Nike has gotten many things right. Perhaps the best advice ever given came from this company in the form of a universal slogan, “Just Do It.”
I have a friend. For the sake of anonymity, let’s call her “Tammy.” Tammy doesn’t like doing anything unless she can do it perfectly. She studies, analyzes, reviews, and second guesses herself and her choices. Tammy avoids making mistakes so often that she rarely acts on the work she’s passionate about. She’s so afraid of losing money that she never makes any. This habit of self-preservation debilitates her because, like most humans, she doesn’t do most things correctly the first time. She feels failure fully and allows it to dictate who she believes she is rather than seeing a failure as a lesson to learn from.
Sound familiar?
If you’re like Tammy, you probably aren’t producing much income because you’re spending a lot of time trying to figure out how to do things right the first time, avoiding mistakes like the plague, and pushing yourself toward perfection so firmly that you rarely take the first step for fear of failure.
If you:
– Never feel like you can learn enough before starting something.
– Put off starting until you feel like an expert.
– Feel the weight of failure so profoundly that you rarely try.
– Are so afraid of losing what little money you have that you can’t even dream of making any more of it.
– Talk yourself out of doing simple tasks because the fear of failure, rejection, or loss convinces you the task is harder, more expensive, or time-consuming than it really is.
– Get to the starting line, take your mark with all the excitement of a winner, and then merely trot along while others finish the race…
…then you may be halted by your own “perfectionism.”
If you have any of these characteristics, I have a challenge for you; Give yourself permission to make mistakes.
Before the alarm in your head goes off into hyperdrive, rest assured that I’m not encouraging you to fail expensively. I’m not going to trick you into spending money or let you get in so far over your head that you can’t bounce back (though I’ve seen people do this and pull through with great success). All I’m asking is for you to fail on purpose in one small area of your life, just enough to jar you from this self-imposed net of “safety” you’ve entangled yourself in.
And if it helps, do it again.
– Call that potential client with the knowledge that you’ll blow it.
– Send the email even if it isn’t perfect.
– Make an offer, understanding that it won’t get accepted.
– Take the class or workshop that you think is way over your head.
When you give yourself permission to do a task badly, and you realize it didn’t kill you, you’ve taken the first step away from fear and toward action.
Plus, as a bonus, you may end up being less lousy at the task than you thought. You may even end up succeeding.
To Your Success;
Lee A. Arnold
CEO
The Lee Arnold System of Real Estate Investing
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