Look Straight, See The Road, Walk

What’s your first thought when you read this?

“People create their own questions because they are afraid to look straight. All you have to do is look straight and see the road, and when you see it, don’t sit looking at it – walk.” – Ayn Rand

This quote hits home for me.

Because every day business owners have inclinations, ideas, and even the right strategy to grow their business, but they don’t execute. They end up pushing their ads campaign off for next year. Or say once they’re less busy, then they’ll do an SEO audit and invest in organic traffic.

Their questions and procrastination gets in the way of their success. Leaving them with nothing to show for their efforts but more questions.

Here’s why.

Stop Asking Questions

Society has trained most people to question all the negative possible outcomes before they ever take a great opportunity and run with it:

• What if I fail?
• What if I lose money?
• What if it’s too difficult for me?
• What if the new routine requires me to change too many of my habits?
• What if I’m really uncomfortable?
• What if I have to face what I’ve been avoiding all my life?
• What if I look like a fool in front of my company and co-workers?
• What if we lose market share to our competitors?

And other people will be afraid to achieve success, so they ask questions like:

• What if this marketing strategy is more successful than we could have imagined?
• What if we’re so busy we have to create a waiting list for new clients?
• What if our team can’t handle the growth?
• What if our company culture gets spoiled from too much success?

As Ayn points out, the only reason you’re asking these questions is you’re afraid to try. You don’t have the courage to go for it, give it your all, and see what comes up of your hard work.

Too many people never build businesses that change the world because they ask too many scared questions. Too many business owners fail to innovate and scale because they ask limiting questions that stop them before they start something new.

Both parties find themselves stuck making zero progress in their business.

My advice is to only ask yourself the rhetorical question, “What do I have to lose?”

Usually, the answer is, not much.

Worst case scenario, the marketing campaign doesn’t pay off—so you learn a few new tricks and then you have to learn more on your own than you wished. But at least you learned some valuable information and got momentum in growing your business.

Best case scenario, one marketing strategy helps your company go from five to six-figures, six to seven, or seven to eight-figures in income.

The risk to reward is heavily favored in the reward side.

I also love this “What do I have to lose?” question because it’s one of power, energy, and drive. It will put you in the mental frame to attempt to become more than you were the day before.

Ask yourself that liberating question so you can start looking straight. The ROI is often much higher than the investment.

Look Straight

Looking straight means deciding what type of business you want to start and then ignoring everything else.

Don’t try five different initiatives at once. There is power in focus and simplicity. Less is often more.

Start looking straight at the one business model you want to master, for now.

Once you’re looking straight, you open your eyes to take in the road ahead of you.

See The Road

An inexperienced marketer will only see a few feet ahead of them. They’ll see the road’s black pavement, white and yellow lines, and that’s about it.

The problem these beginners face is they don’t know what they don’t know in advertising a business.

That’s why it always pays to invest in professional marketers. Soon you’ll know how much it costs to acquire a prospect and a customer.

Marketers like me have been through the ringer to help you do what works and avoid what doesn’t work. Take advantage of that.

Only then will you notice all the intricacies of the road, its bends, cliffs, and tight turns where you need to slow down or straightaways to speed up.

Seeing everything on your road is how you’ll develop the skills and experience to make adjustments, and ultimately build the business into all that you want it to be.

Walk

After you know what to do, it’s time for you to take responsibility by walking.

Don’t skip ahead. Don’t listen to five different marketing “gurus” who are telling you to split your energy in five different ways.

Remember, see the road, just one road, and follow it. (If you outgrow the current plan, then level up or find a new road to get to the next level.)

You can’t be scatter brained about this. As Ayn Rand says, just walk by doing the next thing that needs to be done.

Winning in business and winning in life is as simple as that.

So you can continue to ask questions that shield your insecurities and self-doubt.

Or choose to look straight, see the road, and walk.