10 QUESTIONS THAT HOLD THE KEY TO NEW BUSINESS SUCCESS

Power couple share Fortune 500 principles with startups, small businesses, entrepreneur and couplepreneur ~ “A lot of people go into business thinking a great idea is all it will take to succeed, without educating themselves around form and structure,” Chutisa Bowman says. “They don’t equip themselves early enough with the right knowledge or mindset to make it a huge success. Asking the right questions from the get go can help.”

Running businesses from start to success is what married couple Steve and Chutisa Bowman do. As co-creators of ten profitable businesses spanning fashion, jewellery, education, conscious leadership consulting and real estate, this power couple have also spent decades consulting to Fortune 500 companies across the USA and top Australian companies and organisations.

Now the Bowman’s are supporting startup owners to have what it takes to grow big and do it fast. One strategy they recommend is asking the right questions from the beginning.

Before launching your own business, you need to ask yourself the hard questions, and come up with answers that will ensure growth, happiness and satisfaction in both business and life.

Here are 10 questions we recommend start-up owners answer:

QUESTION 1: What do I truly want to create as my life and for my living? To create a business and life that feels truly successful (not just looks it), you first need to know what kind of life you truly want to lead. Travelling by private jet or owning exotic jewellery is part of it, but the most important element is the energy of the life you want beyond material things alone.

QUESTION 2: What is my priority? How will your activity in your business generate a positive contribution to the world? Our priority, for example, it so be a catalyst to create change. We travel the world first class, we eat in fine restaurants and we present in boardrooms and to large crowds, but we are not interested in doing any of it unless we can be a catalyst for those people and inspire change in their lives. That is our priority. What is yours?

QUESTION 3: What could I create as my business that would contribute to my life? If you exclude your personal life needs from your business, they end up becoming competing forces that can lead to excessive stress and the feeling that work is ruining your life. The answer is to integrate the two so they both work for you with each other.

QUESTION 4: What do I need to know about my personal finances? Blending business and personal finances is common for new business owners, but is messy. Start by gaining a solid understanding of your total personal income, expenses, assets and liabilities, then move outward from there. If you understand your personal finances first, understanding business finance will be easier.

QUESTION 5: What do I need to learn about this financial reality for business? Financial education will let you control your finances rather than them controlling you. Understanding business financial structures and tax benefit systems is vitally important. A lot of people miss out on the savings and benefits available to them because of lack of knowledge. You must know how to make this financial reality work for you.

QUESTION 6: Who do I need to talk to or mix with for greater business knowledge and clarity? Most people think they have to do it all themselves. Not so. A much better strategy is to surround yourself with experts. If you surround yourself with people who have been there and done that, you will get there too. If you surround yourself with people saying you can't do it and it's all too hard, it will be too hard for you as well.

QUESTION 7: How much will it cost to create the life I truly want? Reverse budgeting entails you working out how much it will cost to live the life you want, then work backwards to create it. If you want to travel the world first class, know how much it would cost. If you want to stay five-star in Dublin, find out what it will cost. What do you need to be and do differently to create the life you desire?

QUESTION 8: Is thinking big going to work for my business? "Whether you think you can, or you think you can't - You're right," said Henry Ford. The same is true for what you think is possible for your business.

If you believe you are creating small business, you will. Drop your judgement and ask yourself what to be, do or change to create a big business instead.

QUESTION 9: If I had $10 million in the bank already, would I still want to set up my business? If your answer is "no", change your point of view to find meaning in your business... and if you can't, you may need to drop the idea and find something else to create instead. Working for money alone means your business is separate from you, which creates problems.

QUESTION 10: What needs to change to make it easier to build this business? The difference between easy and hard is purely your point of view. If you think something is hard, your mind will collect evidence to validate how hard it all is. If you think something is easy, you'll find the evidence to support that. And if you think making something easy is hard, then that will be hard too.

www.the2bowmans.com