"Remember: there are no mistakes, only lessons. Love yourself, trust your choices and everything is possible." Cherie Carter Scott
Master Secret: Trusting Yourself
Strategy: The Universe is centered around growth and expansion. Trust the process and search for the signs to continue.
Lets talk about mistakes. Why are we so afraid to make them?
What many of us would conclude or brand as mistakes actually function as important life lessons, and are they are invaluable in the building of wisdom. The challenge is that we’re conditioned from an early age to avoid making mistakes. This can lead most people to reduced levels of risk-taking or to avoid taking risks entirely. We need to acknowledge that we’re going to make future mistakes when we're searching for growth. The challenge is in trying not to make the same mistakes twice. Trusting yourself is a huge part of the success equation, and recognising that mistakes will be made will give you the courage to continue when you feel you've slipped up somehow. How fast we bounce back and learn from those mistakes is key.
In creating our own business, we must be able to trust our decision-making process and know that most of us are making the best decision today with the information we have available to us.
There’s so much in the world about people following their dreams. What some people tend to miss is the personal level of hardship, sacrifice, stress, lack of sleep, financial woes, knock-backs and failed attempts whilst travelling to what is sometimes a very public successful destination.
Personal doubt tends to be the ultimate dream-killer for most. Before their vision even has a chance to grow, the realisation that it very well might not happen begins to sprout. Remember, evaluating your situation is healthy as it forces us to take a second look. However, doubting your dream or your ability to get exactly where you want to be, has never had a healthy impact on dream realisation. A life ruled by doubt usually stems from consistent feelings of unworthiness. You are every bit as worthy in achieving your dreams as any person you've seen, heard or read about.
Repeat this note to yourself three times per day: "I am worthy. I believe I can make a unique contribution to this world and at this time. I will find my passion and expose it, whilst simultaneously living my personal truth. I will be of great value to the world. This is the reason why I was born."
I want you to truly realise how worthy you are. You have within you the power to do great things and those great things are waiting for you to breathe life into. There is nothing your mind can dream up that your physical self is incapable of achieving in the time you have to accomplish it. So, if you’re looking for a sign to get off your backside to begin, this is it. Start making moves towards what you want and don’t stop until you’re seeing evidence of its manifestation in your life. You must trust that when you are striving towards your truth, Universal forces will come to your aid and serendipities will constantly shock you at every turn.
One of the personal signs that I use when I question whether I should continue on a particular path is a number. The number 17 follows me relentlessly. I see this number between 15-20 times per day, without fail. What does the number 17 have to do with anything? I was born on the 17th, so I’ve quickly learned to trust this as my "destiny number" when I feel personal doubt or unworthiness creeping in. A number works for me, but you might have a different sign that lets you know when you're on the right track, such as a feather on your path, a phone call out of the blue, or the encouragement of a friend. We’re either the type of person who thinks signs are rubbish, or we are the type to observe our thoughts, notice and pay attention. It's important to also note that sometimes signs to continue on your path can defy logic. Just as we need to be comfortable with risk-taking in the pursuit of dreams, we need to be comfortable with observing signs to continue along with our diligent work towards our goals.
Below are four areas entrepreneurs need to be mindful of:
1. Don't get caught up in "the how": Learn to trust in yourself and believe in your abilities. For the entrepreneur, the way in which your dreams manifest into reality is none of your business. Don't get stuck in “how it's going to manifest”. This is the largest destroyer of starting projects. Steve Jobs once said: "You can only connect the dots looking backwards; you can't connect them looking forward".
2. Don't get caught up with how long it's going to take: Get used to the idea that it's going to take longer than you think. When I began my business, ShoeCircle.com.au, I believed I would be raking in the cash within 18 months. Not true. The business is growing exponentially, but it takes many tweaks, advice from my customers, and ongoing refinements to make it the best tool on the market. Don't be concerned with the slow progress or length of time it will take to manifest your dream. The time is passing anyway, and remember, you're still running rings around the guy who's sitting on the couch.
3. Don't compare yourself with the Joneses: Who do you think the Joneses compare themselves with? Quick answer: nobody. Do we know why? Because they're too busy living their dreams and we're too focused on observing them living their dreams. The only lesson the Joneses can teach us is to focus on our own plot. Focus, focus, focus, and don't compare yourself with anyone or anything. Your path is tailored to you and the lessons you'll learn for growth are also just as unique. Comparing ourselves with others, although extremely common place, is a toxic practice.
4. Don't disregard tangents in business: Contrary to common beliefs, I can be a fan of small tangents or detours. Tangents can take us to new physical or emotional destinations we hadn't planned on visiting. Although on the surface these tangents can seem more like distractions, they often have a much deeper meaning than most people can even begin to realise. Try to take the best possible outcome from a seemingly annoying tangent and I'll guarantee you: the knowledge will be used at a critical point down the track at a time you're about to grow.
When we're in a mindset to follow a dream, experienced leaders have discovered the end goal of achieving what we desire is only half the reward. It's who we end up becoming in pursuit of our dream—that's the other half. It's about growth in all facets—intellectual, financial, spiritual and emotional. And when we're not chasing our vision, something in us tends to die. We end up becoming risk averse, upstanding cogs in society's wheel, keeping the wheel strong, but going around in circles. So rather than being obsessed about excuses surrounding "not failing", we should embrace failure and hardship when following our passion, as they're our true indicators of being on the path to success. When failure or challenges come knocking, it must be viewed as a stepping stone, a signal for the need to change direction, an opportunity for growth, and ultimately, something that will give us a greater understanding of what it will take to reach our personal mission. When this is practiced regularly, a successful mindset can be permanently part of our everyday reality. Then, nothing can stop you.
There’s a concept in spirituality that many believe holds weight. This concept is still hotly debated today. It's the idea that there are no mistakes made. The concept upholds that with each decision, the outcome gets us to another level of understanding, love and growth. For example, if we make a decision and things seem to go right for us, we see it as a victory, and accordingly, try to make similar decisions in the future. On the other end of the decision-making spectrum are "mistakes" or unfavourable outcomes. Most people would view this as poor decision-making or unlucky circumstances. However, if growth and success depend on poor decision-making in order to make better decisions in the future, we can deduce that each decision, regardless of outcome, is a decision made for our highest good.
So why do so many of us cringe at poor decisions when making correct decisions all the time is an impossibility? We shouldn’t be afraid of making decisions. Embrace the circumstances in front of you and make the most of it, regardless of the outcome. It's time to take a swing for it. This would have to be one of the key lessons in this book. Why? Because most people won't even take a swing at the ball. They won't go for what is rightly theirs in the Universe, and they won't pursue their natural talents because they “probably won't make it anyhow”. A defeatist mindset is what we need to overcome.
A ship is very comfortable anchored in the harbour, but that’s not what ships are built for. They are built for the seas where algae, barnacles and bio-films do not have a chance to grow on the underside of the moving haul. Likewise, when we get comfortable being anchored in a harbour of familiar thoughts, paradigms, surroundings, people, jobs and environments, we also negate movement and growth and breed our own version of stagnant-based algae on the haul of our lives.
Staying anchored to a job, situation, or any kind of environment that inhibits growth, simply because it's what everybody else does, is the most commonly traveled road to mediocrity.
We have to get comfortable with being uncomfortable and with knowing that every decision might not have the outcome we immediately seek. Being comfortable in the learning curve and with the lessons learned in the lead-up to the desired outcome is the key to getting where you want to be. Take a swing at the ball and laugh if you miss it entirely.
When facing challenges, trust is one of the hardest things to retain, particularly when things don't seem to be working out. With this in mind, start searching for the signs and synchronicities to help you know you're on the right path, and trust that with every step you make, you're still moving forward.