Don’t Focus on Failure
I went through a tough time recently.
No, not because my ex broke up with me, but because I had a disastrous interview. I did everything wrong and there were two other candidates who had clearly better credentials than me. I wound up getting the job but it wasn't meant for someone like me — this wasn't going to be an easy path for me to follow or enjoy.
I started thinking about all the mistakes that I made during the interview, and how much of them were due in part to my fear of failing. Someone once told me that failure is just another word for opportunity and at some point you have be brave enough — your fear will only hold you back from what you want most in life.
I decided that this interview was going to be the last one I ever let keep me from succeeding in my career, and that I was going to face my fear head on, because the world would be a better place if I did.
The next day I went into the office and told my new boss that it had been a really stressful week, and that I wasn't sure if I could make it through another interview process. He looked at me (he's a pretty nice guy) and said "Well, who else here can do what you can do? There is no one. You're our man. You're on the team right now."
That made me feel great. I didn't need to face my fear of failure to get a job, so I relaxed and just focused on doing my best. And that is the secret behind any successful person's work ethic or attitude in general. Whether it's an entrepreneur, a manager, an artist, or anyone else — you have to be able to roll with the punches when adversity comes because you will face more that than losing out on some opportunities.
So what does this mean for you? First off — don't worry about failure. There are enough opportunities ahead of you that are worth your attention. Be willing to take that chance on something because it may be the making of you or your company.
Secondly, you need to start believing in yourself and your abilities. I know it's hard because we are often our own worst critics, but when you do doubt yourself then the fear of failure will get into your head and paralyze you from moving forward in anything, not just work or business.
So ask yourself if that is really what you want for yourself — a life of predictability where your work is nothing but routine? That's OK for some people, but if you want more for yourself then be willing to take chances and make mistakes. Only by embracing both will you find true happiness in life.
And finally, you need to appreciate that failure is just an opportunity to learn and grow. Sometimes we fail because we are not taking enough chances, other times we fail because of our own incompetence. Either way it's OK — as long as you get the chance to try again.
Posted by Jonathan at 9:51 PM
Mood: Inspired Source: LinkedIn I know this blog is mostly about business, but I think this post deserves a little mention too :) I started doing more and more web programming back in highschool and pretty much always had a computer on me (this was back in like 1999). I mostly did it because I enjoyed it and spent a lot of time on it, and there weren't many other ways I could have made money without being a waiter or something. In the past 10 years or so, things have changed. You can certainly make money coding, but it's not going to be easy and you don't need to be good at math for most of the jobs open today (I would still recommend taking some computer science classes though). But if you are small business looking for a programmer to build a website for you, here are some tips from the perspective of someone who has worked on his own online ventures when he started out: Don't be cheap : Lots of people don't really know how difficult this is... and that's fine, because if you are a person who needs to be cheap with everything then you should stick to paying a coder $15/hour at best. But if you want to get a quality product from someone who is passionate about what he does — it's going to cost money.
Posted by Jonathan at 4:44 AM
Mood: Happy Source: LinkedIn Growing up I always wanted to have my own business, but I didn't know what it would be or how I would start it. But I always kept the dream alive and believed that there was a way for me to have my own company. And now I've found it.
One of my best friends and I have a small business together where we create websites and tools for other people who are building small businesses or startups. I was pretty lucky to get in on the ground level, but there is plenty of room for growth so what we're doing right now isn't going to leave us anytime soon.
Posted by Jonathan at 3:30 AM
Mood: Inspired Source: LinkedIn When I was in college, most of the things that people told me about making money didn't seem very practical. One of them was about how the internet would change everything for the better and how earning money online was something everyone should do (if they could figure out how to do it).
That's basically how I feel about the internet now. I went to a college where they taught me to "come up with and analyze a business plan, and then execute it." But that was all very theoretical, and I still had a hard time finding work after graduating.
But now that I have some work experience under my belt, and the internet is making things easier for me to find clients and promote our business in ways that would have previously cost thousands of dollars. Without the internet and all of its opportunities — starting my own business would be just as hard as it is for other young adults like myself who are trying to find their way in this confusing economy.
Posted by Jonathan at 12:26 AM
Mood: Inspired Source: LinkedIn I've loved learning how to program when I was a kid, but never did anything with it because I didn't know how. Then one of my friends gave me a book on Python and it changed everything. He had been learning to code just so that he could sell things online and make money and he sent me the book so that I would learn with him. And I did.
Posted by Jonathan at 2:40 AM
Mood: Inspired Source: LinkedIn Some of the best advice that I've gotten, and the one thing that I think has helped me the most, was from my business partner. He suggested that we should give our 100% effort and not 80% (or even 95%). He said it's better to take on less projects than to spread yourself too thin and to give your clients sub-par work. That's something that has really stuck with me.
Conclusion - Your attitude
I know this is just a blog, but I'm hoping you can learn from my experiences. If you do, then maybe someone else will too.
Inspired Source: LinkedIn Here are some lessons I learned in college (in no particular order): - Go to class : You need to show up to learn. You don't really have to listen and there's not really a way to fail (unless you plagiarize or something). So just go and get familiar with the material so when it comes time for the test you'll be ready.