As I think back over the past few years I see just how much I have grown since becoming an online entrepreneur. I was not used to accepting failure in my previous life as a classroom teacher and real estate appraiser. Back then any little setback was devastating to my self-esteem and many times I would just give up. Nowadays I anticipate failure, learn from it, and course correct to keep moving forward. I was reading an excellent post on Geoff Hoff’s site that made me give this more thought.
An example I will share is my reluctance to write. For as long as I can remember I have wanted to write. I can trace this back to grade school, when I wanted to write something for our school’s newspaper. Back then I would allow myself to get discouraged very easily, and when one of the other kids told me my idea for a story was a stupid one, in front of several of my friends, I held back the tears and knew that I would never write that story to see what anyone else thought. This attitude, and lack of confidence, followed me through high school and into college. When one of the instructors said that my writing lacked depth, I dropped the class and gave up my dream of being a writer for good.
When I think back to this time, I see that I wasn’t even taking enough action to fail. Instead, I was giving up before I started. This is inexcusable in my thinking today, when I take every challenge when it comes to writing, and even teach my own students how to get started so that they can achieve the success they want and deserve in their endeavors as online entrepreneurs.
Are you failing on a regular basis? If not, then work harder, take more risks on a daily basis, and stretch outside of your comfort zone as often as possible. My life has changed in amazing ways because of my willingness to make mistakes, take chances that do not work out at all, and implement everything I learn almost immediately. You can change your life, and your bottom line, by embracing failure and making it work for you.
I remember the exact day and moment that I stopped caring what people “thought” about me. And since then, whether college, corporate career, offline business or online, I’ve continued to gain confidence… and traction (although I must admit that this whole online thing had me feeling a bit intimidated from time to time… and I’m guessing it will again here and there). 🙂
But you said it so well Connie! Embrace it! You’re not going to avoid it, you just can’t! Even if you spend your life hidden away somewhere. Then you’re still failing, simply from the fact that you’re failing to fail. Hmmmm… go ahead, say that 3 times fast! LOL
I know so many people who don’t/won’t move forward towards what they want because they just haven’t gotten this yet. But for ME to say it, they know me too well to hear it. So I’m glad there are others who agree. Now I can send them YOUR way!! 🙂
Thank you for your well thought out comment, Debi. Yes, forgetting about what others think is crucial to the success process. And, yes, the online marketing and technology can be a steep learning curve as things continue to change on the Internet.
Congratulations on pushing through any obstacles and moving forward!
Connie
Loved this article, Connie!
It’s unfortunate that the fear of failure holds so many people back. But failing doesn’t have to be bad. It’s a learning experience. And the best part about building an online business is that you can build it fast and cheap. In other words, you can fail without the huge “cost” that many people associate with failure.
Life is a tug of war between today’s risk and tomorrow’s regret. If you risk more today, you’ll regret less tomorrow.