No baseball player wants to hold the record of the most strike outs. Did you know that Babe Ruth held that record for decades?
He swung the bat and missed more than anyone.
But that means he was willing to try more.
Babe Ruth also held the record for the most career home runs. (At least until Hank Aaron came along 40 years later.)
Reaching big goals takes vulnerability. You start with the end in mind and must be willing to face the rejection, criticism, and failure you’ll encounter along the way.
I realized long ago that I’m never going to be as successful as I could be in life – in my businesses and as a father and as a husband – if I don’t put myself out there.
If I didn’t ask someone for their business because of the risk of being told ‘no,’ they were never going to tell me ‘yes.’
If you are passionate about something and your goal is to achieve it, these two reminders will help you put yourself out there:
- It’s never “just business.”
- To find success, you must risk rejection.
It’s never “just business.”
Everything is personal, especially as entrepreneurs. Entrepreneurship is not something you only do between 9 and 5. It’s part of who you are as a being. Entrepreneurship is the way you approach life.
- You may have a great idea. You put your heart into it.
- You’re willing to remortgage your house to pursue it.
- You’re ready to wake up early and come home late to build it into a business.
But that’s not enough.
You need vulnerability to be able to take your idea in front of others. You have to put yourself out there to find out if it has merit.
When your work is part of who you are, having this kind of vulnerability is especially difficult.
No one likes failure, but it’s a necessary part of achieving big things.
To find success, you must risk failure.
When you’re vulnerable, you open yourself up to heartbreak and rejection. Especially in entrepreneurship. You risk being wrong, laughed at, told no, and potentially even going out of business.
Vulnerability is where pain can be found, but also joy and success.
Embracing vulnerability means you’re open to opportunities for growth and learning from others. And you may receive guidance that helps you pivot an idea, get in front of the right audience, or take your business to the next level.
Then, as we build businesses and our team grows, we need to bring vulnerability to our leadership. A willingness to acknowledge that we don’t have all the answers and to ask for help from our team most often leads to better results.
If you’re not willing to risk being hurt or failing, you’ll never truly reach your ultimate potential.
Instead, embrace those risks, be ready to take some strikes, and celebrate when you hit it out of the park.