The Non-Negotiable Qualtiy

I recently spoke with a young couple who had found quick success at their "dream business", a cold pressed juice company. It was the right timing and the right brand and the right energy from two awesome people. Two years in they jumped ship and sold the business. 

WHAT?! I thought you said it was their "dream business". I did. And it WAS... but no longer. What they thought would be a quick 6 months of 60+ hr work weeks turned into 2 years with no end in sight. The hip vibe of bringing their babies to work with them every day, turned into oppressive guilt for all the turned down "play dates" with the mommy's chillin' at the pool. It was all too much and at the end of the day they called it quits. 

Far too many people would listen to this story and think, "What a shame. Their business failed. If they just would have stuck it out for a few more years...." And there is the FATAL FLAW that most entrepreneurs face at one time or another. The fear of failure and allowing that fear to create inaction, even in the face of misery.

I can hear some of you now, "Okay, so if you don't call it failure, what do YOU call it? I mean the guy quit TWO YEARS IN?! He threw away all of that time and energy and passion. If that isn't failure then what is?!" To this I would reply, "When it comes to business, in my book there is only one failure that matters.  The failure to practice SELF-AWARENESS. This my friend is The Non-Negotiable Quality that every successful person possesses."

My friends were able to detach and evaluate their current situation which had shifted from joy to anxiety. They were able to see that their vision had gone as far as they would be able to take it but that for someone else it might be a perfect new opportunity. They relaxed into new ideas and new possibilities for their future! How often do we just stay stuck in unsuccessful, unhappy, disorganized, exhausting life circumstances only for the sake of appearances and under the delusion that "successful people stick it out"! 

I want to challenge this notion. Successful people don't just "stick it out", we are ever changing and have the self-awareness necessary to choose the best path for US. Don't let dogma or some unspoken expectation from the people around you determine your path. Practice self-awareness at all costs and choose the path that brings you into passion and joy!