In my book ‘First Aid For a Wounded Business,’ I address many of the causes and cures for a business that is in serious trouble and needs to be saved.  Many of the problems are financial related, others are customer service related, and others are team related.  Some problems are external to the business such as market conditions, but many problems are internal to the business such as poor systems.

However, the biggest problem that I see that puts a business into the Business Emergency Room is the negative thinking of the owner. Yes, your head trash can put you out of business almost as fast as the lack of cash flow, or a competitor stealing all your customers. John Maxwell stated in his book ‘The 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership’ that every organization rises and falls on leadership.

In essence, your business is a mirror of who you are. So let me ask you this: Who are you? Are you a positive person who believes that good things are going to happen to you and your business? Or are you a negative person who believes only the worst is going to happen? You might be asking yourself ‘How do I know if I’m a positive or negative person?’ Here’s the simple answer.

Listen to what comes out of your mouth. The Bible says in Matthew 12:34 “Out of the goodness of the heart, the mouth speaks.” If you are speaking nothing but negative diatribes about your team, your customers, your business situation, or the economy, what are you reinforcing? Yes, that you are doomed to failure.

I had a client one time who owned a flower shop.  She had a great location, excellent customer base, and wonderful name recognition in the community. However she was struggling to stay in business, and initially I could not figure out why.

The answer came quickly. Every coaching session she would start out with a litany of problems she had with her team, her family, and her husband that consumed much of our time. Her whole being was wrapped up in negativity. Finally after about 6 months of fruitless coaching, I told her that until she changed the way she thought about everything in life, our coaching was going to be a waste of her money and my time. I learned that 3 months after we finished coaching, her business closed, and her marriage broke up.

So what is your head trash that prevents you from being successful in business? What negative beliefs have you bought into that hold you back? What are you going to do about it? Submit your feedback to this article below and let me know. I’m here to help.