In this training, Russell Brunson describes failure “as one of the most powerful double-edged swords for an entrepreneur (or anyone, for that matter…)” He goes on to say “the problem is, most entrepreneurs never learn to use their FAILURES correctly. And just one failure usually causes them to either throw in the towel and quit…or it paralyzes them from pressing the “GO button” on their business in the future.”
Luckily for all of us, Russell also has “good news that when you learn to wield failure the right way, it can be just as powerful (and often MORE powerful) as success…”
I love hearing rags to riches stories. I love hearing about people who were the ultimate underdog and overcame great obstacles to achieve success. I love hearing testimonials about people going from ordinary to extraordinary. Most of these stories have failure either evident within them OR they are interwoven into the fabric of the essence of their journey. No matter what, I find comfort in knowing that I’m not the only one who has failed along the way.
In today’s mission, Russell asks a couple thought provoking questions about his testimonial on failure:
Question #1: What is the one thing/story/idea Russell said during his presentation that really stuck with you?
What stuck with me was that I loved how he had these a-ha moments with an over abundance of excitement when he came across big ideas to make money.
Question #2: Why do you think it gave you a reaction? What about it relates back to your own life, business, fears, dreams, hopes, etc.?
For me, hearing Russell’s story gave me a reaction because I feel the same way all of the time. I always feel I have a ton of great ideas and I experience that same level of excitement that he does.
You see, over the last couple months, I have listened to countless recordings of Russell, read his books and have heard many of his stories. Although, I have quite a few hundred to go, it is evident that even though I don’t know Russell personally, I feel a bond. Sort of like we both have that same entrepreneurial spirit that bonds us together. Another reason is that once I discovered the ClickFunnels and Funnel Hacker community, I felt a sense of belonging really for the first time.
Have you ever felt like a fish out of water…I have had this sort of feeling most of my life. A dreamer? An idea girl? Monumental Goals? Mind never shuts off…and the times that I explain all of these things to other people and they give that look back like ‘ohhh, you are one of those kinds of people…someone who is a big dreamer. Up in the clouds.” Yep, that is me…I don’t deny it, but when you don’t get the empathy from others that you hope for, you tend to downplay these big ideas and often keep them to yourself. It really wasn’t until recently that I joined several online communities and felt that sense of belonging and a renewed sense of purpose.
Through the years, I have failed countless times and I’m sure you’ll hear all of the many stories as time passes. One time, I came up with idea for a Direct Sellers Workbook. I put it together and I had commercially printed and it was perfect. I was so proud of it and every person I let use it, loved it. It has pages for documenting your calendar of events, the monthly specials, hostess leads, customer leads, distributor leads. It even had pages for personal tasks list and party orders. It was a 6 month fool proof workbook and I was pretty proud of it. But here comes the failure – ME. I put up a website and printed some postcards (this was almost 10 years ago) and I evangelized the heck out of it…and yes I got a ton of sales but what I found was that I hated the administrative side of it. I hated having to go up to the post office, wait in line, get postage placed on it and get it shipped. I looked into fulfillment companies, but they charged an arm and a leg back then. I ended putting my inventory in the basement, where I’m pretty sure it still sits to this day. Great idea, but horrible execution for me. I realized at that moment that automation is my favorite thing.
Other failures are from signing up with a couple direct selling companies. The problem was that I tended to be my very own best customer. Also, I wanted to give my discount to everyone. I realized in those moments, that I’m much more generous than I needed to be as a sales person.
Through the years, I have helped 100s of friends with their small businesses charging nothing most of the time. This is where I found my true passion and that is to help people. And although I could easily start charging people, it just takes all of the fun out of it for me. I tried for a bit to charge for a handful of websites and it changed the transaction. It went from a fun project of helping a friend to added pressure of helping a client. I ended up outsourcing 95% of the “favors” and just focused on a few I didn’t mind doing. The failure in all of this was that I would have great intentions to fulfil my own goals, but I would never put my goals as a priority over my friends’ favors. I have spent several years with my dreams put on a shelf for a rainy day…there just never seems to be enough time.
Earlier this year, my inner entrepreneur woke up and scolded me saying that I was standing in my own way from accomplishing so much more. I outsourced all of my favors, I made a list of goals and I have been immersed with working hard towards my dreams. Failure is just not an option anymore and I am excited about this new mindset.
As I quickly approach age 41, I look back on this past year and WOW – it went by so quickly and I reflect on the little progress I’ve made because I haven’t made my goals a priority, perhaps due to some fears…well no more – fear is not going to stop me.
People like Russell are so inspiring because their stories have the classic components of a movie from obstacles, trials, heartbreak, hard work, tears and love! One thing I admire most about Russell is that he gives back, he is generous, his purpose is not the money and he really wants to help people transform their lives. I totally believe in impact over income and I hope to emulate Russell and many of the millionaires he has created.