FAILING is Always Better than QUITTING
An entrepreneur is willing to take the risk
While our rhymes and reasons may differ, there are plenty of people in this world with passion and ideas. The hard truth is this: we may not all find success in our passions.
Anyone who’s ever truly pursued their dream is well acquainted with this fear and the long list of reasons why — even though you “really want it”— that passion alone just won’t cut it.
| The Fear of Getting Started
Yes, it’s all intimidating. But don’t freeze up!
When you know the odds up front, you have to fight the little voice in your head that says “What’s the point?” Trust me as the owner of an emerging luxury brand, I can think of a ton of reasons to quit while I’m ahead. But that attitude doesn’t get you very far and you waste a lot of energy that you’re going to need when you do in fact find “the point” of all your efforts. There are a lot of cliches that apply perfectly to these “first-time” jitters:
“You’ll never know if you don’t try.”
“Do one thing every day that scares you.”
“Take a leap of faith.”
That all sounds very inspiring, right? Well here’s the quote that really resonates with me:
“Whatever you do in life will be insignificant, but it is very important that you do it.” — Will Fetters
I'm sure that phrase isn’t totally unfamiliar. It speaks VOLUMES when you’re sitting there on your couch at 1:00 AM for the fifth time that week contemplating the “right” business move while discovering a new roadblock or excuse every 30 seconds. Life Hack: Placing a couple tea bags under your eyes helps reduce all the dark circles currently forming.
This quote is very true. A lot of crucial steps just to get your foot in the door feel stupid or small. But that stage — the stage I myself am learning to navigate right now — has to happen. Sometimes the workload you have to put in just to gain the smallest bit of ground makes us want to back down entirely. But what do you stand to gain by just sitting on a good idea? Is it more than you’ll lose by staying stagnant? If the answer is yes, there may not be anything to gain by reading further. But if it’s no, then all of your insignificant tasks truly are important.
| So What, If You Do It Wrong?
Don’t expect to get it right the first time. Be patient
I literally sat down to write this article following my latest chorus of “What if and I can’t.” Well, at the risk of sounding too optimistic, there is beauty in doing something completely and utterly wrong. It’s the experience you gain for next time. Believe it or not, you just collected data. After creating my first collection, I soon found out that I’d poured all my time AND money into a bunch of products that never sold. Not one piece. Soul-crushing as it was, that was my data and all my mistakes since then have been brand new ones. Next time, you’ll know what NOT to do and you’ll finally have a starting point to measure your progress. The longer this list of don’ts becomes, the closer you are to figuring out what’s right. While it isn’t easy, it is important to look at your experiences — good and bad — and leverage them to build your future. Don’t waste what you’ve learned. Remember, these seemingly futile actions are really just hidden gems that we all have to find.
“If there’s one thing I’m willing to bet on, it’s myself .” — Beyonce
There is a lot of power in persistence. See the baby steps as building blocks towards the bigger picture. Keep in mind that failing and making mistakes are a part of those building blocks. So take them in stride because as insignificant as some tasks may seem, especially when it feels like they aren’t working as fast as you’d like, it is very important that you follow through.
