I have something personal to share with you today. It’s a goal I reached this week, which carries a valuable lesson about the importance of focus.
When I relocated my business from London to a tiny village in South Yorkshire, I no longer had commercially viable access to clients. I knew I was taking a huge risk, because the only way for me to make a living was to switch to offering a 100% digital marketing business.
I believed I would be able to provide a better service to clients using Skype, telephone and email, than through traditional face-to-face meetings. Close friends warned me it was a bad idea.
Here’s what happened.
My goal
Rather than feel limited by the lack of local clients, I wanted to focus on a huge potential marketplace. As I started my marketing career working in New York, I set the goal of working with at least 1 client in every state of The United States.
Yesterday, I finally did it. It took me 12 years.
Focus on what you want
Had I decided to focus on the fact we’d invested all our money on a bigger home, with bigger overheads and with zero client income, I’d have made decisions based on fear. Just to be completely clear, I had my wife’s full support, knowing that had this not worked we’d have lost every penny we’d had. We would also have had to postpone starting a family, one of the key reasons we moved to the countryside.
Here’s the thing: By focusing on a massive international market, all I could see was potential and opportunity. It expanded my thinking. It presented exciting possibilities. Within a year I was earning as much money as my best year in London.
Today, as well as working with clients in every U.S. state, I’ve now worked with clients in 27 countries and sold my products into over 90 countries. The whole point of the goal was to open my horizons. To expand what was possible.
What are you focusing on?
The things we focus on determine how we feel. Our actions are driven by our feelings. In other words, much of what you decide to do is controlled by what you focus on.
If you’re not happy with the direction your business is taking, improve your focus. Focus on an inspirational, motivational goal. Focus on what you want, not what you fear.
IMPORTANT: If you want to make more sales, boost your profits and grow an amazing business, this will help you!