I like to read books about the lives of successful people. In these books, I see the “rags to riches” pattern repeated over and over again. If we are to take any lessons from the lives of successful people such as Benjamin Franklin, Henry Ford or Bill Gates it’s this: The yellow brick road to success starts with a person’s dissatisfaction with some aspect of their life; followed by a desire to do something about it; coupled with the expectation that a change can actually be created to improve the situation. The success of this concept rests on the conviction that the change can actually be accomplished and that it will decrease dissatisfaction.
Perseverance and patience are the next attribute of successful people. They don’t expect miracles. They do expect to be able to measure progress toward their objectives; and are willing to persist until they reached their ultimate goal. Think of the personal rag-to-riches history of anyone whom you regard as successful. Now, consider their background and the way they moved from where they started to where they are now. Compare their personal trek up the ladder of success with the attributes listed a few paragraphs back. Can you see the connection?
Now, by way of contrast, picture someone you know who somehow has failed to grasp the brass ring when it came around. How and why did they miss? Look again at the previously listed personal attributes. How many of these traits are missing in those who don’t succeed? They might truly be dissatisfied with their lives and desire something better, but in their heart of hearts, they don’t have the conviction that they can do anything about it. Unless a person really believes in what he or she is attempting to do, seeds of failure are sewn before they start out.
If one were to list failure-attributes, they’d include low expectations; disbelief and pessimism about the chances of doing anything that could make things better; plus an unwillingness to risk the disapproval of others for changing the status quo. For successful people, each obstacle overcome, or challenge met, builds self-confidence, for others, each concession to personal anxiety and each retreat from a potentially rewarding challenge steals a little bit of confidence. Where success becomes an exercise in synergism, failure is a vicious cycle that is hard to break. At some point, fear of failure overrides any promise of reward, and they just stop trying. The bright promise of a glowing future is replaced by a drab existence devoid of the satisfaction that only personal achievement can bring.
Sometimes it takes an external force to give a person the impetus to become an entrepreneur. As a youngster, I was pressured into trying to sell the Saturday Evening Post, a popular weekly magazine of the era. I’d knock on the door and say, “You don’t want to buy a magazine do you?” The answer was invariably no! I quickly convinced myself that the problem wasn’t with me, it was with what I was trying to do, and that being a salesperson was not a worthwhile calling. This prejudiced my attitude against direct sales for the next 30 years.
One day, without warning, I was fired from my secure job (dissatisfaction) and forced to become a salesman to support (expectation) my family. Then, without the luxury of being able to fail (conviction), I completely turned my attitude around. I discovered that perseverance and patience; a willingness to keep on trying without an immediate reward is crucial to achieving any goal. It takes time for a new enterprise to bear fruit. It’s also helpful to have low expectations. In my personal transition from a salaried job into real estate sales, I gave myself six months to match 3 months expectations like a carrot in front of a donkey to motivate myself to keep the pressure on. Now I can’t help trying to sell people things. Want to buy some books too?
