Hi Reader,

I frequently advise entrepreneurs, "Progress, not perfection." These two actions, though, require careful consideration before moving forward. I've boiled down 23 recent conversations into two actions entrepreneurs are taking this month.

Before I get into that, I'm excited to share FUEL Day. The first FUEL Day is 2/29. It's two hours to move your business forward with focused work time for $47.

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Questioning vendor relationships

Finding a vendor you can trust and who gets your business can make your job as an entrepreneur much easier. However, I'm hearing many business owners question their longest-standing vendor relationships. For some, contract terms have changed. For others, they've been pitched by a different vendor and want to explore their options. And sometimes, it's been a gut instinct.

My advice: Due diligence is usually a good thing, but take care to not wreck your current vendor relationship. First, identify why you're exploring other options, and then shop for those reasons. When comparing other vendors, make sure you're comparing apples to apples, and do not bring up your current vendor when speaking with their competition. Long-term, implement a policy to go through this process every 3-5 years (depending on your industry), and then no one will be surprised by this in the future.

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Restructuring pricing

This one has been mentioned across many industries, from B2B services to retail brick-and-mortar. I'm having discussions about restructuring (and often raising) prices, and changing the level of services provided. Many business owners are actually cutting out their value adds and simplifying what they deliver.

My advice: Before changing prices, check in with your current market conditions and what your customers will accept. Most loyal customers will understand reasonable price increases, but you should expect some pushback. Plan on how you'll handle that before jumping in, and have a couple of reasons to explain the price changes.

When it comes to cutting out value adds, make sure you know what your customers consider value adds. You can do a simple survey to answer this question. You may find what you think are only value adds are actually the part of your service your customers find most valuable. Get feedback on these parts of your offers before making changes.

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Those are two actions many business owners are taking this month. If you're considering the same things, just know you're not alone. If you're open with your trusted network of entrepreneurs, it's most likely they're considering similar actions.

It may be lonely at the top, but you are not alone. Please reach out at any time.

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Thanks for reading; I'll catch you next week!

Julie Bee

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• Pre-order my book, Burned: How Business Owners Can Overcome Burnout and Fuel Success. Buy on Amazon or support an independent bookstore and get an autographed copy for the same price!​

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• ​Join a FUEL Day. $47, two-hour program. Focus up and Get. It. Done. I'm also hosting one on February 29th and another March 12th.​

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• ​Attend a Business Owner Roundtable for free, exclusively for my subscribers.

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