by David Andrew Wiebe | Mar 8, 2023 | Entrepreneurship
When we’re afraid of getting it wrong, we often don’t try at all.
We assume there is a direct path to success, so we end up wasting hours, days, weeks, months, and years trying to figure it out before we even begin.
We assume our gurus did not struggle with any of this (usually because their struggle is hidden from plain sight). We assume they did not have to make it up as they went. So, we have an excuse not to make it up as we go either.
Maybe your gurus never made a mistake. Maybe. But the more likely possibility is they made more mistakes faster, learned from them, and adjusted their strategy as required. They figured out the many ways something would not work. But because they were committed to figuring out how it could work, failure was never an option, and the struggles were written off as temporary setbacks and learning experiences – even if they were horrid.
Taking the next step can be downright scary. But what’s the worst-case scenario? Assuming you’re taking calculated risks and not outrageously stupid ones, the worst possible outcome is you learn something from the experience.
You can’t wait for perfect timing or permission to make a mess. You’ve got to start making a mess now. It may be your only pathway to figuring it out.
by David Andrew Wiebe | Jul 30, 2021 | Personal Development
Last year, I was challenged to blog daily for a full year.
Apparently, I was waiting for the permission to do it, because the thought of creating new blog content daily excited me and immediately moved me to action.
Similarly, for many years, I’ve been wanting to build a team.
And, I have maintained a small team over the last few years. But they were more like task doers than fully contributing members.
This year, I decided to take on an intensive leadership and management program. And within the structure of the program, there was virtually no escaping being in a team and building my own.
Apparently, I was waiting for the permission to do it, because it only took a few weeks to build a team of seven (along with three advisors), who have already raised several hundred dollars benefiting the education of underprivileged children. All before the launch of the new membership that’s supposed to be the main vehicle for fundraising.
Unreal.
Here’s the rub:
If you want to be powerful in life, don’t wait for permission.
Follow what excites you instead.
And this is not just some hollow statement about following your bliss or your passion.
It’s a critical discovery for all ambitious creatives.
If we go and do, instead of waiting for someone to tell us that we can, we’ll begin moving the mountains in our lives. And we’ll discover, before long, that these were little more than molehills disguised as mountains.
