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G R A P H I C S - P R O. C O M 2 0 2 2 A U G U S T G R A P H I C S P R O 8 7 and who you are as a company, and then you can determine quickly if social media is for you or not and, if so, at what level. As a business owner, no matter the stage, you have passion for what you are doing, and there is a vision even if it is unclear or at least not clear any longer. If not, you would not have even dreamt of starting your own business. With the right mindset and foun- dation, you can stoke that passion, learn to build momentum, and throw some extra fuel on the fire of success. e businesses who spend their research time developing and honing their mindset and foundation are successful. And that is whom I get to hang out with, highlight, have discussions with, and enjoy their company at the Start Here Academy and beyond in Charlotte next month. 3 MINDSET SHIFTS TO TRY To close out, let me give you three key things you can do to enhance your start-up mentality. And again, you don't have to be a start-up to take advantage of this valuable mindset shift. When you improve these three areas, you will be shocked how these simple mindset shifts will change the trajectory of your business but only if you are willing to give it a chance. Act as if you can and have the start-up business owner's mindset. In the first shift, you must identify your target, but then make sure that you are shooting for something that will be worth the time and effort. Michelangelo said it best, "e greater danger for most of us lies not in setting our aim too high and falling short, but in setting our aim too low, and achieving our mark." is shift is to focus on goal setting and then believing in your heart that it is possible. e mindset shift is not just setting a big future goal but setting concrete goals along the way with details of how much and by when. Many people don't realize their big future goal is just a wish. e process is a series of continuous goals and milestones where you assume it is possible each time. You enter the next goal with high intentions of the possible results and leave with extremely low attachment to the results. Focusing on what you can control, acknowledging what you are grateful for, and affirming you can do it! e next mindset shift is to get a handle on your fears. You must conquer fear so that you step out of your comfort zone. As busi- ness owners, there are always things that we know we need to do, but our comfort zone keeps us from acting. You have to expand your comfort zone to accomplish those goals. You also need the self-confidence to continue believing it is possible. e only way to build self-confidence is by surviving a risk. Serving that risk and getting outside of the comfort zone requires reframing fear and finding techniques to overcome anything holding you back. It could be deep-rooted and take some soul searching and uncom- fortable work. Conquering that puts you where success is — right outside your comfort zone! e last mindset shift is to focus on becoming an action taker. You have to take action and keep moving forward in the face of all sorts of situations — the days you don't feel like it, where things are drawing you away from your goals. e more effort, the faster you get there, but don't mistake what I'm saying for the much-talked-about hustle culture. Grinding yourself to death is not the answer. When I say action taker, it is about momentum and using your internal GPS (joy) to tell you what to do next. Act even when you are unsure what action to take so you stay in a constant state of momentum. It's the stopping and starting that kills most business owners' success. Use the movement to give you feedback on what to do next but stay in motion so it can get easier each time. As I said, spend time focusing on those three mindset shifts, and you will be surprised how quickly you will see results. e challenge for me as a coach is that these actions don't pay off immediately. But I have been able to watch struggling, flounder- ing businesses that have the JOB mindset where they are obsessed with the nuts and bolts, waiting for someone else to give them the magic bullet. I supported those business owners in finding their start-up mindset and followed their progress daily as they took action. at action leads to self-confidence, trying new things, and setting bigger and bigger goals. Seeing this has been like watching a fast-motion movie of a tree growing from a seed out of the ground. And the best part is that those business owners now seem like success is effortless, yet they keep cultivating their start-up mentality. I'd love to hear how you found your start-up mindset. I can't wait to discuss these concepts and more with you in Charlotte. Tag me on social media and use the hashtag # SHA22. GP Aaron Montgomery is certified by New York Times best-selling author Jack Canfield as a Success Principles Trainer and is the co-founder of OurSuccessGroup.com. Aaron has over 25 years of experience with personalized products and small business development and is the co-creator of the "5 Keys of Business Success." You can also find Aaron co- hosting the decorator's industry podcast 2 Regular Guys Podcast (www.2regularguys. com). Also, check him out on his podcast channel called Small Business Saturdays (smallbusinesssaturdayspodcast.com). The reality is that as business owners, we have all the resources we need to overcome external challenges right at our fingertips.