The Big Picture: How to Scale your Business by Thinking BIG

Many business owners spend a lot of their time thinking about the future of their business. Have you? Have you taken pen to paper to write down where you want your business to be in 10 years? 20 years? What about when you’re ready to retire?

That may seem too far away to start making plans now, but the truth is the first step to scaling your business is thinking big. Having grandiose plans for your company is not a bad thing. Thinking 10 or 20 years in the future gives you something to work toward!

Mark Zuckerberg probably had no idea that his modest hot-or-not website, Facemash, would grow into the most popular social networking site in the world when he founded it back in 2003. But we bet he was hoping it would! The sky's the limit when it comes to thinking big for the future of your company. The only thing limiting you… is you.

Businesses That Started Small but Thought Big 

Business owners who think big have an edge over their rivals or competitors. The sky's the limit when you have the capacity for big dreams and can envision the potential of your company. Having high expectations and reaching for the stars will help you accomplish the scalability that you're looking for.

If there's one thing to say about thinking big, it's that it is incredibly underrated. Thinking small is something many of us tend to fall back on because it's something that is familiar; something we're comfortable with. The risk-averse will always resort to thinking small rather than reaching for the stars. Oftentimes, we are reluctant to push ourselves, dream big, and pursue our lofty aspirations. But once we do, we're able to do more than we had ever imagined! Your ability to think big and take chances could end up determining exactly how successful you and your business are. 

Here are three examples of businesses that started small but whose founders had big dreams and fought to reach them.

Google 

When Google was first established, it was originally meant to be nothing more than a simple research project, but founders Sergey Brin and Larry Page had other ideas. They were thinking BIG. They dreamed of not only indexing the entirety of the World Wide Web, but making those indexes useful to the masses.

So they set to work creating algorithms that would rank websites based on both their popularity and their relevance, to curate a single place where internet users could find what they were looking for with a single click. Before they knew it, Google had dominated the search space, and now brings in revenue well into the billions.

Spanx

What started as a creation out of necessity has launched into the stratosphere to quickly become a multi-billion dollar company.

Way back in 1998, before anyone had uttered the words “shapewear,” Spanx founder Sara Blakely was in her bedroom, putting on a cream coloured suit for a party she was attending, when she realized she didn’t have any undergarments that would provide the smooth, sleek look she was going for under her suit. So what did she do? She grabbed a pair of scissors and sliced the feet off of a pair of control top pantyhose. 14 years later, Sara was named by Forbes Magazine as the world’s youngest self-made billionaire.

Apple

And of course, we can’t talk about thinking BIG without discussing Apple. When Apple was founded, Steve Wozniak and Steve Jobs were nothing more than college drop outs, a garage, and a dream. A big dream. They were very close to bankruptcy when inspiration struck and they changed their business model from small home computers to large-scale computer systems for corporations. 

This new approach was extremely successful, and soon, Apple became one of the biggest, most successful companies in the entire world. And they didn’t stop there. Even now, every time Apple releases a new product, it tops the sales records of previous products. 

Tips for Thinking BIG and Scaling Your Business

• Believe in yourself. Those big dreams are within your reach.

You have to have confidence in yourself and your capacity to succeed if you want to be a successful leader. Leaders who let their self-doubt cripple them won't succeed, but those who are confident in their skills can achieve anything. Never let self-doubt stop you from pursuing your goals, no matter how big they are!  Take the lead, impact others, and succeed. Anything is possible if you put your mind to it!

The biggest thing to remember is that you will make mistakes, and that's okay! No one is perfect, but you can't let the fear of making mistakes stop you from thinking big and taking action. When you set big goals for yourself, a successful leader will see them through, even when things get hard. 

• Take things one step at a time and learn as you go.

Having a clear idea of the things that you want to accomplish is essential for success. Large ambitions, however, can feel overwhelming, which makes it challenging to know where to begin. Breaking down your goals into smaller segments and focusing on each one individually is one method to attain your goals, no matter how big they are. As each smaller step is accomplished, your confidence will grow, which makes it far less daunting, and easier to continue onto the next step.

• Find a network of supportive people and surround yourself with them.

Having people around you who support your goals and dreams is a great approach to ensuring success. This involves surrounding yourself with positive, uplifting individuals who will motivate you to follow your dreams.

Never be scared to ask for assistance from your support network whenever you need it. No single person can do everything on their own.  Lean on your supporters, mentors, family, and friends, and make use of their expertise, resources, and knowledge whenever you can.

• Start! Don’t be afraid to get started, even if you’re worried about the outcome.

Oftentimes, we let our fears and doubts keep us from even starting. We excuse our lack of action by telling ourselves that we lack the necessary skills or expertise. It's incredibly easy to become mired in a project's minutiae and lose sight of the bigger picture. When this occurs, taking the first move might be challenging since we are unsure of how it will pan out. However, the truth is that there is never an ideal moment to begin. And even if we're unsure of how something will pan out, acting and learning from our mistakes are always preferable to doing nothing at all. We can seize opportunities and progress toward our objectives when we think big.

If you want to learn more about Thinking BIG, download the Givens Growth Guide, where we teach you everything you need to know to scale your business your way, at your own pace. Contact us to learn more about growing your business and how we can help you get there.