Finding and Solving Your Pain Points

When life gives you lemons, make lemonade

This old and overused expression is a lesson that we can turn a negative occurrence into something positive. But when an entrepreneur is handed lemons, they don’t need to make lemonade. They need to know why they got lemons in the first place and how to make sure they don’t get them again. Because in business, when you get lemons, you’re bound to get them again - and again and again. That’s the beauty of lemons - errr - pain points, they are recurring!

As a business grows, leaders make concessions to their processes, or lack thereof, to patch up issues that pop up, and eventually these band-aids start to consistently impact sales, marketing, and the business' growth. Our actions become counterproductive. Ignoring the problem and failing to find a solution leads to lost revenue and lost opportunities. And if these lemons are left unaddressed, the closure of the business may sadly occur. 

Discovering and solving your company’s pain points is the only way to make sure that your company can grow and develop into what you dream it to be. However, defining these problems can be a challenging task, and finding a streamlined solution even more so. For example, you may realize that your sales aren’t meeting your goals - is it because your goals are not high enough, or are your overhead costs too high, or are your sales copy and language too convoluted? And if it’s all of them, which one do you tackle first?  

To make matters even more complicated, once you figure out your potential solutions, how do you know if you have in-house resources or need to outsource? With so many different factors to consider, it’s no wonder business owners end up not addressing their pain points at all. In the end, you end up working hard and not smart.

The good news is that every problem has a solution. It just may need creativity or a different perspective. The first step is to take inventory of what your problems are. Start by asking yourself a few questions: 

1. What are the biggest challenges my company faces? Too daunting of a question? What is the SIMPLEST yet gnawing problem that my company faces?

2. What have I already done to address this? 

3. What happens if this problem goes unresolved?

After you have answered these questions, take it one step further and ask yourself how urgently a solution is needed. Depending on your answer, block out time(s) in your schedule to devote to finding a solution (also account for why earlier solutions did not work). During your block(s) of time assessing this problem and its potential solutions, find out if you need to bring in outside consultants or if you have resources in-house. 

• Who will be the champion of implementing this solution? This is the person who will manage timelines and implement the solution.
• What will this champion (especially if it’s you or someone in-house) need to give up in terms of current responsibilities in order to handle this issue?
• Are these potential solutions aligning with the business’ long-term goals and core values?

Knowing you have a problem and actually understanding why you have that problem are two very different things. Many businesses assume that their pain points are uniquely theirs and fail to see that despite the individuality of their business, pain points are shared by others in various industries.  

At LVL-Up, we specialize in addressing and handling whatever pain points your business experiences. We conduct strategic advisory sessions to build clarity around your story and shape clear, effective objectives. We document your systems and processes so that you can find opportunities to streamline your business, saving you time and money. We handle your social media and marketing with innovative strategies that stop potential clients in their tracks. If you are struggling to overcome your pain points then schedule a free discovery call with our team. LVL-Up gives you the freedom to focus on your passion, not your problems.