favorite clients’ roster. The efforts that go into prospecting and persuasion is never-ending, let alone handling your other responsibilities.
Simple: entrepreneurship tests you way too much. And only a few can sustain their excitement when they get knocked down on account of multiple reasons – or one, for that matter.
But let’s level the ground and think from an entrepreneur’s perspective – how do they actually manage to coordinate with their employees (if they have), deal back and forth with their customers, build a culture that lasts, thrive when people join – and also maintain a model of inspiration to run the show all by themselves?
It’s their communication skills. That’s it.
There is no magic formula to run a business. But, just for assuaging yourself, on an otherwise tough day, well, you pretty much know it – it’s your speaking and writing skills that work as great enablers in connecting with others and growing your business.
When you know how to communicate your message, just as how you clearly vision it, you can advance to a communication level where you attract the kind of customers you want to work with.
Upon reading this post, here on Inc, it’s not just entrepreneurs who benefit with their speaking skills; it can be any one of you who want to grow in your career – be it as an entrepreneur or as an employee.
Think about it: e-mail correspondence, sales calls, media interviews, writing op-eds, back and forth negotiations to upsell your services with your existing customers, sketching a new product roadmap or product strategy, pitching your investors, giving a keynote, carving expansion plans; or speaking with external vendors – all these professional chores demand clear, empathic and fluid communication from you.
Pacing up with these challenges disguised as opportunities (well, it’s the way to look at it) need you to sharpen your communication saw.
However, the sanguine perspective is this: as an entrepreneur, you can keep improving your communication skills via following keynotes, presentations, webinars, seminars and [Ted] talks given by your ecosystem/ partners/ business ideals. The opportunities are abundant and there cannot be a better time to ameliorate your verbal and written skills by being a life-long, agile learner.
One of the best examples to note in this context is Gary Vaynerchuk’s TheAskGaryVee show – he gives a no-nonsense, straight talk to you that helps you succeed in business (and life).
Shaping up your business ecosystem rests largely on how you ‘connect’ with your business stakeholders and community in general.
What are you doing to shine with your communication skills?
