I am a vivid dreamer. Many times, I wake up from a dream feeling fully alive as if the dream happened in real life. Those dreams leave me with a euphoric feeling of wanting more and the desire to chase after the dream, in hopes of making it a reality. But, the absolute worst feeling is a nightmare! It’s such a relief to wake up, realize it’s over and that is was all JUST a dream!
Creating your dream business as an entrepreneurial leader, though challenging, should motivate you to want more. It should lead to the fulfillment of your big, hairy and audacious dream of a lifetime. Choose wisely, so that it doesn’t turn into a nightmare!
After all, you are the CEO of Remarkable BrandYOU so you owe it to yourself to be crystal clear and excited about what you are building. In the startup phase, think about what you enjoy doing the absolute most. Consider how you feel when you are working on and in your business. Are you tapping into your passions and delivering value that makes a huge impact? Knowing the answer to this question will show you whether you’ve arrived at your destination or not.
Build a leadership brand, as the Keystone leader, that is worth remembering. The first step is to explore, compile and document your ideas to see if the products and services you offer are profitable. Then with a clear and complete brand message, you can activate your brand to bring awareness to your connected community.
If you are ready to begin capturing your ideas and pursuing the business of your dreams, let’s get started! Take out a journal or your laptop, pour yourself a cup of tea, sit comfortably, and start the process of finding your dream business. Allow this to be a quiet and reflective time where you tune into your intuition, rather than over-thinking every detail.
Let’s tap into your heart space and begin mapping it out. First, we will define the basics:
- What is your dream business? What exactly are you offering to the world?
- What’s the ideal location for your business? Do you see yourself creating your company where you live now, or in a new city or town? Will it be virtual or a physical space?
- What is the ideal size of your company? Is it just you or will you have a team of people working with you?
- What is your ideal job function, position, and title?
- What is your ideal company culture? What are the shared attitudes, values and beliefs of your employees, colleagues, and co-workers? What kind of clothes will you wear?
- What is your ideal salary? How much money do you want to make? How many hours will you work? Will it be a hobby, part-time or full-time?
- What is your main goal or purpose in starting this business?
Now that you have the basics outlined, here are some more in-depth aspects of your business to define:
Mine Your Past for Clues- As a remarkable leader, you have had many amazing experiences and opportunities in your life. It time to dig deep and extract them because they are like gold! Think about the experiences you most enjoyed in the past that are worth duplicating. What are you really good at that’s brought you success and fulfillment in the past? What lessons – positive and negative – do you bring to your dream business? Don’t just reminisce about the past. Leverage your experiences and use them in the creation of your new vision.
Formulate Your Life Purpose- Describe your life now. What does it look like? What is the one thing that you want to accomplish in your life? What is the “why” behind your vision and mission? How can you bring it to fruition in the world?
Define Your Leadership Role- Recognize and maximize your leadership potential. Take the time to become keenly self-aware. Look at the aspects of your personality, limitations, character, vision, values and skills, and how they align with what you do. How will you position yourself as The Complete Leader? Rise Up! Identify other leaders that you admire. What qualities do they embody that you would like to emulate and display as a leader? Make sure that your leadership role connects consistently with your brand.
Clarify Your Unique Promise of Value- What value can you uniquely offer through your products or services? How does this value differentiate you from your competitors? Knowing your unique promise of value is not only vital to your brand, but it is one of the most important marketing tools you can have in your arsenal. It allows you to clearly and confidently communicate what you do to the world, and magnetically attract customers and clients with ease. When you can articulate your value clearly, getting the word out about your business becomes all about connecting authentically and serving, instead of being pushy.
Define Your Legacy- What is your greatest contribution? Describe the kind of mark or legacy you want to leave in the world. When your life is over, what do you envision people saying long after you are gone? You must be willing to look into the future and consider the huge footprints you want to leave behind for others to follow.
Congratulations! You’ve just mapped out your dream business – the first step in creating it! Putting your dream on paper is brave, and it’s also a big step. I know first hand that defining your business can be both exciting and scary, as you rise up and claim your position as The Complete Leader. Building a lasting and complete brand takes time, but it is worth the investment!
Have questions? Know that I am here for support and that you don’t have to know all the answers at once. This is a starting place and you will revise your ideas as you go. Starting a business is a lot of fun, but it can be overwhelming too. Let me support you. Please ask any questions and share comments below!