Many of the coaches, therapists, and others in the healing professions --- those folks I call Soul Proprietors --- love what they do yet dislike being in business.

These are the people I’ve heard described as “reluctant entrepreneurs.” Are you one of these?  You want to do your work, you want to do it on your own terms and you want the freedom that comes only from being self-employed; and yet, you are not nearly as successful as you could be because you refuse to “take care of business.”

I long ago learned that there are just some things relating to business that I do not do well. (Accounting being one of them.) And I suggest that, if you have tasks that you don’t do well, find someone to help you with those important things to keep your business going.

But this is not really what I’m talking about. I’m talking about having the mindset of an entrepreneur. This means that in addition to helping your clients achieve what they want, you have to have the mindset that allows you to get what YOU want as well. And that means taking care of business. Every day.

Born to be an entrepreneur?
Most of us aren’t born entrepreneurs. But just like all the other skills you’ve learned, you can learn to think like an entrepreneur and enjoy the success of being one.

The best place I know to start developing this mindset is in the areas of marketing and selling. The day you hang your shingle out, announcing to the world that you’re now in business for yourself, is the day you don your marketing hat, and it doesn’t come off --- ever. And as long as you are self-employed, like it or not, you’re also a salesperson.

Marketing is one area of your business or practice that you don’t want to farm out to someone else. Your success is totally dependent on how well you attract clients that will pay you. And you know your business better than anyone else, and you care about its success more than anyone else ever would.

So if you’re one of those who is reluctant to market your business because you either don’t know how or don’t know what to do first or what to do next, I suggest that you set aside some time every working day to learn about marketing.

Then take what you learn and apply to it your own business.

There’s no shortage of marketing information available today, and I do my best to share with you the things I know and practice --- the things that work for me and my business --- so that you can observe the strategies that I use, learn from my example, and apply what you learn to your own business.

I know of no better place to start than with my complimentary ebook, “How to Get the Word Out About Who You Are and What You Do.” If you’ve downloaded that ebook but haven’t read it yet, it’s time to find it and get started. And if you can’t find it, email me and I’ll re-send you the link so you can download it again.

Remember, millionaires take care of business first.

So, let me ask you this (please add your response in the comment section below):

What can YOU do today to take care of your business?

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Now, for a slightly different view: While I personally love interacting with my clients and the readers of my ezines and my blog, and I have no desire to be just another anonymous entrepreneur on the internet, other folks do like the anonymity that the internet can provide.

For me, half the fun of being in business is the people I get to interact with every day. But many folks like the idea of being relatively anonymous to their clients and customers and the internet allows them to do just that.

As I was writing this week's blog post above, I stumbled on this article that talks about this very thing. My view is not the only one and you might find this notion to be more to your liking.