What if an Entrepreneur Fails?
I have come to think that one of the pre-requisites of an entrepreneur is a string of failed business ventures or at the very least a number of years of business struggle. I move in a circle of entrepreneurs and I know that many of them have at least one failure under their belt and mostly have a number of very lean years to their credit before they reach the pinnacle of success. I would never call any failed venture a failure – it is an opportunity to get back up again and have another go. In the words of Confucius, “Our greatest glory is not in never falling, but in rising every time we fall”. And that is the difference between an entrepreneur and everybody else. They get back up and try again until they do succeed and they take the lessons from that experience with them. I think that it was Winston Churchill who said that successful people are prepared to carry on with enthusiasm (not just carry on) when they do not succeed.
This all points to the fact that entrepreneurs hold a particular attitude. And almost anything that you read on this subject will say that. An entrepreneur believes that they will be successful, they create an aura of success around themselves and they take a very positive attitude towards achieving success. Of course they do a lot of other things as well, but they hold a positive, optimistic view of the world and their ability to do what they want to do. They move in a circle of like-minded people and they take the necessary action to keep their positive mindset.
I grant you that is not easy when being bombarded by negative input on a daily basis, yet if you wish to succeed as an entrepreneur it is something that you must do. So here are a few pointers in how to get started with creating your positive attitude:-
- Put your attention on being positive and looking for other positive people. Within a very short time you will start to hear your own words and those of others and you will identify the positive and negative tone.
- Take a little time out of your busy day to write down what you are thinking about in terms of optimism or pessimism. Check in with yourself to see if you feel positive. Do this at least once per day and keep your focus on seeking optimism.
- Find a test for optimism versus pessimism – positive versus negative and see how you rate. Do this test regularly to see if you are shifting.
- Actively seek out positive things about people or situations and then thank someone for what they have done. As you continue this process, soon you will be thinking more about the positive and less about the negative.
- Make an effort and send people a written message of thanks. This makes you think about positives about that person Send five of these a day for a while and keep up the practice. People might be a little shy of it at first, but I know people who have kept every one of my notes!
- Go out of your way to help people and be surprised at how good that feels. Such help will take you outside of yourself and let you see the good in others. As you get repaid for your kindness, you will see more and more good in others and the world at large. And become more and more positive.
- Start to associate more and more with those people who are positive, listen to how they talk and the words that they use. Try it and see how it works for you.
- Finally, read some good personal development material, so that you can keep going. Inspire yourself on a daily basis. Try The Gratitude Effect by Dr John Demartini as a starter.
I will finish this piece with a lovely quote from actress Mary Pickford “You may have a fresh start any moment you choose, for this thing we call ‘failure’ is not falling down, but staying down.”
How to Become an Entrepreneur
On the topic of becoming and entrepreneur, I am inspired by a number of resources. First is the work of Napoleon Hill, the grandfather of personal development who produced the first handbook for entrepreneurs in 1928. Read almost any personal development works of recent times and you will see the direct link to Think and Grow Rich, the first work of Napoleon Hill. Hill outlines a number of traits that he regards as essential if you wish to succeed. You must have or get desire, faith, knowledge, imagination, organisation, be decisive and persistence. He links these with a number of developmental activities such as taking control of your thoughts, masterminding with other like minded people, tapping into the subconscious mind, learning to use your intuition and getting rid of fear. Anyone looking to become an entrepreneur would do well to access this book and read it over and over.
The second resource that is available is the Internet and a search of entrepreneur or entrepreneurs will yield a host of information and from my reading, much of it excellent. Entrepreneurship is becoming a key platform for educators of all kinds which is hardly surprising given the number of people who are no longer prepared to spend their entire life in a job; know by some as Just Over Broke. Questacon have a lovely page called What is an Entrepreneur to which you could go as a starting point. Entrepreneur has some fantastic resources and even has this page to help you with ideas – it is a great site, just persevere with the advertising. And on Becoming an Entrepreneur you will find lots of practical advice. Give this a try and it might help you to start your entrepreneurial journey.
My favourite ever resource however, is Polaris Media Group, which covers the personal development aspect of being an entrepreneur like magic. These programs are simply the best that you will find and have helped countless people get started on the journey of a lifetime.
Be Inspired by an Entrepreneur
The very best thing about entrepreneurs is that they show the rest of us that anything is possible. Take Richard Branson, for instance, who started out producing a small paper, went on to start an Airline, nearly lost it and went on to start up the same airline in Australia. First with two aircraft and now with a fleet. Inspiring. So one way to tap into that inspiration is to find out more about who the entrepreneurs are, how they found success and apply those lessons to your own life.
Some of the things that I have discovered about entrepreneurs is that they have the following traits:-
- they are operating new business ventures
- take responsibility for the risks that they take
- have deep belief in the product or service
- have a burning desire to succeed
- are prepared to work hard and do whatever it takes
- are optimistic
- hold a realistic view
- show leadership, especially during adversity.
Entrepreneurs can see a great reward, they set their sights in it and will take great risks in order to achieve the reward. Incidentally, entrepreneurs come in all shapes and sizes, ages, nationalities and both genders. Oh, and while no one said so, I just bet that entrepreneurs associate with other entrepreneurs and successful people. And I also just bet that they seek out optimistic and positive people to be around. There is no doubt that the people that you associate with can either help or hinder your progress.
For example, if you are associating with people who are not entrepreneurs but who work long hours for little reward, then chances are that is what you will do. On the other hand, if you associate with millionaires then you will know what it is that they do to earn money and achieve success. Now I hear the arguments that success is not always about money and that is true, however money gives you a degree of freedom to achieve other things in life and often that is what people are looking for. The freedom to make their own decisions and do their own thing when they want to.
In the words of Anita Roddick, founder of The Body Shop and entrepreneur, “success to me is not about money or status or fame, its about finding a livelihood that brings me joy and self-sufficiency and a sense of contributing to the world”. I’ll let the entrepreneur have the last word.
