When I started my business, I was 100% a service provider. I traded my time for money in every transaction, and the majority of my work was directly related to providing my client with their deliverables. This is how many businesses start, and there’s nothing wrong with having a service based business model… But if you’re trying to work smarter, it’s time to consider what your income streams look like, and where you might be missing opportunities to pivot your business strategy and diversify where your capital comes from.
Even though some of my business has stayed service based, the label of “service provider” doesn’t really suit me anymore. My professional title is much more like, “digital content creator who provides services” now, because that fits both my business model and my lifestyle at this point in my journey. Currently, 90% of my business is digital and 10% is service based, with 8% of that 10% being government and corporate contracts.
It’s a fact that as you learn more, you might not want to keep sticking with the same business model you started with, and that’s okay.
Many people don’t like bringing lifestyle into the conversation when we talk about growing or pivoting in business because they don’t want to seem greedy, but I am a firm believer that you should absolutely plan your business to support the lifestyle you want. The 2% of the services I’m providing through my business is to my ideal client. You can absolutely shift the way your money comes into your business, so you can start accepting only the work that really appeals to you; all you need is specific data and strategy to get you there.
I get the question “How do you know your percentages so well?” a lot, and if you’ve ever heard me mention the first thing every new business owner needs, you already know my answer: The bookkeeping tells me. I suggest to all new business owners to hire an accountant before anyone else and have them train you on how to keep your books.
Once you’re able to figure out where your income comes from, you can start to see where you might want to focus your efforts to create the pivot your business needs. In my case, I pivoted my business from my service provider standing when I started focusing on my online academy as my primary effort when I noticed the trials I was running were succeeding, but had even more potential to grow.
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