It’s not wishful thinking to believe that you can reconcile your dreams with reality when growing a brand new Condition Survey business. You have the power of creative thought to go on in order to make sure you’re being realistic in your business while not being too conservative. The following seven reality checks will help you reconcile your dream business with the reality that you can develop a business successfully and without problems.

1. Regardless of your intentions, mistakes can happen. Your ability may be slim in some areas but you have to let go o perfection when starting a new business. Take the time to review your offer you give to clients and decide whether or not you are coming off as a know-it-all or if you are being a responsive partner and learner. Are you getting on your soap box? Reflect on whether or not you are being reliable, honest and perfect in what you do. Think about the differences between apologizing for errors or being accountable from the beginning. Know the difference between integrity and significance.

2. It’s true that things can go wrong. Stumbling blocks can teach you things you need to know in order to do better in the future. You’d rather learn things than fail to learn but lessons may need to happen through errors. When you look through the world with humility and trust in your lessons, you are letting go of perfection and are helping to create your dream. Sometimes the actual lesion is to let go of the idea of what should have happened. Such lessons don’t mean there is something you did wrong or that is wrong with you.

3. There isn’t a customer for everything you have. This is good news because it means you cannot respond to everyone in the first place. Have the courage, clarity and integrity in order to listen to prospective clients and decide who you cannot help anyway. Ask all the right questions of your prospective client do you know who you can help and who you can’t. You need to ask the questions first and pay attention to the sale after that. Selling usually takes care of itself.

4. Welcome all opportunities to profit from your work. Ask yourself if you will profit from an opportunity and go with it when it is clear that you can. It should be an easy decision once you know this information.

5. Know that your customers can also have bad days and they may take the whole thing out on you. This doesn’t have to mean that you hide in a corner and avoid the client. It also doesn’t mean that you have to strike back toward the customer. You don’t have to deal with abuse nor should you dish it out. If you feel you are being used, just breathe until you feel differently about the situation. Everyone is human so that mistakes and clashes can happen. Pay attention to the boundaries you have set up for yourself so they cannot be crossed by unhappy customers. Don’t for a minute believe that everyone has to like you in order for you to thrive in the business. You can only change your behavior and not the customer’s.

6. Sometimes whole systems go wrong or you find out too late that a new project was not quite ready for prime time. (Just ask me.) At times like this you get to practice being available and responsive to customer needs while also taking care of yourself. Sometimes you won’t (yet) know how to solve or resolve the problem and you may resent the time you’re using to reassure clients instead of getting things on track. BREATHE. Learn to say, “I don’t know and I do care and I will get back to you as soon as I can.” Practice saying it with dignity, conviction, and patience. Take some time to wonder what you would need to believe in order for all of this to feel right and true.

7. It can be an isolating experience to own your own business and many small business owners are used to being alone. This doesn’t mean that you should go without support altogether. Pay attention to who you can use for support and advice as you start a new business. Your dream can be your own but the reality of starting a business means that you need to employ the help of others. You can collaborate with others and have a win-win situation as you work with others who can benefit from you as well. You need to think about who would have a vested interest in seeing you do well in your business. Let your mind go free while thinking of which collaborations would work the best or you. Turn you networking complaints into positive thinking about who can help you while you help them.

The secret to getting the best dream out of the whole thing is to accept what already is and work to get the support you need to make it all better. Support is everywhere so accepting your desire to build a Condition Survey business means seeking out that support and utilizing it. Some days will be easier to tolerate than others but reality and your dream can come together to give you the business you’ve been hoping for. Your own dream should teach you something each and every day.

Alan conducts Condition Surveys, and helps people with their Condition Survey requirements. In his spare time he enjoys scuba and freediving.