Manar Al Hinai: Six lies entrepreneurs tell themselves

A lie is one thing we do not want to hear on any given day, especially in business. But the worst kind of lies are the ones entrepreneurs tell themselves.

Even when all the signs point north, we could easily make up excuses as to why our business is not heading in the right direction, why we are not hitting sales targets or why customers are still favouring the competitor down the road.

Today I will walk you through some common lies entrepreneurs tell themselves, in hopes that you can snatch yourself out of a situation before it is too late:

1. Pricing products or services low will attract customers. This makes sense in a way. If you are pricing an equally good product like that of your competitors' but at a lower price, then customers will come and deal with you. But if your pricing is not covering your costs, and not providing you with a profit margin that you can live on, then you are in for serious trouble. As a business owner you need to calculate your gross profit margin and figure out how to price your product/service, and how much you need to make in sales to cover your costs.

2. If you are passionate, the money will eventually follow. Entrepreneurs might think that because their ideas are out of this world, or because they are passionate enough about what they are doing, then the money will automatically start pouring in. True, passion is a driver behind many business successes, but betting on that mentality alone is wrong. If you are managing a growing business it is very easy to think that everything that you do, infused by your passion, will eventually lead to more cash. Dedication and hard work should be equal to the passion you have for your business. Only when they are in parallel will the money come in.

3. Hiring the best employees will get the business moving: Everyone wants top-of-the-line team members on board, but if you are just starting your business or are at a stage of expansion you might need to consider the best hiring option. Excellent employees are pricey. Perhaps it is worth looking at outsourcing some administrative tasks to keep costs at bay.

4. Sticking to the old ways of doing things will maintain success: As humans we can get very accustomed to routine and hostile to new ideas. Just because you have done something for a long time does not mean that it is the most cost-effective, efficient or most profit-generating solution out there. As an entrepreneur you should always be on the lookout for innovative ways of doing business, or you can easily fall off the wagon. Even if your way is truly the best, you need to consider that times change, people's mentalities change and markets change all the time. If you do not adhere to that, your business will be at risk.

5. More quantity equals more success: Quantity is a good measure of business success – more sales mean that there is a good demand for your business – but that is not the only determinant. You need to think about other tactics to be taken instead of focusing on selling a higher quantity. For instance, how could you increase the amount of purchases per customer? How could you cut down costs while increasing sales?

6. Reposition when things do not go right: At the start-up stage repositioning is an important step, especially when you are testing the market and can easily alter and tweak your products to better fit it. However, as good as it is to know when to reposition your business in the market, it does not always work. You cannot expect that every time you reposition yourself your business will do well. Any repositioning act requires a business plan and research to support your step. Before changing direction, a thorough study needs to take place.

Being optimistic is an important characteristic that entrepreneurs should equip themselves with. And sometimes when things get rough we often lie to ourselves to get through the hardship. But when lying becomes a habit, not only are we fooling ourselves, but we are impeding our business growth.

Manar Al Hinai is an award-winning Emirati writer based in Abu Dhabi. Follow her on Twitter: @manar_alhinai

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