Harvey Mackay recently wrote that the fear of failure keeps many people from being more successful.
He said “refusing to try new ideas, methods or products because you’re afraid they might fail can prevent you from growing your business and your customer base. Fear can cloud your judgment and make calculated risks look like Mt. Everest.”
But then he went on to say that we should stop worrying and start learning from our experiences. Sometimes what looks like a mess can be fixed with a tweak or it might be that we have to toss the “mess” away and start all over. The goal is to take the opportunity, prosper from it or learn from it, and move on.
Karl Wallenda, the famous tightrope walker, fell many times in his life, but he always got up and tried again. At the age of 73, he was finally killed in a tragic fall from a tightrope.
His widow said, “All Karl thought about for three straight months prior to the accident was falling. It seemed to me that he put all his energy into (thinking about) not falling,” instead of putting all his energy in thinking about walking the tightrope.
Mackay sums up his feelings by saying, “Keep your eye on the prize, and understand that sometimes you don’t win. But you only lose if you stop trying.”
“The biggest failure of all is not trying again.” To read more of Harvey Mackay’s thoughts, visit http://www.harveymackay.com/
He said “refusing to try new ideas, methods or products because you’re afraid they might fail can prevent you from growing your business and your customer base. Fear can cloud your judgment and make calculated risks look like Mt. Everest.”
But then he went on to say that we should stop worrying and start learning from our experiences. Sometimes what looks like a mess can be fixed with a tweak or it might be that we have to toss the “mess” away and start all over. The goal is to take the opportunity, prosper from it or learn from it, and move on.
Karl Wallenda, the famous tightrope walker, fell many times in his life, but he always got up and tried again. At the age of 73, he was finally killed in a tragic fall from a tightrope.
His widow said, “All Karl thought about for three straight months prior to the accident was falling. It seemed to me that he put all his energy into (thinking about) not falling,” instead of putting all his energy in thinking about walking the tightrope.
Mackay sums up his feelings by saying, “Keep your eye on the prize, and understand that sometimes you don’t win. But you only lose if you stop trying.”
“The biggest failure of all is not trying again.” To read more of Harvey Mackay’s thoughts, visit http://www.harveymackay.com/
Gas is over $4.00 a gallon. I don’t know whether to laugh or cry. I can remember the gas crisis and the gas lines back in the 1970’s when there were “gas shortages.” The worst thing is that 30 years after those events, the United States still doesn’t have a comprehensive energy policy.
Are you still providing pickup and delivery or at-home service for products you sell? I hope you’ve raised your prices to help compensate for high gas prices. I don’t think you really have a choice.
As Matthew Borden of Ed & Matt Equipment Company said in the Dealer’s Domain section of the May issue of this magazine, “At the end of the year, it is not how much money passed through your business, it’s how much there was to keep that matters.”
Knowing what your exact costs of doing business are – and controlling and managing every penny of those costs - has never been more important than it is now for the good health and profitability of your business. Don’t forget.
Stanley Bing, my favorite Fortune magazine columnist, recently talked about relationships we have with friends. He lamented the fact that most “relationships we have in the world we work in are contextual.” In other words, most of the friends we have can be found in our businesses and in our personal business relationships.
He goes on to say that once the context is removed, as in when you retire, “…old pals have very little to talk about. Even golf and booze, after a while, are not enough” to sustain the relationship.
But he ends with this positive thought, “The good news is that some friendships, improbably and against the odds, do endure.” The lesson is to treasure your friends and their friendship. And to cherish even more the friendships that endure.
William Gladstone and Benjamin Disraeli were two of the fiercest political rivals of the 19th century. Ambitious, powerful, and politically astute, both men were spirited competitors and masterful politicians. Though each man achieved impressive accomplishments for Great Britain, the quality that separated them as leaders was their approach to people.
The difference is best illustrated by the account of a young woman who dined with the men on consecutive nights.
When asked about her impression of the rival statesmen, she said, "When I left the dining room after sitting next to Mr. Gladstone, I thought he was the cleverest man in England. But after sitting next to Mr. Disraeli, I thought I was the cleverest woman in England."
Benjamin Disraeli was a truly brilliant man. He knew the power of words and how to use them effectively. Do you?
