Directions from Hell:

So, just a little piece of advice about business.

If it were easy everyone would do it.

If it were easy no one would need me (or many of you.)

If it were easy you probably wouldn’t be reading this.

And not only is it not easy- some of it can be hellish. I talk to lots of you each day via calls, emails, social media and I hear the tough stuff. And listen, I get it. I go through the tough stuff, too. That launch that failed, the employee that quit, the client that bailed, the nasty email… there are days you can feel like you are going through hell. I thought since you ended up there not on purpose you might want some directions out of there.

Directions from Hell:

1) OK, let’s start here. If you are going through hell- don’t stop! That’s the worst thing you could do. You never want to pull up a chair and sit at that table. It will feel like the right thing to do is throw in the towel, but this is just a big red firey flag (joke intended) saying- don’t stop here! Keep moving.

2) Get out as fast as possible- look for the exits. I read a great quote today that said: “We all come with baggage. Find someone who loves you enough to help you unpack.” Here are the best exit plans:

a) delegate- sometimes others have a better view point of the exit
b) stop thinking- don’t try to figure out how you got there (yet)
c) see if you have any ideal clients there- sometimes what appears to be “hell” is actually just an opportunity to stretch
d) get factual- work from truth and not emotion. Emotion will never allow you to see the exit.

3) Once you find the exit get a drink of water. Pause, rehydrate, and analyze. I keep saying business is math, metrics, science, and numbers… get clear on what didn’t work and what happened.

4) Tell the story. We never go through hell unless we were meant to teach about the trip. Don’t wallow in what happened or whine about getting lost. Just make the mess your message. Find a way to market it. People love that stuff!

Hope this helps to turn your hell into a hell yeah!