I recently read that in order to grow – as a person, as a business, whatever – first, you have to let go. You have to let go of the things that are holding you back, whether it’s comfort, complacency, fear of failure, fear of the unknown, or just because you don’t know what to do next. This struck me as one of those things you hear and carry with you throughout your life.
Someone once said that, at some point, we will all be promoted beyond our abilities. That doesn’t mean that you can’t grow into your new position, that your abilities won’t grow with you. But, at some point, you will find yourself in a situation that you are not 100% prepared for.
These two things together have changed the way I think about things. Every new adventure I have undertaken in life, such as college, moving away from my family, marriage, having a child and starting a business, has been something that I stepped in to under-prepared. I thought I knew what I was doing, or at least thought I knew how much I didn’t know, but was always surprised. And in order to succeed at any of these things, I first had to let go of whatever was holding me back, including my preconceived notions of how easy/difficult/fun/boring it was supposed to be. And in letting go, I discovered how truly successful I could be. And how much am looking forward to the next great adventure.
This was just a great reminder. I am so glad to discover your new website on the perfect day, having just jumped off a virtual cliff and taking the challenge to fly a little higher than may be possible. Instead of stressing so much, I should be looking forward, eyes wide open. Thank you! Best of luck in your continued blog efforts.
You are so correct. I undertook one of the biggest challenges of my life in moving to Wisconsin at the age of 51 after a long history in the Illinois area. I thought I had it all planned out and that a relationship and a promising job that brought me here were the reasons to move. Turns out I was dumped 4 months after giving up a home, job and leaving my native area of 20+ years. But what I DIDN’T know was that this was all a master plan to bring me to the TRUE relationship of my life, the most wonderful homeI could have ever asked for, and now the Virtual Assistance arena, which suits me to a TEE. Point is … never give up. Keep going!
You’re post brought back memories for me. I’ve always traveled the unconventional road (comparative to my family and friends). Despite my mother’s pleads I decided to drop out of college and work full time. Upon the dot com bust I decided on my own to return to school while working full-time. Everyone thought I was crazy, but I later graduated with an extremely high GPA. I also decided to purchase my first home at age 21. Again, everyone thought I was crazy, but it turned out to be one of the best things for me at the time. Time and time again I blazed my own path and tried out new things. Never fearful of failure…that is until I decided to start my own business. I’m not sure why, but that scared me to no end. Before starting I needed to know whether or not I would be successful. I solicited the advice of everyone from therapists to fortune tellers. Once I felt as though I received the answer I was looking for I jumped into the VA business. It’s truly been a rewarding experience and one that I wish I had done sooner. Looking back I now realize that despite what advice I received, nothing is guaranteed. Fear of failure should not hold you back; it should propel you to move forward. I have always tended to put myself in situations where I have no choice but to success. This means working hard to make it happen and proving people wrong. Life is short. If there is something you want to do, go out and get it done!!!
Thanks for reminding me of this!
Terri,
Congratulations on a beautifully written blog. Your advice and reminders are sound business sense. Here is a little food for thought for you and your readers:
Success is failure turned inside out,
The silver tint of the clouds of doubt.
And you never can tell how close you are;
It may be near when it seems so far.
So stick to the fight when you’re hardest hit;
It’s when things seem worse
that you must not quit.
~ Author Unknown
Blessings to you and keep up the great work!
Terri,
Congratulations on this important step “beyond the office”! Your carefully-crafted blog is refreshingly optmistic. Since I’m new to the concept, I can’t offer technical suggestions, or comparisons to other blogs, but I would like to share a mantra from sales trainer Tom Hopkins: “I am not judged by the number of times I fail, but by the number of times I succeed; and the number of times I succeed is in direct proportion to the number of times I can fail and keep on trying.”
You are so right sometimes we are afraid to take a step for fear of failing. If you don’t try you’ll never know what you are capable of or what you might learn. Sometimes you just have to take that leap of faith and believe in yourself.