As a business owner or manager, strive to become a “jack of all trades” rather than a “talented specialist”.

So many people go into business because they are good at X. They think that because they can successfully do X, they will be successful in a business that does X. Of course, the generally high failure rate of businesses shows us how wrong they are.

A business owner needs to know so much more. They in fact need to have some knowledge of all areas of running a business - how to market the business, how to sell the product, how to manage customers, finances, inventory etc. This list continues to grow as the business grows and they need to learn how to interview and hire employees, how to manage employees, etc.

It’s no wonder that so many people shy away from running their own business. The key is preparation. Learn about the different areas before going into business for yourself. Even if you plan to outsource some of the functions, for example, have an accountant manage your finances, then you still need to understand the fundamentals.

This holds even in our personal lives. Don’t become so focused on one area that you cannot function in other areas. Learn as much as you can about all sorts of other things and you will be more rounded and ultimately more successful.