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Tag: challenge

Imperfect solution

Several years ago, I had the honor of working alongside Seth Godin. Besides being a brilliant thinker and marketing trendsetter, he’s an incredible teacher.

We organized a workshop for entrepreneurs and business owners. Participants traveled from around the world. Many were experiencing difficulties they were struggling to overcome, and they were looking to Seth for answers.

“Are you so in love with your problem you’re unwilling to try an imperfect solution?” he asked his audience. I watched a few people shift uncomfortably in their chairs. I myself thought of the projects I had outlined and all the reasons I had for not beginning any of them. I didn’t have the right resources, proper connections, mainstream PR or a headline act. I didn’t have anything I thought I needed — which turned out to be an illusion, after all. (I was looking for perfect.)

Seth’s question caught me in my tracks: Do I want this problem to beat me?

It’s possible to start TODAY, even if your current answer is far from ideal.

I chose to win.

Beliefs and your destiny

Your beliefs become your thoughts,
Your thoughts become your words,
Your words become your actions,
Your actions become your habits,
Your habits become your values,
Your values become your destiny.

–Gandhi

It sounds cliche, but it’s true.

Pay attention to the places your mind wanders.

(Want a “real life” example? Read my story about hard work, dreams and Learning House in Nepal.)

The responsibility to connect

We have tools at our fingertips to connect and unite. Different levels of support, layers of talent, examples to reference. With access comes choice.
What if “connecting” was an obligation? Would you make that call? Send that email? Reprioritize your schedule?
Your introduction could match a promising worker with an employer in need, build a bridge for a new partnership, make someone’s work a little easier.
Often, it isn’t a lack of opportunity or awareness but of willingness.

Odds

fail try fail try try try SUCCESS fail fail fail try almost try try try made it try fail try SUCCESS try fail try SUCCESS try fail fail try almost made it try fail try SUCCESS try try try try SUCCESS fail SUCCESS fail try SUCCESS fail fail fail try try fail try fail try fail SUCCESS try try almost try SUCCESS made it fail fail fail try try fail almost try try fail try fail SUCCESS SUCCESS SUCCESS fail try try try try try try SUCCESS try fail try fail try made it try fail fail try try SUCCESS try almost try try try fail try SUCCESS

(Try often, fail often, and your odds of winning increase. You never know when you’re going to hit.)

 

 

Ten times better

A “little better” doesn’t cut it. You have to be much better. Much, much better. Ten times better.
This is how you separate yourself from the competition.
This is how you improve.
This is how you win.
Everything is crowded. The marketplace, the speaker lineup, the dating scene, the applicant pool.
In an age where your value corresponds to your ability to separate yourself from the rest, your focus must narrow on becoming your best version.
A notch doesn’t tip the scale. Throw your weight around and put full effort into your vision.
Your best self and your most original idea depend on it.
(H/T David S. Kidder. I presented Startup Playbook to college students in Nepal last week, and they loved it.)

10 essentials for the modern world

1. You have to make time for your goals otherwise they won’t happen.

2. You have to recognize where you’ve come from in order to have the endurance to keep going.

3. You have to have the right team around you to get it all done.

4. You have to strive to do work that speak for itself. Let others do the talking for you.

5. You have to know in your heart the effort you’ve put forth. Ignore the naysayers.

6. You have to prioritize your health and body, for it is the machine you will be using for years to come.

7. You have to take time to rest and be still. Your machine needs regular recharging and reprogramming.

8. You have to acknowledge who and what has encouraged you. Gratitude will keep you strong in the darkest moments.

9. You have to place yourself near nature from time to time to remind yourself of the impermanence and magnitude of all things.

10. You have to ignore the rules others set for themselves (and for you). Make your own.