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It is the job of the entrepreneur to solve problems. They solve problems both with their business (solving a problem in the world at large) and inside their business (e.g. fixing a system). But knowing exactly what is causing the problem inside your business is the most important, if one of the most challenging parts to get right.

In January 2021 I spent money on branding and messaging, when my actual gap was on strategy and vision. Now, one year on, I have a business that is going in the right direction and I hit all of my 2021 goals. But, this has brought a whole new set of problems.

Returning to work this year, I have felt confused and overwhelmed and indecisive - yes, even despite having exceeded my targets last year. Honestly, I thought I had made it past this point (pro tip: you never do), so exactly why I was struggling was a mystery to me.

Fast forward a week later and I’ve journaled, spoken to coaches and done some research and I now know why. It would have been easy for me to brush off these experiences as ‘the January blues’ and continue to march on regardless. But, by going deep on this problem I’ve created a whole new world of opportunity and clarity for myself (more on this later) and you can do the same for your business.

Going through this process in the last seven days has brought home for me just how important it is to detect the real problem at hand. Yes, it could be Jan Blues, but what if it isn’t? This is the true nature of the work that we have to do as entrepreneurs; we’re not just problem-solvers but scientists testing hypotheses. 

Today I’ll be showing you a unique tool that will help you to look beyond the symptoms of your problem and diagnose the true cause faster, more efficiently and therefore enjoy more success in your business moving forward.

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Entrepreneurs Perpetually Live In Problem State

If point A is problem state, then entrepreneurs exist at point A a lot of the time. Problem state might reveal itself as confusion, stress, indecision, a negative emotional state or general stuck-ness.

We want to get to point B, where we feel clear, motivated and energised, have a clear plan to follow and the discipline to stick to it. Where we feel confident that we are moving in the right direction and getting the customers, money and followers to show for it.

What stops many entrepreneurs moving from Point A to Point B is a problem. Or a myriad of problems I should say.

The problem is not that they are ‘confused stressed, indecisive, in a negative emotional state or stuck’, no, these are the symptoms of the problem. The same could be said for problems like ‘my business isn’t growing’ or ‘I can’t make any sales’. These are symptoms. Exactly why it isn’t it growing is what you need to detect.

So gaining a first-principles level understanding of the root cause is what will help entrepreneurs to solve their problem so that they can then stop feeling [insert negative feelings].

The Entrepreneur’s Problem Diagnosis Wheel

Introducing… The Entrepreneur’s Problem Diagnosis Wheel. This is the hard work I have done for you (you’re welcome) to help you better trace your problems to their root cause (problem area). I believe that most business problems can be traced to one or one or more of these eight problem areas.

Your job as an entrepreneur is to detect which one(s) you have so that you can solve it effectively.

Let me provide terms and definitions and (non-exhaustive) examples below.

And if you have a problem you want a real-time prognosis on, you can use my guide here, but I recommend reading this post first.

The eight problem areas that entrepreneurs have

1. STRATEGY
   Strategy problems relate to the direction you’re going and choices you’ve made e.g.:

• Marketing

• Pricing / Positioning /Product

• Audience

• Insufficient funds

Further reading: Is your Strategy Wrong or Fuzzy? A post by Divinations. | Don’t confuse goals for strategy, by Basic Arts

2. SELF-TRUST
   If you have a self-trust problem you are holding yourself back from a mindset perspective e.g.:

• Doubting your self

• Doubting your decisions

• Playing small

• Not being ambitious enough

• Not investing in yourself or your business

• Procrastination

• Fear of failure

Further reading: Emotional Agility Quiz | How you Self-Sabotage by Shirzad Chamine | Traits Entrepreneurs should have in their DNA

3. BALANCE
   Balance problems mean you are out of kilter. You are spending too much or too little energy on the wrong areas of your life/ business. e.g.:

• Overworking

• Lack of rest and relaxation

• Lack of inspiration

• Choosing energy draining tasks or projects

• Not proactively looking after your mental, spiritual, physical or emotional health

Further reading: Why overworking is bad for your health, by Hubspot | Mental Health and Media, podcast with Gemma Styles

4. VISION
   Vision problems will prevent you from going in a clear direction in your business and creating a compelling narrative about what you are building e.g.:

• You don’t know your long term goal

• You lack a concrete mission

• You don’t have a deeper why

• You don’t know what good looks like

• You’ve been copying other businesses not building your own

Live Event: The Ask 2022 Vision + Planning Workshop 90 Min of coaching and personalised support! A few spaces remain.

5. OPERATIONAL
   Operational problems stop your business from working in a finely tuned manner e.g.:

• Lack of systems, processes or structures

• Poorly defined organisational chart

• Doing everything yourself, where it could be delegated

• Poor choice of suppliers/tools

Further reading: The Great CEO within: how to build a company from the ground up by Matt Mochary | The Four Hour Workweek by Tim Ferriss

6. KNOWLEDGE
   Knowledge problems are the result of not knowing enough about what you are doing e.g.:

• You are new to this so don’t know what you don’t know

• You lack the technical competence

• You don’t know how to hire

• You are in an unfamiliar domain

• You lack data and insights to guide you

Further reading: Why entrepreneurs start with high confidence when they don’t know what they don’t know, by me | Finding your Edge, by Entrepreneur First

7. FOUNDER-FIT
   Founder-Fit problems are when you are the wrong person to run your business e.g.:

• You don’t care about the problem you are solving

• The business doesn’t fit your desired lifestyle

• You aren’t using your key skills

• You are not aligned with the business’ vision

• You have too much or too little control as a Founder

Further reading: The Ask Founder-Model Canvas to know if you’re right to build your business | The importance of Founder-Market Fit when fundraising

8. EXECUTION
   Execution problems show up when you go to do the work itself e.g.:

• You lack focus, discipline or you procrastinate

• You lack routine

• You don’t follow through on tasks, or are sloppy/inaccurate

• You don’t know how to prioritise

Further reading: WHY you keep procrastinating on your business, from this newsletter | HOW to stop procrastinating, by Psyche

Here are some recent examples of these I have witnessed in my coaching practice recently:

• A new founder trying to sell programmes online was not converting sales. They lacked ‘Knowledge’ on how to position their services in a way that truly spoke to their customer’s pain-point. They had been taught ‘marketing advice to grow online’ from another coach, but not the other parts of the puzzle.

• The inability to decide where to take their business and life overall next, was a problem with ‘Balance’ as the founders’ burnout was preventing clear thinking

• A decision making problem was related to both ‘Self-Trust’ and ‘Founder-Fit’ as this Founder did not fully control the direction of their business

• A founder with issues in the ‘Execution’ domain lacked clear ‘Vision’ and ‘Strategy’ to follow.

If you have been nodding along and want to get specifics on a real problem you have and how to prioritise which of your many problems to solve first, then I have created this free download for you to go through my own problem detection method. Do let me know how you get on!

Move from Diagnosis to Cure

During coaching consultations I regularly see how hard it is for new founders to understand what problem they need the most help with and what kind of coaching they should go for, if any. Many are confused about how to get from Point A to Point B and what coaching will do for them exactly.

Especially since coaching comes in all shapes and sizes.

I personally feel that the type of online coaches who promote “follow my IG growth strategy and you’ll be a success” miss the mark as they perpetuate a belief that if you create an audience then you will automatically have a successful business. But if the entrepreneur hasn’t begun answering the existential questions (who am I, what am I amazing at, what would make me happy and what do I need to build) and learnt about their craft/industry then this can all quickly unravel.

My coaching with The Ask both helps clients to figure out their problem(s) and supports them to create a bespoke plan for solving it. Personally, I’m strong at coaching the ‘top of the funnel questions’ of Founder-Fit, Vision, Self-Trust and Strategy, so that once these have been solved for, the rest can fall into place more easily.

Whilst I will work with people on individual parts of the wheel, I see them as holistic parts of a whole and if someone wanted tactical support only, e.g. just Operations, then I would not be the right fit.

If you were wondering, I believe my problem (that I alluded to at the start) is a combination of habits, routines and systems (or lack thereof) to take my business to the next level. They got me to where I am now but won’t get me to where I want to go next. So ‘Balance’ and ‘Operations’ and a bit of ‘Strategy’ is my focus for Q1.

That’s it for today. I hope you found it useful!
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A reminder to sign up for the vision and planning coaching workshop in 2 weeks time which is designed to help new/aspiring founders identify exciting goals for 2022 and create their personalised game plan to achieve it. Just five spaces left!

Thank you for reading as always!

Ellen Donnelly, Founder + Chief Coach, The Ask.