It’s hard to see any chance of failing when you see my business where it is now….
Over 35,000 happy subscribers
International Speaking engagements
Getting recognition for my work
Coaching my dream clients
Living in a fancy pants condo
Making sales in my sleep in 20+ countries
Failure has been the #1 teacher I’ve had in business. Failing has pushed me to be stronger, more innovative, and endlessly resilient.
Without failure, I doubt I would have been motivated enough to change my approach or make improvements on several occasions.
Despite finding a lot of positive lessons in failure, I’d like to spare you any heartache possible.
That is why I am sharing with you my biggest failures in business and how to avoid them:
#1 Missed Opportunities
Opportunities don’t go away, they simply go to someone else. There are certain ideas that I should have acted faster on.
The longer you wait to go for something, the more “crowded” the industry will get, the more time you have to believe your fears, and the more time other people have to talk you out of your crazy dream.
I should have started my business sooner. I knew I was unhappy in my previous career path but I didn’t know what to do about it.
Waiting until you know everything to do something is the key ingredient to miss major opportunities.
Thankfully, it’s never too late to live your best life and have it all.
#2 No bragging
Not bragging was a terrible idea.
How else were people supposed to know that I was making sales in 20+ countries and not a housewife that simply travels with her husband- the businessman?
I can’t tell you how many times I was at a meeting with my husband and people thought I was just there for “support” and not to actually contribute.
When I finished with the pity party of why it wasn’t fair, I decided to command respect and give people a good reason to listen up when I spoke.
I worked too freakin’ hard to get to where I am to only be asked if I had any snacks in my purse at a meeting.
Although I could probably still step up my “bragging” game, I’m happy to be at a place in my personal development where I can tell people who I am and why they should listen to me.
I’m a lady boss- buy your own snacks.
#3 No selling
Not selling means you are not building a business.
Scary huh?
People need what you have to offer and if you keep it a secret from them, you can’t help anyone and they can’t help you.
I’ve met some pretty annoying sales people in the past. I wanted to be nothing like them.
So I would be really discreet about my programs and services.
As a result, my dream clients were working with coaches who couldn’t help them like I could.
Then I realized that crappy drivers never kept me from driving. Similarly, people who are not selling from the heart are not my problem either.
Selling is serving and I do it gladly.
#4 Not networking
I’ve gotten really good at finding my dream clients using Facebook ads.
I click a few buttons, go to sleep, and wake up to a larger audience anytime I want.
So I started to slack in the networking department. That was stupid.
First of all, I LOVE people and I am really social. Hiding behind a computer is not what motivated me to start a business.
Networking allows you to learn. You don’t know what you don’t know.
It also opened the door for me to serve high level people that value relationships over ads.
Networking has also allowed me to increase trust with my audience thanks to my access to credible trainers that I can bring in as guest speakers for members of my courses.
Your network = your net worth. Work on increasing both.
#5 Not failing enough
As I mentioned earlier, I’ve gotten pretty good at making sales in my sleep.
So despite the countless sacrifices I’ve made to be where I am today, I started to create a new comfort zone for myself.
You know what I’m talking about…
You wallpaper your glass ceiling to ignore the fact that you have to break it and keep going to the next level.
Thankfully, I opened my eyes and reignited my spirit to keep taking risks.
The biggest risk you can take is not taking risks at all.
Success is hard. Not having success is hard. Choose wisely.
#6 Being too OK with hard work
As the daughter of Cuban-American parents, I’ve always had a tremendous work ethic.
So when it came to business I wasn’t expecting anything to get easier.
I worked and worked and worked.
To be honest, working for the sake of working WAS NOT working.
As a business owner you don’t get paid the hour. You make your income based on your results.
I quickly started focusing on results-driven activities and it worked.
I started getting more done in less time.
We all have the same 24 hours in the day. Use yours for your priorities and activities that will lead you to the results you want.
#7 Sharing big dreams with small minds
You don’t go around asking your local barber or engineer to mow your lawn.
It’s not their area of expertise.
Yet, for some reason we take tons of business advice from people who were too scared to either build or grow their own business.
Suddenly, you are getting tons of advice on why you should be more careful, how to price your products, or what to invest in.
There are a lot of good people in my life who are smart, trustworthy, and lovable who don’t have a clue about how to grow an online business.
I will love them for who they are and love myself by creating boundaries that keep experienced people in and inexperienced people out.
With that said, don’t assume that people have to agree with you all the time in order to consider them potential advisors.
Be coachable. The more you learn, the more you earn.
#8 Not taking care of myself enough
Want to hear something crazy?
It took me a few years to realize that I don’t own a business. I AM the business.
If I’m a mess, hungry, tired, and unkept, I represent my business.
If I am rested, happy, inspired, and friendly, I represent my business.
I decided to represent my business well.
I recommend you do the same.
The are always people watching. People who need inspiration and a good example of what it looks like when you go for your dreams.
Lead them in the right direction by taking care of yourself.
After all, you can’t give what you don’t have.
#9 Not dreaming bigger faster
Dream bigger FASTER!
Think about it.
If you plan a dinner for 2 you will act accordingly. You will buy food for two. You will only invite 1 or 2.
But what if you were planning a feast for 500 people.
Who would you hire to help you?
How would you show up for your event and plan ahead?
How soon would you start working on it?
Your business goals are not much different.
When you plan to play small guess what you do….you play SMALL.
So start thinking big, showing up like a boss, and living large NOW.
#10 Not sharing my failures sooner
When you are climbing up anything, you should use one hand to go up and the other hand to pull someone else up with you.
It is valuable to know both what to do and what not to do.
You should obviously spend 100% of your time on what works but if showing that it’s perfectly OK not to be perfect is helpful to others, I will.
Now it’s your turn to share
What is the #1 lesson you have learned while building your business? Share in the comments below:
