ENTREPRENEUR SPECIAL...... Mental exercises for beginner entrepreneurs (8)

Mental exercises for beginner entrepreneurs (8)

I’m not _________ enough by Genevieve LeMarchal

Being formally qualified is overrated. Like many, I believed that without a college degree I'd never amount to anything in life. So I took that to the extreme. I believed that if I had this golden credential, I'd magically acquire the knowledge to be successful (and figure everything else out too, of course). So I went off to a top ranked school and got myself a big ol' shiny MBA. While the MBA taught me a lot about the environment of businesses, and I learned a ton, it would have been great if I'd gone on to Wall Street or perhaps taken a job at Accenture or something. But I promptly became an entrepreneur, where credentials matter ZERO percent, and if you don't know something, you better figure out how to learn it yourself. To be completely honest, I thought that extra degree would somehow help me overcome areas where I felt deficient. Cue the old “I need more experience before I do something like that” excuse. Sound familiar? I have never once met someone successful and in touch with who they are and what they are doing who refuses to apologize for being unrelenting or even slightly controversial. Too big, too loud, too soft, too much edge, too much whatever. Nobody ever says, “Wow, that person is an incredible leader. They have all the credentials and experience from all the best places.” (Okay, maybe some people do.) Here’s the thing. If you round out your edges and try to hide the stuff that is or isn’t there, you lose your edge. Hiding our perceived lack of qualifications can weaken us overall, because results are the best credential there is. And unless you are a surgeon or something, I have never seen lack of credentials stand in the way of results in the business world. Bill Gates, Steve Jobs, Richard Branson—all billionaires. None of them finished college. Colonel Sanders (the fried chicken guy) started Kentucky Fried Chicken when he was 65 years old. Rachel Ray never went to cooking school So whether you think you are not smart enough, not credentialed enough, not experienced enough, not young enough, not old enough, or not _____________ enough, ask yourself this question: do you truly believe you can create something and produce results? If so, you’re on to something. Action Tip Are there any areas in your life where you feel yourself compensating or making excuses for not being _________ enough? 1. What is that area? 2. Do you feel your excuse is valid? 3. Why or why not?

Recommended book "Outliers: The Story of Success" by Malcolm Gladwell

HIGHBROW