I have been an entrepreneur for the last seven years and when I reflect on what has helped me stay continue on this path, I connect it to the following three philosophies that I use to navigate life that has been extremely vital in how I have run my businesses.
1. Attitude is contagious
One of the jobs I did when younger was a door-to-door sales job, it was undoubtedly my worst and toughest job but what made me stay is the training we got was intense and led to me growing a lot. I have found a lot of the training I underwent has come to help me in the running of my businesses. Now you can imagine doing a door-to-door sale job comes with a lot of rejection and self-doubt too, thus leaving room for negativity. So every day before we started our shift they would tell us to put our positive suit on and would actually get us to imitate putting one on. It sounded ridiculous and even more so when we had to demonstrate the act of wearing an invincible suit but this method became our anchor of positivity when we were alone and led us to stay focused on the end result of us achieving the daily targets.
Over the years I have come to realise, how first my attitude towards anything will affect my results and also listening to others who share a negative attitude helps one go down the opposite route of success. Attitude is a sickness that will infect anyone, if I smile back at you you are more likely to smile back at me. However, if I show you a face of anger you are more likely to bare the same face and you can even find yourself thinking of yourself negatively for you wonder why you have made someone look at you in a bad way. So if you go at things working hard and giving your all you are more like to get fruitful rewards.
Watch your attitude it's the first thing people notice about you.
2. Network will build your net-worth
Never a truer statement to the world of business but should apply in all realms of life. We all have to offer something as others have to offer us. You cannot grow in life alone, you need to ensure you surround yourself with the right people. Think of it this way when building a house you need an architect, a builder, an electrician, a plumber, an interior decorator and the list keeps going. When running a business you need to surround yourself with people that will be supportive of your cause and when you network you learn, grow and develop as a person. Your horizons broaden, and as a result, you discover other abilities you never thought possible but most importantly you begin to identify what is not working and what can be changed to get winning results.
Recently I met up with someone who I met at a networking event and as we got to talking not only did we identify the possible ways we could work together but as I gave them advice and ideas on how they could improve I began to realise that I too could apply those same ideas for my own business. The conversation ended up being enlightening for both of us, for it ignited another aspect of my creativity that had been dormant.
If you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go with others.
3. Grind off the grid
Do not reveal your dreams to the masses instead let the dream reveal itself because you will find those closest to you are the ones planning your demise and are often the reason for your downfall. The fewer people who know about what you do the fewer people you have to tell when things don't work out as planned. It only becomes another's business the minute you tell them till then they learn to mind their own the way you mind yours.
Success is in the mystery