What’s Your BIG Why?

It’s the entrepreneur’s challenge.

Almost every day, there will be something that won’t go as planned. A promotion won’t go well. A prospect will say ‘no.’ Your computer will go down. In short, problems will arise.

How you deal with these problems will depend a lot on the strength you draw from deep within yourself. And that reservoir is fueled by your Big Why.

Your Big Why is the reason why you want to be in business.  It could be the freedom of working for yourself. Or it could be a desire to get out of debt. Maybe what you really want is to build a company that you can sell later or pass on to your kids. Or maybe there’s another reason, even bigger than anything you’ve ever wanted, like helping to end hunger in your community or creating an international school to teach leadership skills to Executive Directors.

Knowing your Big Why is important and helps keep you focused when things get crazy. Believe me, if you haven’t already had those days, they’re coming!

Spend some time thinking about your Big Why and getting really clear about it. Picture it in your mind. Include as many details as you can about it. Imagine how you’ll feel when it comes to fruition. How will you celebrate that you accomplished it?

Write it down and post it somewhere you can see it regularly. And spend a few minutes every day thinking about it and why it’s so important to you.

I have two Big Whys: one is to become debt free and to pay off the investments I’ve made in my business over the past 8 years, and the other is to become successful enough to start a family foundation, so we can give more money away to our favorite causes.

I know that when I encounter the bumps in the road, I can go back and look at what I really want, and draw some additional strength to help me get through the tough times.