Yes, You Deserve Success
This may be hard to believe, but many business owners—who seem strong, powerful, and domineering on the surface—don’t feel as if they deserve success or to take their company to the next level. As outrageous as it may seem, they seem to think they were “lucky” to get as far as they have and at some point the luck will run out. In this regard, they feel like they are somehow not worthy; they are “frauds” who will be exposed if they push the envelope too hard.
Essentially, these business owners lack the confidence necessary to carry the weight of scaling. I’ve seen firsthand what happens with business owners when their businesses grow, but they have overwhelming fear that they can’t maintain it, that things will fall apart, and that they will be embarrassed. Sometimes this can create a self-fulfilling prophecy. If the leader loses confidence, the employees also lose confidence, and then things really start to crumble.
“I learned that courage was not the absence of fear but the triumph over it. The brave man is not he who does not feel afraid, but he who conquers that fear.”
— Nelson Mandela, former President of South Africa
Leaders must work on their confidence all the time. They have to be able to handle the entrepreneurial roller coaster: Business shoots up, business plummets, business shoots up again. Simply accepting this fact can help you become a more resilient leader. When the roller coaster is at the bottom or creaking upward, you know that sooner or later you’ll once again be at the top and will come swooping down, doing loop-de-loops, going upside down, swerving on the side, and then doing it all backwards.
As Irish poet and playwright Oscar Wilde once quipped, “To expect the unexpected shows a thoroughly modern intellect.” In my view, what constitutes success is how fast you get back up after being knocked down. After getting KO-ed by a failed business deal, the resilient leader doesn’t curse, assign blame, or sulk. Rather, she jumps right back up on her feet and asks, “Okay, what are we going to do about it?” Her brain goes straight into solution mode.
Rear View Casting
Rearview Casting is a form of meditation that helps you create a degree of confidence and ownership that you have done the task. It enables you to revel in the wonderful feeling of delight that you have accomplished such a brilliant work of art with your business. When you feel that sense of pleasure, it gives you even more incentive and inspiration to continue.
Go ahead. Try it now. Close your eyes. Take a deep breath and clear your mind. Shake your arms and your hands to release any stress and unwanted energy. Pretend you have completed your Big Picture Vision and you are turning around and looking back at the rewarding journey you have completed—all the ups and downs and major breakthroughs—and you have come out the other side.
You feel a sense of pride that you did it, regardless of all the roadblocks along the way. You see how it all came together beautifully in the end, as well as the positive impact it had on your team, their families, and your customers. You feel elated and calm at the same time: the former because you conquered your dream; and the latter because your confidence in yourself has grown dramatically. You feel a strong knowingness in your heart. You have let go of any and all worry, insecurity, or confusion. You were right all along to pursue your dream vigorously.
Congratulations! You can also try this meditation with your team, as it helps demonstrate their important contributions to the process. They don’t just hear about it, they get to see and feel it. You will find that Rearview Casting can be a complete game-changer.
Discover The SCALEit Method™, a proven process for fast-tracking your business growth by mastering the five most critical pillars of scaling successfully. Start working smarter, not harder! Download our 17 Ways to Scale Your Company Fast. This includes a FREE Download and a video training with Allison Maslan.