Congratulations! You started your own business and became your own boss. You have accomplished what many only dream about. In record time, you landed a couple of paying clients and wonder why you did not start your own business sooner. Money is flowing in and life is good. You start to relax a bit and lose some of your drive. Watch out! Complacency is on the prowl!

What is complacency? Dictionary.com defines complacency as a feeling of contentment or self-satisfaction, especially when coupled with an unawareness of danger, trouble, or controversy. When business is good, tasks that helped generate customers such as advertising, marketing, and networking lose their urgency. Whether you realize it or not, your business becomes vulnerable by not keeping a steady stream of first-time and repeat customers. Do not make the mistake of focusing all your time and attention on servicing existing customers or perceived cash cows. In other words, do not put all your eggs in one basket and depend on these cash cows for a large portion of your businesss operating income. What happens when these cash cows run out of money or go elsewhere? You are left stunned and hungry for new customers. Losing a cash cow can destroy many small businesses and leave many asking: Got customers?

Do not become a victim of complacency. Learn how to balance servicing existing customers while consistently seeking out new customers. Create a contingency plan to handle unexpected events and a backlog of customers to fill downtime within your business. If not, your business will suffer.