Why You Need a Business Community

I'm often asked what elevated my business from six figures to seven, and I think the answer surprises a lot of people. I wasn't exhausting myself with longer hours or spending thousands more dollars on marketing every month. Nor did it come at the cost of pricey influencer collaborations. Why is it a good idea for a business to be involved in the community? Even if you're not running a community business, this question might interest you.

Entrepreneurship can be a lonely and exhausting journey, especially at the beginning of your venture. It can feel like no one understands where you're coming from, why you have to leave a girls' night out to deal with shipping issues, or why you can't just turn your phone off during a movie. Sometimes, owning a business can feel like putting out fire after fire. On those days especially, you just need someone who gets it. As the saying goes, it takes a village to raise a child, but your business community may be one too many. Cue your business bestie.

Your business bestie is your go-to person when it comes to running your business. They may or may not be part of your business community, but they are your confidant, your ally, and sometimes the person getting your panicked phone calls at 10 PM. The life of an entrepreneur can be lonely and exhausting, even if you have your own staff or mastermind group of like-minded entrepreneurs. No one fully gets it until they've walked the same path in the same shoes. That's why finding a like-minded community is one of the first things I recommend to new entrepreneurs. 

I owe much of my success to my decision-making. However, I could never have based my decision-making on a gut feeling or a personal experience — the perspective of which can be limiting. Thus, the next best thing to data-driven decision-making will be the consensus of your nurturing community.

Community involvement in business is crucial, as it can provide valuable insights and perspectives that go beyond individual experiences. At times, it will be your sounding board for new ideas. Other times, it is a platform to share your frustrations or get reassurance about parts of your entrepreneurial journey to help you stay focused. Communities chime in with their fair share of contribution towards the growth of many businesses in different ways. But generally speaking, here are some of the ways they ensure you never walk alone in your journey:

Let's face it: There are days when we all feel like giving up, or at least crawling into bed with the sheets pulled over our eyes, waiting for the day to just end. But consistency is your biggest ally, and sometimes you need outside voices to remind you of that.

Your business community will inspire you to keep going when you want to quit, and it will keep your integrity when you miss deadlines or undersell yourself. And while you may have to defy the sense of vulnerability that comes with putting out your business in the community, it'll keep you accountable, which makes it more than a worthy trade-off. 

Why so? This kind of accountability will give you the kick up the backside from time to time, fueling you with all the motivation you need to stay the course, especially during downturns or downtimes. 

I can't even begin to count how many of my clients or opportunities came from the connections I made in my business community. There's something powerful about finding a group of people who want you to win. Whether it's brainstorming solutions to a problem you're facing, referrals, or social media giveaways, your business community is the key to the collaboration of your dreams.

And here's the good bit: you don't even need to run a community business per se to draw on the guidance and experience of others. It's never a tale of one-upmanship; it's a mutually beneficial cycle of rising by lifting others, which makes the journey so rewarding. Your growth most likely won't happen out of thin air. Belonging to a community might give you access to a new partnership or expand your clientele tremendously. 

But listen up: if you want to be a part of that community, you have to bring something to the table. It's all about giving as much value as you can, not just mooching off others. 

Why should businesses get involved in the community? Unless you have the superpower to freeze time at will, you've probably missed a deadline (or two). 

Interestingly, sometimes you're the one getting in your way of a timeous delivery — constantly fumbling deadlines due to your perfectionist tendencies. From experience, it's obvious that when there's no one pressing you to meet targets, it can be easier to blow off to-do lists and due dates, especially if your reasoning is rooted in perfectionist fantasies.

Pro tip: if you wait until your course is "perfect," you'll never launch.

In these kinds of cases, chatting about your business to a community can really come through with the goods — whether that be shared accountability to help you 'eat that frog' of procrastination or a sense of urgency to shake off your analysis paralysis and meet the deadline. Of course, this doesn't mean totally outsourcing the entire accountability of your business to your community.

As a business owner, you still need an internal structure in place for your team to be held accountable for their common actions, decisions, or indecisions. 

There are times — periods of uncertainty or shifts in market trends or customer behavior — when you're left pondering how to pivot your community business.

And if you think this has anything to do with the quality of your product/service, then you're wrong. A case-in-point: COVID-19 took the wind out of the sails of 80% of small businesses. And you recall, there's only so much brainstorming you can do in times like this. Surely, you need some fresh, out-of-the-box ideation done, and sometimes, community business forums can provide your "Eureka" moment.

Seeing that other members face similar challenges, all you have to do is listen closely enough to gain actionable advice, best-kept secrets, useful hacks, and game-changing insights to bring that good-to-great transformation you're sorely lacking. Your company community involvement is also part of this innovation value chain. As you meet fellow community business owners and share your ideas or approach, you're contributing yet another diverse perspective to the issue at hand, making for a more robust solution. 

Do you know what they say about two heads being better than one? Without taking anything away from my self-sufficiency, I've found that my business could benefit from the input of people with a skill set different from mine in climbing the growth ladder. Within your business community lies a diverse mix of perspectives, professional and social backgrounds, and — you guessed it — skills.

By harnessing the separate skill sets of people, you're able to put together a team of genuinely diverse-thinking business owners to help you generate breakthrough insights and increase the potential for success in your problem-solving. Thanks to the gift of being in the same forum, you're able to appreciate the contribution of each member and, by interacting with them, catch a glimpse of their strengths & weaknesses. 

Make no mistake: sharing tidbits about your business to your community in exchange for some skilled intervention can be a little iffy, but remember that all of us — no matter how many multiple hats we wear on the job — will never fully know it all. 

There will always be knowledge gaps, lack of skills, or shortage of experience, especially in areas that are not your cup of tea. Plus, juggling the demands of upskilling in these plentiful areas while running a business can be hard, which is why it's best to park the ego and pull heads together. 

Now, the next question I'm usually asked is, "Where can you meet the right business community for you?" Honestly, it's like dating. Sometimes, you've just gotta shoot your shot — the same applies if you run a community business. Message business owners you relate to on Instagram, join a Facebook community that resonates with you, or find a business conference that resonates with you. Finding your community can seem like a lot of trial and error, but when you find the right people, you'll wonder how you ever did it without them. 

So, why is it a good idea for a business to be involved in the community? As an entrepreneur, there's absolutely nothing wrong with dancing to the beat of your own drum, but life throws curveballs at you sometimes. And when that happens, it's nice to have a safe haven to return to. This is where you can leverage your business-to-community relationship to full effect. Whether you're unsure about a sketchy opportunity or worried about a hiccup with a client, your community can be where you get meaningful advice from other business owners to take your business to the next level.

Plus, much of the advice you'll get from your community is battle-tested since — let's be real — these other business owners have probably gone through the same thing. The business-to-community relationship is a mutually beneficial gift that keeps on giving. And so one of the reasons I've organized the Dream Bigger conference is exactly that one — my business community has supported so much of my growth, and I can't wait to pay it forward. 

Over two and a half days, business owners from all over the world are coming together to dream bigger, brighter, and bolder. With everything — from conversations on marketing to breathwork for business owners. If you're interested in attending in person or virtually, drop me a line. I'd love to see you there.