Being an entrepreneur comes with adversity. There’s no way around that.
You will have to bleed for your purpose and your mission at some point. You will have to push beyond what you are comfortable with now to make a bigger impact tomorrow.
But…
There are certain traps that entrepreneurs fall into that cost them loads of money, energy, and time. Craig and I know because, between the two of us, we’ve fallen into almost all of them at some point.
And the crazy thing is, a lot of these traps are 100% avoidable if you pay attention and listen carefully to those of us who have walked the path before.
That’s why this week I want to share with you the traps you want to avoid in your entrepreneurial journey.
Embrace the Suck Factor
Yes, I’m going to repeat myself here.
You are going to have problems in your business. You are going to feel uncomfortable, unprepared, and “not ready.”
You must develop the discipline of charging into those problems as soon as they come up and of putting yourself in situations where you are uncomfortable and forced to create new solutions.
Understand that those problems are there to serve you and make you stronger. If you run away and hide, you are literally neutering your own potential. You’re setting fire to the money in your own wallet and saying “NO” to the people who need your help.
Embrace the suck factor. Marry it, settle down with it, and have two beautiful children with it.
There is No Man on the White Horse
There’s a very important difference between hiring a coach or mentor to guide you vs. hiring a consultant or expert to solve your problems for you.
I used to make that mistake all the time, and I wasted a lot of money on consultants and experts who had great track records, but ultimately didn’t understand my business or my industry.
Even worse, I robbed myself of the opportunity to learn and grow through problem solving.
I call this “waiting for the man on the white horse.” It’s just another form of hiding or running away. It’s when you throw up your hands and expect someone else to clean up the problem for you.
Do seek out help and advice. You need help and advice. Just remember that you are the ultimate decision maker and your destiny is in your own hands—not anyone else’s.
Stay Committed to the Outcome
Understanding your ultimate outcome gives you the power to say “NO” to distractions, bad habits, and good but great opportunities that will try to pull you off the path.
For example, I used to have a huge problem with stress eating. It caused me to put on extra weight, which I then had to hide from the camera and hide when I got up on stage.
I had a turning point when I realized that carrying this extra weight was completely out of line with my vision of being a leader in the fitness industry. That’s why now, when I get stressed out, I just add in extra workouts instead of extra snacks.
Seriously, I’d rather go for two or even three workouts a day and put up with injuries than sacrifice my vision for my fitness franchise.
Don’t be “The Boss”
“The Boss” is the guy who tells everyone exactly what to do, never lets anyone question his authority, and doesn’t show respect for anyone else while demanding that they show respect for him.
The ego loves the idea of being the boss. It’s especially tempting when you feel stressed out or insecure.
But here’s the thing: the market doesn’t give a crap about “The Boss”. It cares about whoever solves their problems and does it with outstanding service.
To build a business that solves problems and delivers outstanding service, you need a team of fighter jets who all contribute their best ideas and their best effort. That means you need to be the servant leader—the one who leads by example and helps everyone on the team grow to their full potential.
One Last Thing…
Craig taught me a really cool new phrase this week: “exponential learning.” It’s the idea that if you learn from someone who has read 10 books on a subject, you can get 10 books worth of knowledge all at once just by working with that person.
Make sure you take advantage of the exponential learning Craig and I are offering you by watching our podcast here [LINK] and subscribing wherever you get your podcasts!