So many people want to be entrepreneurs these days. It’s cool. It’s hip. And it’s bringing million dollars to your lap. This is why there are so many entrepreneur wannabes out there.
They want the luxury that entrepreneurship can offer them, but not the hustle. They want the glam, but not the grind. They want the riches but not the struggle.
Indeed, the reality is far from those. Want proof? Here’s one: Let’s talk about risk.
Risk-averse ‘R us
You see, many of us are risk-averse. Let me explain.
When there are two opportunities offered to you – both are offering similar upsides, but one of them is having a lower risk than the other, what would you do? Obviously, most of us would choose the one with a lower risk factor. That’s risk averse.
Unfortunately, some of us are showing too much love to the risk aversion, in a sense that when they are offered an opportunity with a high risk, but high gain possibilities, they would go to the other direction.
You see, that is not entrepreneurial. To me, entrepreneurship is about taking risks and embracing failure. Accepting those as important parts in your entrepreneurial journey will give you a better chance to be successful.
And there is no better way to explain that than using myself as an example.
I fail – therefore I hustle
You see, I’m not a born entrepreneur. I love creative stuff, but I just don’t have that hustle mentality required to be an entrepreneur. I hate risks and stay away from them as much as I could.
But something bad happened to me, and that ‘something’ has taught me a valuable lesson: Take risk and hustle.
If you are reading Noobpreneur.com since 2008, you’ll notice that I talked much about my journey in franchising. The franchise was the nation’s leading business service franchise, and I decided to open two franchise units. Both are running well in the first 12 months, but things were suddenly breaking apart.
To cut long story short, I failed. Miserably. Read this to learn more about my epic failure.
I was nearly bankrupt. And to make matter worse, I have a family to support. Things have never looked so bleak before.
Fortunately, months before the demise of my business, I embarked in the risky world of online business and online marketing. I hustled – often working 16 hours a day – to learn everything about starting a website, doing SEO, doing affiliate marketing, and setting up a full-operating eCommerce store.
I tried so many new things, and failed to get things done (read: Giving a positive ROI.) Indeed, I failed numerous times, but I kept on moving forward. I had no choice.
Finally, today, I can say that I’m on the right track to my personal and business goals. I am now location independent, and although I’m not running a million-dollar business, I’m on my way.
Lessons learned
Be resilient. Be a hustler. Take risk. Embrace Failure.
Be resilient: When you face a brick wall, don’t turn back – smash through it. When you fall, pick up the pieces and get up again. Don’t budge – keep on doing what you believe in. When everyone else says no, prove them wrong.
Be a hustler: Work hard – and work smart; do both, not either. When you move toward problems, rise above, not under them. Always try to out-do and out-smart your competitors and – most importantly – yourself. When others whine, you keep on grinding. When other chill, you keep on working on your dream business.
Take a risk: Risk-averse is risky. Not taking risk is risky. Taking risks opens more doors. You miss 100% of the shots you don’t take (a quote courtesy of Wayne Gretzky.) Think about it.
Embrace failure: Failures are parts of a learning process. Fail often, and you’ll closer to success. Fail faster, and you’ll achieve success faster. Just make sure that you learn from your failures, or else they will go in vain.
Here’s your takeaway: There is no place in entrepreneurship for spoiled brats. Don’t be one.
If you haven’t seen success, keep on hustling. Yes, hustle doesn’t guarantee riches and glory, but it drags you closer to the prize you eye-on all this time.
Good luck and enjoy your journey!