Business literature is filled with definitions of entrepreneurship. And we often speak of entrepreneurship within a tech or startup space, though surely the family running your neighborhood market is also an entrepreneur. Many people around the globe are forced to become entrepreneurs just to survive.
Unfortunately, there is no exact formula for entrepreneurship. Rarely one finds overnight success. There are no quick fixes. It is unique for each individual.
Here are a few things you should know before you start out on your journey of Entrepreneurship.
In rough waters when there is no one to call upon, it is our skills that save us. Mastering our skills requires utter devotion. It is only through daily devotion that we improve our authentic craft. Devotion is our best sustainable self-investment.
Devotion is what gives us the daily dose of confidence. You can lose everything, but no one can take your authentic craft.
“Fall seven times, stand up eight.”
The more things we try, the more likely we are to fail. And that’s very much the essence of being an entrepreneur.
Failure and adversity inherently invoke pain, suffering, and disappointments. Accepting and growing through our pain is part of entrepreneurial growth. This is hardly easy. Like any other skill, learning to suffer well requires conscious practice and learning. It is only when we learn to welcome suffering, we are able to get up repeatedly. For an entrepreneur, pain is a must, therefore suffering needs be optional.
We all know that the people we surround ourselves with make the difference between failure and success. If you’ve ever been around someone who leaves you feeling exhausted and drained, you have probably encountered an emotional vampire. These people don’t drain your blood, but they do drain your vital energy. Emotional vampires can be found anywhere.
It is important to avoid people who bring us down, waste our time, take us backward, and have no empathy in our suffering. Make a deliberate effort to spend time only with people who uplift you and make you stronger.
In any journey, entrepreneurial or otherwise, there are many encounters. Some are planned; some are by accident; and some by divine intervention. We have had many amazing “chance encounters,” where it seems as if the universe rallied to come to my aid when we needed the help most.
They have occurred when least expected — and many of the people we’ve encountered have become business partners, friends and family. And whenever those encounters initially left us with a “negative” experience, they turned out to be much-needed lessons for us. We believe chance encounters happen to those who remain optimistic no matter what.
Learn, grow and prosper!
