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The Goldilocks Principle

Last week I invited you to keep a running list of your judgments about business.

What's next?

Apply the Goldilocks Principle.

You may remember Goldilocks. She was the little girl who went for a walk in the woods and came upon a cottage. No one was home, but through the open door she could see three steaming bowls of porridge.

Goldilocks went in and tasted the first bowl of porridge. Almost instantly, she threw it down, "Too hot!" she cried.

Goldilocks tried the second bowl. She tasted the porridge and again threw down her spoon, "Too cold!"

Not to be discouraged (she was very persistent), Goldilocks tried the third bowl. This time she smiled. "This porridge is just right."

Whose Porridge Are You Eating?
Like many good-hearted people who work for themselves, you are probably eating someone else's porridge. That is, your concept of doing business came from the impressions you've gathered from other businesses over a lifetime. (The judgments you've been collecting are some of them.)

In other words, your porridge is a hodge-podge of myth, prejudice, and fear. Some characteristics of your imagined business feel inauthentic and dishonest -- too hot! Others are too good to be true (build it and they will come) -- too cold!

But why not grow a business that fits just right?

What Makes a Business Fit Just Right?
If you've been working for yourself for a while, you can answer that question simply by looking at what feels wrong. If you feel icky about marketing, a just right business is one in which marketing will feel good.

Similarly, if you are thinking about going out on your own, your worries will tell you what makes a business fit just right. If you are worried about what to charge for your services, for example, you know that a business that feels just right is one where people are happy to pay your fees.

Three Bowls, Three Chairs, Three Beds
Goldilocks did more than eat porridge on her adventure. She also tried three chairs and three beds before finding the best fit. Have you really tried on your business strategies and checked them for fit?

I know what you're thinking. "Uh oh. Did she say business strategies?"

Yup. And you have them whether you are conscious of it or not.

You have a marketing strategy, even if it is shivering in your boots at 7 AM networking meetings.

You have a pricing strategy, even if it is guessing, hoping, and then saying a number lower than the amount you meant to say.

You have a business model, even if it is hoping that people will not discover your weaknesses before you get this thing figured out.

If Goldilocks Can Do It, So Can You
Goldilocks was what? Seven years old? Nine?

If Goldilocks can slip into an empty cottage and find porridge, a chair, and a bed that fit her just right, you can grow a prosperous and fulfilling business.

Start by acknowledging the choices you've made thus far. As soon as you change your unconscious and accidental strategies into purposeful declarations, you are in a position to tweak them. (It's hard to change something if you aren't aware that you've chosen it.)

Perhaps you've had the thought, "I'm at least as smart and probably smarter than the people I see who are making a go if it. What's wrong with me?"

Wrong question, that's what. The right question is "what is it about xxxxxxx that doesn't fit for me?"

That's where your list of judgments comes in handy. What is it about each of them that doesn't fit? Make a list, and then decide how you would do it differently.

The secret to growing a business that fits just right is to redefine business in terms of who you serve by being who you are. It takes time, attention, and commitment. But you have all that, right?

P.S. Growing a business just right is simple, but it's not easy. That's why I wrote The Way of the Accidental Entrepreneur. It's a step-by-step guide to thriving both materially and spiritually in your business. There are only two weeks left to order at the pre-release discount. http://www.authenticpromotion.com/thebook.html

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