Home
>
Small Business
>
How Your Habits Control Your Small Business Success

How Your Habits Control Your Small Business Success

Habit: A consistent behavior you perform so frequently that it is automatic.

For example, if you learned to drive a car with a standard transmission, the first few lessons were pretty jerky while you learned to synchronize the clutch with the accelerator pedal. If you released the clutch too fast, the car would stall. If you pressed the accelerator too fast without releasing the clutch, you raced the engine ? but you and the car were still sitting there! However, with practice, practice, and more practice, you learned to synchronize control of the clutch with control of the accelerator so that you don't even think about it any more. It is now a habit.

All habits consist of knowledge combined with skill from practice. What all this means is that you can learn new habits to replace those that are no longer working for you. You have to change what you're doing, how you're doing it, and the choices you make in order to change your business results.

If you keep doing what you've always done, you'll keep getting what you've always gotten.

That means that if your business is not headed in the direction you desire right now, you must make new choices and start new habits to ensure you ultimately get the results you want.

Your choices of habits, determine your success.

That may seem harsh to you. Especially if you'd like credit for having "Good Intentions." The fact is that your intentions, however good, are immaterial until they are supported by your behaviors. In fact, good intentions that are not actualized will drain you of the energy necessary to take effective action. Remember, the only question of significance is "What's working and What's not?"

Every habit has its consequences. Habits that are working for you create positive consequences; habits that are not working for you create negative consequences ? every time. You may not like that your habits create consequences ? but you'll still receive those consequences just the same. Whether or not you like it isn't a factor. The fact is that as you keep on repeating a behavior you will get repeatable, predictable results.

Up to 90 percent of your current behavior is based on habits.

By and large, these habits work for you. They save you from the tedium of having to make new decisions each day. Wouldn't it be boring and a waste of energy if each day you decided to brush your teeth, but then had to decide where, with what toothbrush, with what of the 100's of toothpastes now available, for how long, with what type of action on the toothbrush, and so forth. It's much easier to go into automatic and let your neural net take charge ? freeing you to plan for that important meeting with your big client at 2 PM.

Habits are part of being human; we all have them. We use them to conserve energy and effort; to provide familiarity/security; to free up energy for other things; to improve and fine-tune our skills; and to assist in avoiding physical and/or mental pain. Often, a particular habit can lose its usefulness. Yet, because we are human we tend to continue the habit, knowingly or unknowingly. Only with awareness and a strong reason or motivation to change can we initiate and sustain change.

Habits tap into the nearly human obsession to be (and to appear) consistent with what we have already done. Once we have made a choice or taken a stand, we encounter personal and interpersonal pressures to behave consistently with that commitment. For good or for ill, the drive to be (and to look) consistent constitutes a highly potent weapon of change.

To understand why consistency is so powerful a motive, it is important to recognize that in most circumstances consistency is valued and adaptive. Inconsistency is commonly thought to be an undersirable personality trait. The person whose beliefs, words, and actions don't match may be seen as indecisive, confused, two-faced, or worse.

On the other side, a high degree of consistency is normally associated with personal and intellectual strength. Certainly, then, the personal consistency brought by habits is highly valued because it provides us with a reasonable and gainful orientation to the world. Most of the time we are well served by habits... without them our lives and our businesses are difficult, erratic, and disjointed.

By superimposing a new habit on top of an existing habit, you can create a new way of doing things. In other words, you start replacing old negative habits with new positive habits.

For example, if you always show up late for meetings, your stress levels are probably high and you feel unprepared. To improve this you might decide to develop a new habit of arriving five minutes early for every appointment, including meetings. If you take on this challenge you might notice:

- The first month or so of the new behavior is tough. In fact, you'll find yourself reverting to the old behavior during times of stress or unawareness ? this is normal because it is in compliance with our need to be consistent with our prior behavior. However, don't resort to self-recriminations for the backsliding. Just pick yourself up and recommit to the desired new behavior!

- The more you activate the desired new behavior, the easier it becomes. Eventually, it will be become just as strong as the old habit you are replacing ? then it will supersede the old behavior. Employ the principle of consistency to help you build your new habit.

By systematically replacing your negative habits with new positive habits ? one at a time ? you can dramatically change all aspects of your business.

____________________________________________

Rose Hill, Founder and Owner,of Biz Whiz Expert (http://www.solobizville.com) and Team Member of Solo-E.Com (http://www.solobizville.com) has been self-employed since 1990 - first as a technical writer and publications project manager, and now as a business coach for solopreneurs.

Knowing how to run corporate departments and how to market corporate entities, products, and services did nothing to prepare her for successfully running and marketing a one-person business. That is why Rose created the SoloBizVille and SoloBizU community - to specifically to help solo entrepreneurs jumpstart their business success without all the trial-and-error learning.

____________________________________________

*********** Find more articles like this at http://www.solobizville.com ? Keeping Solo Entrepreneurs Juiced in Business and in Life. Our team of Solo Entrepreneurs are comprised of small business experts who support others in finding business success with the flexibility and freedom to have a life, too. Network with other freelancers, self-employed and Solo Entrepreneurs in our forums, enjoy our articles and newsletter, and find other online training opportunities. ***********

experienced cleaning professionals Northbrook ..

In The News:

Stay up to date on the latest AI technology advancements and learn about the challenges and opportunities AI presents now and for the future.

Microsoft warns Windows 10 users face serious security risks as 90% of ransomware attacks target unsupported systems. Learn why upgrading to Windows 11 is crucial.

Nike unveils Project Amplify, revolutionary motorized shoes developed with Dephy that add powered assistance to every step for runners and walkers.

Cybersecurity experts warn about one of the largest credential compilations ever found, urging users to check "Have I Been Pwned" and change passwords immediately.

Quick iPhone and Android battery optimization techniques help your device stay powered all day by turning off hidden features that secretly drain power in the background.

Kodiak Driver autonomous truck achieves perfect 98 safety score, matching top human fleets in groundbreaking AI evaluation by Nauto's VERA system.

New 401k catch-up contribution rules in 2026 will change taxes for high earners over 50. Learn how scammers exploit these changes and protect your retirement savings.

Kurt Knutsson's guide covers social media privacy protection through location settings, account privacy controls and two-factor authentication to prevent scams and data breaches.

Revolutionary retinal implant restores central vision in 80% of patients with advanced macular degeneration, offering hope where treatments once only slowed blindness.

Learn how to use passkeys on Windows and Mac computers without cameras or fingerprint readers. Discover secure authentication methods that replace passwords.

Tesla's FSD v14.1.2 update reintroduces Mad Max mode, enabling higher speeds and more frequent lane changes than the standard Hurry profile setting.

A phishing email scam targeting American Express customers shows how cybercriminals use fake urgent messages to steal personal and financial information.

Facebook's new Meta AI feature analyzes your camera roll photos to create polished collages automatically, but requires cloud processing and raises privacy concerns.

A New Jersey teenager filed a major lawsuit against AI/Robotics Venture Strategy 3 Ltd. over ClothOff, an AI tool that created fake nude images from her social media photos.

Microsoft reports Storm-2657 cybercriminals sent phishing emails to 6,000 addresses at 25 universities to steal payroll credentials and redirect funds.

Astronomers have discovered asteroid 2025 SC79, a skyscraper-sized space rock orbiting the sun in just 128 days. the second-fastest known.

The Fox News AI Newsletter delivers the latest developments form the world of artificial intelligence, including the technology's challenges and opportunities.

A cyberattack on SimonMed Imaging exposed personal information of 1.2 million patients, including medical records, financial details and identity papers.

Spotify's managed accounts for kids under 13 now available in at least seven countries, allowing parents to filter and block explicit content and songs.

Friendly text conversations about BBQs and social events can lead to WEEX gold trading scams that target older adults with fake investment opportunities.

California company Skyeports creates self-healing glass spheres from Moon regolith that generate solar power and support plant growth for sustainable lunar living.

Cleafy researchers discover fake VPN streaming app Mobdro Pro that installs Klopatra banking Trojan, giving attackers full control over Android devices.

Police departments across the U.S. and Canada are adopting virtual reality training to better prepare officers for high-pressure, real-world situations.

House Bill 469 would prevent AI systems from owning property, serving as executives, or gaining legal personhood in Ohio under Representative Thaddeus Claggett's proposal.

Public voter records expose retirees' personal details to election scammers who create targeted cons using names, addresses, and voting history data.