#189 This Is What Unlocks Progress in Hours, Not Months

You're stuck...not because they aren’t working hard, but because they’re solving the wrong problem. In this episode, we explore why clarity on the real issue is the fastest way to create momentum, and how chasing surface-level fixes keeps you spinning. If you're feeling overwhelmed, stretched thin, or like nothing is really working... this one’s for you.

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Link to Music Credits
Track: Positive Motivation
Author: AShamaluevMusic (ASM)
Publisher: CD Baby (IPI 700570289)

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Transcript

Ilonka Ras (00:06.99)
I want you to think about your most pressing problem. The thing that is keeping you up at night, that's constantly humming in the back of your mind. Now, I want you to imagine that you solve that problem. The problem is no longer a problem, it's gone. Hello, relief, right? Now, every business has challenges. Things don't always go amazing in a business. There is always something we...

could be improving or should be fixing or changing. The thing is, not all problems are created equal. Some problems are simple little annoyances and others are showstoppers that demand immediate attention. Some problems need to be solved right now and others aren't that urgent, they can wait. And there are a few traps we fall into as business owners when it comes to solving problems.

The first one is solving too many problems at once. And this is a trap because when we solve too many problems at once, we're often breaking things in that process that actually works perfectly fine. The second trap is solving the wrong problem. Now this is what we're going to talk about in this episode today. The thing we think is the problem is often just a surface level problem. There is often a root cause, a root problem.

that we're not seeing or addressing. It's the thing that keeps the problem there. Now there is a lot of value in knowing what the real problem is because knowing the real problem means you're not wasting time on things that aren't really making a difference. Now let me give you an example. Perhaps you're overwhelmed, you're juggling a hundred things, you're working more hours than you want to and yet your revenue, your profit isn't where you want it to be.

So what do you do? You try and fix the things that seem obvious. So maybe you work hard, you create new services, new offers, you hire someone, you cut expenses, you try to be more disciplined, but nothing works. It doesn't make a difference. Why? Well, it's because you're solving the wrong problem. You're treating the symptom, not the root cause. So here's what the real problem might be in this situation. Maybe you are actually undercharging.

Ilonka Ras (02:34.53)
your pricing doesn't reflect the value or depth of your work. You could be trying to do too many things for too many types of clients, which creates complexity and kills your margins. You could maybe...

Ilonka Ras (02:54.434)
Perhaps you don't have a clear offer structure, so every proposal is custom, every client experience is different, and every delivery eats up a lot of time. Or maybe you're just stuck in execution mode, working in the business with no time to actually lead and steer it. Now, until you name what's actually going on underneath the overwhelm, you're going to keep creating that experience for yourself. There's a quote I love from Albert Einstein where he said,

If I had an hour to solve a problem, I'd spend 55 minutes thinking about the problem and five minutes thinking about the solution. Most of us do the opposite. We rush to fix something before we're even sure what's actually broken. And it makes sense, right? When we're stressed, we simply want relief. We want to fix it so that we can move on. And so we grab the first solution we can find. But often that solution is really just a bandaid, not the real fix.

My husband used to suffer with severe gut. Now he tried everything. He was on all sorts of medication with horrible side effects. He cut out alcohol, changed his diet, but nothing seemed to work. Eventually we went to our local homeopath and during a quick 30 minute consultation, she asked him a few questions. So she was making this list of things that he was still consuming. We knew that it had to be diet related.

but he was cutting out so much we couldn't imagine that there was anything else that he could be cutting out. about, and after about 20 minutes into looking through his day-to-day habits with a magnifying glass, the homeopath said, it's the sparkling water. We were both flabbergasted. Like what? He drank a lot of carbonated water and it seemed harmless.

Every other doctor he saw also knew that and they said that it wasn't a problem. And yet that was the actual problem. So he stopped.

Ilonka Ras (04:59.49)
So he stopped drinking sparkling water and his gout disappeared within a week. No chronic needs, no complicated diets, one small, simple change. Now this is exactly what I see in business owner clients too. You think the problem is my team isn't performing, but the real issue is you haven't clearly defined their roles or expectations. You think it is my clients are just difficult, but really you're saying yes to the wrong people because you haven't set boundaries or

You haven't defined who your best clients are yet. You think it's, just bad with time. But the real issue is your calendar is full of low impact tasks and other people's priorities. The reality is if we can state the problem clearly, we're halfway closer to the solution. Now, if you have been dealing with a specific challenge in your business that you are ready to solve once and for all.

If you feel frustrated and exhausted because you've been trying to find a solution and it just hasn't clicked, I want to invite you to book a momentum map session. This is something that I've never offered before and I'm only opening 10 spots in my calendar. And it is for business owners who are serious about getting unstuck, resolving the thing that has been plaguing them, and finally knowing exactly what the simple solution is. So here's how it works.

Once you've purchased your spot, you will book a 90 minute session in my calendar and we will work through a simple process to uncover exactly what your current problem is. More specifically, the real problem underneath that problem. Once we are clear on the real problem, I'm going to help you to also get clear on what the solution is. This will be a step-by-step plan that you will follow to resolve the problem. You'll walk away knowing exactly what to focus on and what to stop wasting energy on.

And because I also know that it can feel hard to implement alone, you will also get seven days of unlimited support via voice or text after our session. So as you take action, you're not doing it solo, I'm right there with you. If you're spinning your wheels, trying to solve something in your business, if you know it will be helpful to have an extra pair of eyes on this, if you've been trying different things and it just hasn't been working, it's because you haven't

Ilonka Ras (07:21.334)
identified the real problem. This offer is only open until the end of July. There are only 10 spots available, as I mentioned, and once they're gone, they're gone. So if you're ready to solve your most pressing problem, head over to ilonkaras.com/solve it to purchase your momentum map session and let's get to work and find your version of the sparkling water. The link is also in the show notes for you.

Thank you so much for tuning in today. I will see you again next week.