The first role model for every child is their parents. In my case, I was fortunate to have a father and grandfather who taught me things that have helped me create a successful business and generate new business year after year. Their advice came down to two ideas: create yourself and create your brand.

Find self-purpose. Your purpose should be selfless and must be for the betterment of others. It is the driving force to make life meaningful. People who discover their purpose are those who use their mental and creative energies to serve something larger than themselves.

Have a mentor. A mentor is a role model who has achieved success and has been there and done that. I was lucky to have one in my family. A mentor can guide you in the right direction, support you and encourage you to chase your dreams. This will help you maximize your potential, develop new skills and improve your performance. Ideally, you should have multiple mentors for different aspects of life.

Practice self-management. Self-management is the key to success. With proper planning and organizing, you can use time effectively and stay stress-free. To get into a routine, perform the task repeatedly for at least a month.

Demonstrate the ability to say no. We often say yes because of fear or wanting to look good. Successful people have the ability to say no to unwanted things, less important things and things they don’t want to do. This will help you focus on your goals and dreams.

Set SMART goals. Smart goals are ambitions which are Specific, Measurable, Assignable, Realistic and Time-bound. Specificity helps focus on goals to be achieved. When goals are measurable, it is easy to understand where you are heading or lacking. Assignable means it is easy to delegate, and time-bound makes the goal realistic.

Find your big idea. There are two ways to reach your big idea: Either it is unique and your creation, or it is an already existing style that you imitate. Create a strong brand by developing personal touch and value opportunities for clients. Remember, it is the brand that sells, not the goods and services. Before you finalize your offering, it’s important to conduct research to understand your market, client profile and sales channel.

Determine your vision, mission and core values. Vision is your goal for the company, and mission is the path to achieve your goals. Vision can be short-term (one to three years) or long-term (five years or more). Vision will change with experience and changing times. Be sure to write down the core values of your company.

Work on segmentation, targeting and positioning. Clients are the heart of any business model. Without profitable clients, no company can survive. To better satisfy clients, group them into distinct segments with common needs, behaviors or attributes. Make a conscious decision about which segments to serve and which segments to ignore. Target marketing is a process of identifying clients and promoting products and services via all mediums that would reach the prospect directly. Positioning is arranging for a product to occupy a clear, distinctive and desirable place in a client’s mind.

Identify your X-factor. Your X-factor is the most important aspect of your business. This is the reason why a client will turn to you and purchase from you repeatedly. Each X-factor consists of a selected bundle of products and services that cater to the requirements of a specific client segment. Some factors may be innovative and represent a new disruptive offer, whereas others may be similar to an existing one but with some added personal touch. Clients will buy from you only if they find value in your company and services.

Implement systems. Systems are essential for the smooth functioning of your business. It helps with continuous improvement, elimination of errors and defects. PDCA (plan-do-check-act), quality management, process mapping and technology usage play important roles in defining systems of any company.

Rahul Dhanani is an 11-year MDRT member from Mumbai, India. He spoke at the 2019 MDRT Global Conference. Contact him at dhanani.lic@gmail.com.