Focus on Impact

Very often when we embark upon a new entrepreneurial pursuit, we are so filled with optimism and excitement about the anticipated success of the venture that we sometimes lose focus on the original purpose and the impact that we want to make. Unfortunately, in some cases, no thought is even given to making an impact, and the entire focus is just on how lucrative the venture could be.

In this article I am going to challenge to you start by focusing first, and foremost, on the impact you want to make. Do you want your venture to make life easier for a certain group of persons, either in a small or large way? Do you want to make a particular service or commodity more accessible to a certain group of individuals? Do you want to empower others to be able to function at a greater level in some area of their lives? Those are very broad questions, but ones which you can surely apply to whatever service or product you offer (or plan to offer) to help you determine the impact you are seeking to make…if you haven’t already done so.

Determining your intended impact, and keeping it at the forefront of your mind, helps to fuel your venture in the following ways:

• It helps you to fine tune your innate talents which you intend to use in the development and execution of your business venture, as well as to help you discover areas in which you may need assistance.

• It fuels the passion that should go along with the talents you possess. In any venture, business or otherwise, talent is useless without the passion to put that talent to use, and passion without talent is just as useless. Popular comedian and television host, Steve Harvey has often said that too many persons chase their passions, when really we should be aligning our passions with the talents we possess. You can view the clip here.

• It serves as motivation, especially on the difficult days encountered by every entrepreneur at some point or the other. Those days when you question why you are even doing what you’re doing, and whether you should carry on.

• It keeps you happy, especially on the difficult days mentioned above. Just thinking about the impact you intend to make, and the lives that will be made better as a result of something good that you are doing, should be enough to turn any frown upside down.

• It gains you support. Not everyone has to know what your ultimate goals or intentions are for your business, but when you share the impact that you wish to make with key persons, chances are that they will be more willing to help you realize success. Just think, as a consumer you’re more likely to purchase the yogurt with the pink cover that promises to donate a few cents of your purchase to a charity, than the one that offers no such promise. People like to know that they’ve contributed in some small way to making a great thing happen.

It is important to know, and remember, that the impact that you are seeking to make may not be a direct outcome of the product or service you offer. For instance, your business may be offering financial management solutions, and while that alone will impact and help everyone who uses your services, the impact that you really want to make may be the result of you donating a portion of your profits to a specific charity, or even forming your own charity for which you are the sole, or major, benefactor.

So I challenge you to think about the impact that you want to make, make it your primary focus, and work towards making it a reality. The success will follow…that’s a promise.