When Robert Frost wrote about the two roads diverging in the woods, he failed to mention a significant detail. The main reason the more-traveled road was so popular was because it was paved, well-lit and it had signs laid out by the people who made the trek back when it was one of the less-traveled paths.
Those courageous people were entrepreneurs like you.
If you think about it, every single product, service and business is built around providing its customers with shortcuts. They enable their clients do what they want and need to do faster, better and with less effort.
You don’t need to learn about internal combustion engines; you can take your car to the mechanic. Who needs to chop vegetables and boil chicken broth when you can buy a can of soup? Forget driving all the way to the library. Google is waiting for your search inquiry.
People like fast and easy. There’s nothing wrong with that. But what comes easy to some may be incredibly difficult for others. That’s opportunity. Work hard at what comes easier for you than for other people. Use your gifts to help others who aren’t gifted in those areas. Free them to focus on their own strengths and passions.
Very few people want to take the road less-traveled (even if it does make all the difference).
The question is, are you positioning your product or service as the shortcut to the good life? Do your sales and marketing messages help your prospects see all the time they’ll save, all the toil they’ll avoid and the improved quality of life they’ll enjoy when they take the shortcut you provide?
Your homework for the week is to think about how you can clearly communicate this idea to the people you want to do business with.
Go on, get started.