Every challenge is an opportunity to learn and become a better version of yourself. Whether this challenge is personal, financial or has to do with your business, there are certain lessons you can take away from such circumstances to help you grow and thrive once again.
These life lessons cannot be forgotten in a rush. They guide your life and business choices over the course of the years to come, shaping your approach to personal development and professional achievements.
To further buttress this, we asked a group of Young Entrepreneur Council members to answer the following question- “What business or life lesson has stuck with you through the years? What can other business leaders learn from it?”
1. Have an inner circle of good people
The truth is, you are as successful as the people you surround yourself with. Try as much as you can to have a clan of supportive people around you, people you can trust to come through for you in time of need. Just as this rule is important for choosing your circle of friends, it is also key for the people that work for you as well. Whatever you do, keep good people around you. —Zach Binder, Bell + Ivy
2. Remember you once wanted what you now have
It is important to have a grateful mindset through the highs and lows of business ownership. Being grateful will help you celebrate every milestone rather than jumping mechanically on to the next goal on your list. It will also allow you have a clear head for decision making. —Rachel Beider, PRESS Modern Massage
3. Enjoy the journey
We do what we do because we are motivated by our desires. However, if you are happy only when you have achieved what you want to achieve with your life and business, you will be dejected most of the time. So, make a decision to enjoy the journey, it will make your ride a more pleasant experience. —Rana Gujral, Behavioral Signals
4. Use fear to your advantage
For every new venture, there is always the possibility of fear and hesitation. Rather than ignore these fears no matter how intimidating, face them head on and you fill find yourself making good progress in comparison to those who are held back by fear. Fear is mostly in the mind and many entrepreneurial goals are stifled because of it. —Jeff Keenan, LeadsRx
5. Don’t compromise your core values
I’ve learned the value of staying true to my ethics and values at all times. No achievement or the promise of more success is worth compromising your core values for. Let your ethics come first before business. —Serenity Gibbons, NAACP
6. Be good to your talent
Appreciate the people that work with you. Most people underestimate the blessing of having loyal employees. It’s not good to treat the talents that work for you like they don’t matter or like they can be replaced easily. You will only realize how pivotal such talents were to your success when they leave. —Peter Daisyme, Hostt
7. A problem is just a challenge
See problems as challenging tasks and how you choose to tackle them will determine how well the tasks will be accomplished. Our choice of words defines us and our responses to situations. See a challenge as a task that can be positively tackled while a problem is a limiting situation that can slow you down. —Nicole Munoz, Nicole Munoz Consulting, Inc.
8. Have a backup plan
You need a backup strategy for everything. It will allow you to make decisions with ease and flexibility as you adapt to changing needs. Anything can happen in business such as the entry of a new competition or the exit of key clients or employees. Try to plan for as many scenarios just in case your original plan fails. —Peter Boyd, PaperStreet Web Design
9. Stay hungry
There is every tendency as an entrepreneur to be at ease when all is well. Imagine a scenario where your team is increasingly executing tasks successfully and driving business growth. As good as this feel is, it is not a time to sit back and relax. The trend will evolve upwards at some point and you want to be ready when this time comes, so stay hungry. —Karl Kangur, Above House
10. Step out of your comfort zone
No one can be truly great by doing the same thing over and over again. To be very successful, you need to leave the confines of your safe routines and push yourself into greatness. I struggled with social anxiety in the past and this affected my ability to network and interact with other professionals. I was practically scared. However, the more I stepped out of my comfort zone to interact, the better I became at it. —Jared Atchison, WPForms
11. Be patient
Success does not happen overnight. It is a journey with twists and turns, you never know what to expect. We have this misconception that we are failures if we don’t attain success quickly, and this will negatively affect our progress. Remind yourself that success is a process and you need patience to reach your goal. You will not be forever stuck at this point, so try to enjoy the process—Stephanie Wells, Formidable Forms
12. Communicate Proactively
I have realized that proactive communication can solve almost any problem before it escalates. Clarifying a situation and clearly outlining possible outcomes at an early stage can solve most problems while still preserving key business relationships. —Matthew Podolsky, Florida Law Advisers, P.A
13. Be grateful
I’ve been in business for over 13 years and this time I have learned many lessons of great value. Most of all is the importance of being grateful for the wonderful people around me. Gratitude is a game-changing motivation. The remarkable inventions we see in the world today were created by a group of people, and I will not where I am today if I was journeying alone. —Solomon Thimothy, OneIMS
14. Every interaction is important
Every interaction is a means to an end. Whether you’re in partnership with another business or trying to win a client to your side, you have one shot to make a good impression. I’ve found that most people are inclined to judging you based on the average of your interactions with them. This means that if you perform below standards in an interaction, you can still make up for it with future opportunities. Let every interaction count. —Syed Balkhi, WPBeginner
15. Failing is a part of success
No one wants to fail and business leaders are not an exemption to this rule. The society sees failure as shameful and because of this perception, the fear of failure may make us miss opportunities for success. Failure is a means to learning key lessons. Failing and trying again is the pathway to success. —Alfredo Atanacio, Uassist.ME
Tags: business guide, business success, Entreperneurship, personal development
