Set Yourself Up for Business Longevity
If you were glued to the 2025 Australian Open in Melbourne like I did, you likely caught the impressive win of Madison Keys. The 29-year-old player made history when she got her hands on the trophy for the first time in her 46th Grand Slam appearance.
I was lucky enough to be in Melbourne to witness her win. And it got me thinking about her tennis career. Madison turned pro when she was 14 years old. At the age of 14 years and 48 days, she became the seventh-youngest player ever to win a WTA Tour-level match. In fact, she was the youngest since Martina Hingis in 1994.
But her win this year was her first major final since 2017. And only three other women have been older than Madison when they won their first Grand Slam title. It took her 15 years from turning pro and nine years from her last major win to get here. Incredible.
Tennis pros & corporate consultants
I started thinking about the lessons we can learn from Madison Keys. Because we all want success in our careers – whether we’re tennis pros or corporate consultants. We want ideal clients (or competitors), good numbers (or stats) and healthy profits (or wins).
Success in this way is often the goal that drives most of us. But when we dig a little deeper, we often find that what we ultimately want is business longevity.
We want our business to succeed in the long run and become something that can sustain us throughout our working lives – not only giving us an income, but also giving us working satisfaction and wellbeing. We want to set our business up properly and enjoy steady success, year after year. Ideally, without burning ourselves to the ground along the way!
But business longevity is hard to come by. Research shows that 20% of Aussies businesses fail in the first year of operation, 60% fail in the first three years.
So how do we avoid that? So how can we achieve business longevity?
Run your own race: The lesson of Madison Keys
In a post-match interview, Madison shared the crippling burden of trying to live up to other people’s expectations. She also discussed the fear she felt as she transitioned into the ‘later stages’ of her career and hadn’t yet won the Gram Slam championship everyone had predicted.
Madison said it was only once she had shed these expectations and let go of her internal dialogue that she was able to take her game to the next level. She played for herself, the way she wanted to play.
This is an inspiring reminder to run your own race – even when it comes to business. No matter what has come before, what your competitors are doing or what your clients or anyone else expects from you, you have to do it your way.
It can be hard to change this mindset, but it’s important to embrace the idea that this is your own race. It doesn’t matter if it takes you longer than it takes someone else. It doesn’t matter if businesses around you are taking off, while you’re still at the starting gate. It doesn’t matter if you’re in your 50s and your closest competitor is an energetic Gen Z (or vice versa). Focusing on those things can actually cripple your ability to succeed – just as Madison Keys said.
Remember, it’s your game and nobody else’s.
Why we need to focus on business longevity
Business longevity can mean different things for different people. Perhaps you want your business to provide a healthy income until your retirement. Maybe you want it to survive as your legacy. Or maybe it needs to have enough longevity potential so you can sell it and move on.
Whatever business longevity means to you, it’s vital that it remains at the core of your business goals. Without it, we may try to build our practice too fast too soon, take short-cuts, fail to invest in the business or burn ourselves out.
Running your own race and going slow and steady will help you to learn the lessons of business in your own time. Longer tenure will not only help you to attract clients (and keep them), but also position you as a leader within your industry.
How to achieve business longevity
So how can we achieve business longevity? To achieve true business longevity, you simply need to focus on doing the best you can each day. Surround yourself with the right people and get to work.
Run your own race: Move forward one step at a time. Adjust your mindset and quit trying to 'make up for lost time' or worry about who is doing it better. Your wisdom and life experience will prove invaluable.
Remain committed to your clients: When you put your clients first, they feel valued. They’re more likely to return your loyalty and stick around long term. Not only is it easier to serve a loyal client base than first timers, but they will also create opportunities for referrals.
Assemble the right team: Do you have a strategic network in place? These can be absolute lifelines for business. ‘Finding your 15’ will give you the support you need, help you to ride out the highs and lows of business, and ultimately increase your business longevity.
Focus on doing YOUR best work. You are unique, and what you do is unique. Focus on giving your value to your clients, all the time, every time. Doing your best work helps you drown out the noise and build loyal relationships with your clients and customers.
Stay open and flexible: Times are certainly changing. You need to be open to change within your business if you want longevity. This could mean taking advantage of new technology to improve efficiency, engage your audience and build and lead your tribe. Or it could mean pivoting your offering depending on what your audience needs.
Invest in self-care: Have you been putting every ounce of energy into your business and forgetting about your own needs? I’m here to remind you to take time out when you need it. Giving yourself a little breathing space will ensure you bring your best work to the business. Burn-out will not lead to business longevity.
How are you focusing on your business longevity? I’d love to hear your thoughts…
