Are you selling to yourself?

I happened to catch a televised cooking competition the other day.

One of the contestants was an extremely health conscious individual. Her task was to make a dessert dish for fellow participants who would then rate her skills. Because of her preferences, she did not use enough sugar and thus scored the lowest points.

Can you see her mistake? She was in a competition to win, but she put her personal preferences ahead of the people who were consuming her product. She did not take into account that the people she was cooking for had different preferences.

This got me thinking: How many times do we make the same mistake when it comes to money or business? We think it’s about us, yet we should be looking outward. Here are some of the mistakes we make. 

• Investing in what we like. It’s one thing to invest in what you have researched. It’s another thing to invest in something because you like it. Your reasons for investment and your reasons for consumption are totally different. You may want to live in a certain house but that is not necessarily the property that makes investment sense. Your reason for buying a house are personal whilst the reasons for buying an investment property are driven by logic.

You are not going to live in that property; you will probably rent it to someone who does not have the same needs as you. You may like a certain company listed on the stock exchange because you consume their products; that is not the reason to buy it. You need to evaluate it from a business perspective. Also, imprison your investments within your status.

What you do in your day job has no reflection on investments. You can be the CEO of the biggest company in the world; it is okay to own a mandazi shop if that’s what makes sense. 

• You have a good idea. Many people start business because they believe they have a good idea. However sometimes these ideas are based on what they would use as opposed to products or services their target consumer would buy. You may be the one person in the world who would use that product. You need to look outward.

Does your idea present a solution for your target market? Do the research to ensure that somebody else will find it worth their money. Sometimes we do indeed have a great product or service, but we market it from the point of view of the creator, not the buyer. Show the product’s value proposition in a language the consumer will understand and see clearly how this product will benefit them. 

• Current circumstances. The lady on the cooking show had the skills to bake any cake in the world, yet she limited herself because of what she chooses to eat. Very many times, we limit how we look at opportunities because we are looking at our current resources, qualifications, money in the bank, age, etc. Say you have a law degree; you don’t have to start a law firm.

You may have other skills you can use. I know some people who have law degrees but work as trainers, marketers, and so forth. I know accountants who run construction companies. Look at the opportunities first, just as this contestant should have looked at the opportunity to make a really good desert. Don’t limit your vision simply because of what you have today. 

• Letting our immediate feelings get in the way. After many years of teaching about money, I have learnt that most people don’t plan their finances because of how they feel. We don’t budget because it makes us feel restricted. We don’t take risks because we are afraid. We don’t face up to our debts because we feel ashamed.

While we must acknowledge that we feel these things, it is not the reason not to do them. Most people who achieved anything felt afraid – but they did it anyway. Our emotions are there but they cannot become our identity. These fears will eventually become our prison. It’s not about you and what you feel presently. It’s about the goal or objective.