In the time that I have been a small business owner/partner, failure came. And came again. Some of the failures were unexpected and some were risks that didn’t pay off. I’d love to tell you that I smiled and said "hurray, we’ll be better for this." But I cried. My business partner threatened.
Now that I have time to look back and connect the dots (thank you, Steve Jobs), I realize how refining the fire of failure can be. In our age of instant this and get it easy that, embracing the refining process can seem ludicrous. It isn’t. I’m better and wiser because of the refining I’ve had to go through.
Seth Godin has a post titled Recipes that is short, but very sweet. He does a nice job of reminding us what real reality is, versus fantasy.
Here are some tips on embracing the fire of failure when it comes:
- Remember its not a matter of if, but when. Live with an energy that sees winning and failing as a nescessary cocktail.
- No fire, no purity. Ask any goldsmith or silversmith about this.
- Don’t be afraid. Fear will seduce you into accepting a cheap imitation (titles, money, office location, etc.) of success.
- Don’t turn to paranoia or the "looking over my shoulder" mentality. This will lead to you looking for failure.
- People who matter are watching. It often means your motion picture is a source of inspiration.
- Keep your vision close to you. Whether on paper or on your hard drive, you’ll need to be reminded of the WHY.
- People like Penelope and Malcom are facing and will face this fire too.