Chapter 10: Be Confident
Nothing succeeds like success, right? Sure. However, true success comes from confidence and confidence, in turn, comes from success. They each revolve around the other in the ultimate symbiotic relationship. However, this is not a "what came first, the chicken or the egg?" kind of proposition. Confidence definitely precedes success in the order of appearance. That's because of the quiet assurance of true confidence, as opposed to mere cockiness, serves to lay the foundation for reaching a goal. In this way, confidence is more of an outward manifestation of an inward persona than it is a pose or an affectation. Cockiness, on the other hand, is simply an outward shield that masks an inward insecurity.
As a business owner, you need to be confident of yourself and your product or service. People react positively to a confident person, especially if that confidence is real and a part of that person's soul. In order to develop this type of true confidence, there are several things that you can do.
First, always remember that confident people are able to take a stand on an issue or a decision not because they think they are right, but because they are not afraid to be wrong. They see a difficult situation as an opportunity for growth. Finding the right solution to a problem is more important than being right. Therefore, if they are wrong they will be the first people to admit it and move on.
Confident people often listen far more often than they talk. They are more interested in hearing different information and opinions than they are in broadcasting their own. They also are never afraid to admit fallibility and ask for help. They know that other people's knowledge is their greatest strength. Finally, they understand that success is a team sport. They know that any goal is achieved through the efforts of many, not the will of the few. Therefore, they share the spotlight of success and shine it on others far more than they shine it on themselves.
Chapter 11: Do the Hustle
There's a certain urgency to success. This urgency doesn't apply so much to the fruits of success as it does to the desire for success. You have to want to succeed before you can even begin to try to succeed. You have to want success more than you want anything else. It is this desire that engenders the work ethic that's necessary to succeed. That's right, there is a definite work ethic that successful people bring to the table. If you want to succeed, then you have to emulate this work ethic. You have to want to succeed so much that you hustle.
Hustle is all about walking the success walk. Anyone can talk about success. As they say, talk is cheap. You can talk about success all day long and not get one step closer to actually being successful. The only way to reach your goals is to put in the work necessary to get these. This work requires concentration, creativity, and conscious effort. There's no secret here. You're going to have to sweat to get there. The hours are long and the tasks are consuming. There's no such thing as instant success or overnight success.
Often the people who appear to be enjoying overnight success have hustled hard for months and years to get that success. So, remember that success means work and work mean to hustle. Go the extra mile in everything you do. In the long run, those extra miles will put you ahead of the pack and that much closer to where you want to be.
Chapter 12: Be Passionate
There is probably nothing as important to achieving success as passion. It may sound extreme, but in order to reach a goal, you have to burn for it. It has to be something that's on your mind all the time. To has to be all-consuming. In fact, passion is the flip side of our previous subject, hustle. The two go hand in hand with each other.
So, how do they work together? Well, the one requires the other. They each, in some sense, drive the other. Finally, without one, you cannot have the other. Hustling, as we discussed, is all about hard work, long hours and the extra mile. Passion is the motivation that gets all that hard work done. Face it, if you're not on fire about a project, you're not going to be able to motivate yourself to do the hard work needed to complete that project successfully.
So, how do you obtain or maintain the passion necessary for success? Well, as a business owner you should already be passionate about your business and its success. If you're not, then you need to examine why. If you're not doing what you love to do, then you may need to think about what you are passionate about and then get into that line of work. There's no sense and no reason to waste your time trying to be enthusiastic about something that doesn't move you. If you are already doing something you love to do, then you're halfway home. Let your love and passion for your line of work show through in that work. Your customers and competitors will notice the difference
Chapter 13: Be Creative
Creativity can be elusive. It's not something that you can summon at will. When it happens, it strikes like lightning. Yet, like lightning, it can be maddeningly unpredictable. However, because creativity is an essential element of a successful business mindset, it is necessary to understand the creative process and how you, the business owner, can cultivate your own creative juices.
The creative process is largely internal and unconscious. No one ever wakes up and says "Hey! Today I'm going to be creative." Creativity is all about taking in a lot of influences and letting those influences combines, ferment and morph in your subconscious. Together, they form a sort of mental potting soil where new and different ideas have a chance to germinate and grow. The more things you learn, read, see and hear the more creative soil you are able to produce.
So, as a business owner who wants to be creative, the best thing you can do is get out there and in the world and open yourself up to new experiences.
Be curious about many different things. Develop hobbies. Challenge yourself. Do the unexpected. The more you push your own personal envelope the more you are charging your own creative batteries. When those batteries are charged, it is much more likely that inspiration will strike. Who knows where that new idea will take you?
Chapter 14: Be Flexible
There is nothing more stifling to success than rigid thinking. Rigid thinking leads to rigid behaviors and rigid behaviors lead to dead ends, blind alleys, and creative cul de sacs. In other words, while there is a certain amount of comfort to routine, too much routine can choke off all chances that you will be able to successfully reach your business goals. Why? The answer is simple. The world, including the business world, is constantly changing. Rigid thinking and rigid behavior, by definition, are resistant to change. Therefore, rigidity, in thought and action, spells obsolescence in the business world. Everyone else moves forward while you are left behind in the dust. So what's the answer to this problem? In a word, flexibility.
In today's world, information is power, money, and control all rolled into one. The fast and free flow of information is what makes this possible. Everything changes quickly and what is a successful formula or a popular product in one cycle can be, and usually is, old news in the next. The only way to successfully stay on top of this bucking bronco of information and use it to your advantage is to be flexible enough to roll with the changes.
Flexibility is easy to achieve as long as you are not too tied down to any single idea, product, service or manner of delivery. If you keep up with changing market conditions through the judicious use of the flow of information, you can easily spot new trends and adapt them successfully, usually before your competitors have had time to act. The only trick is to not fear change and, instead, embrace it. If change is the only reality in the business world then, to be successful in that world, change as to be your reality as well.
Chapter 15: Be Positive
We've all heard a lot about the supposed power of positive thinking. We've heard how it can not only change outlooks but fortunes as well. There are probably some of you reading this right now who still remain skeptical about positivism and its alleged beneficial effects. The thing is that while healthy skepticism is fine, an entrenched and cranky skepticism is usually a sign of negative thinking. So, if you haven't tried positive thinking in your own business, yet remain skeptical of the concept, you have actually already proved that the power of positive thinking works.
Positive thinking is about enjoying the ride that life provides. It's about taking chances and seeing possibilities. It's about flexibility, creativity and developing and maintaining a strong passion for those things that you loved. It's about gusto, brio and doing things with panache. It is, in some sense, the very antithesis of rigid skepticism and preconceived negativity. It is, at its heart, an embrace of all of the powers each of us are capable of when we throw off the chains of tradition, expectation and routine results. It is a real thing and it works.
To use the power of positive thinking in your own business you need to begin with a critical assessment of your own personal style and outlook. Make an honest examination of how you operate on a day to day basis. Are there areas where negativity, in any of its forms, outweighs positivity? If so, then there is room for positive change. Look at concepts like freedom, choice, possibility, optimism, and openness. Can you do more to increase your own options in any of these areas? Instead of asking yourself "How can I do this?" ask yourself instead "How can I NOT do this?" Changing your own personal management style to one that encompasses positivity on a daily basis can give you the freedom to choose success.
Chapter 16: Be Grateful
It is easy to expect success as if being successful was a right instead of a privilege and a gift. The problem with expecting to succeed is that, without more, the self-absorption of that expectation can slowly and subtly poison everything around you, including your business. True success is earned and when it arrives it should be, and needs to be, accompanied by a strong sense of gratitude. This gratitude is not simply about being grateful for what you've achieved. It is about being grounded enough in the moment of success to remember and recognize everyone who helped you get to this particular time and place. Without this grounded gratefulness any success is lessened and will, in all likelihood, be fleeting.
So how do you repay those how helped you in achieving your goals? Well, obviously, acknowledging those individuals and sharing the benefits of your success with them is a great place to start. Yet, above and beyond taking care of your nearest and dearest, you also need to "pay it forward" by becoming a mentor and helper to others who are currently on their own journey towards success. Think about how you can collaborate with someone else in order to further their efforts. See if you can contribute in some way to their projects. This contribution doesn't have to be monetary. Advice and the wisdom of experience are often far more valuable than cold cash.
This gratitude can extend even further. There are people who are currently helping you every day that you may not see as mentors. Your customers are among these people. Without them, success becomes impossible. Take the time to let them know how important they are. Your vendors are also equally important. Yes, they provide you with materials that you pay them for, but a true grounded and grateful attitude would also recognize each of them for the critical element they play in your business. Look outside the box and you'll see that success is not a solo effort, it's a team sport.
Chapter 17: Be Accepting
There is absolutely no way for you to be successful and reach your goals until you accept who you are. You have to like yourself and what you do before anyone else will. The world detects how you feel about yourself and o\en simply shares the opinion you have about who you are. Be yourself and free yourself in the process. You are an individual who is unique. Your talents and abilities, your intelligence and interests, your opinions and tastes, make you who you are. There is no need to hide a part of yourself or alter a part of yourself for the sake of conformity. True success is about freedom and all truly successful people are individualists who have, more or less, accepted and glorified who they are. You should do the same.
At the same time, being yourself does not mean glorying in mediocrity. You need to be the very best version of yourself possible. This means that you have to work at being you. You have to put the time into self-improvement. Acceptance is not an excuse for laziness, cowardice or fear. Life is a privilege. It is a gift. The gift and the privilege of life is that you get to be yourself, the best self you can possibly be. Use the gift, take advantage of the privilege that you've been given. Don't squander the chance. Let your own unique light shine forth. This is the light that will illuminate the path to real success in life. It will also be the light that attracts other people to you.
Chapter 18: Conclusion
So there you have it. Success is a multifaceted achievement that involves many concepts and, often, many different people. However, as you've learned, the concepts involved in the successful business mindset are basic and learnable principles that can easily be put into action by anyone dedicated enough to reach the next level of achievement in their lives. It is all matter of doing the work to change the things in your own personal agenda that might need adjustment.
Remember that you can use this book as a tool to help you make those adjustments. You can, and should, go back and review those sections that can help you anytime the need arises. The point is that life is about success. This means that you have your entire life to constantly change things for the better. Success is a process, as well as a journey. Here's to wishing you a good trip.
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