If at first you don’t succeed – try, try, again. If you are a true entrepreneur you should not know the meaning of the word failure. Real entrepreneurs look at failure as just another obstacle in their path to success. In fact, many people believe that you must “fail” before you can truly achieve monumental success.
A great example is the famous DJ Howard Stern. During my teen years in Michigan, Howard Stern worked at a local radio station called wwww (W4). He was not the most popular DJ in Michigan, and his shtick was nothing like it is today. He was a just a “regular” DJ. W4 could not make it as a rock station and Howard Stern was fired. Did he quit?, Did he think of himself as a failure? Did he decide to leave the DJ business and do something else? The answer is no!
Howard Stern tried again. He reinvented himself and became one of the most popular and wealthy DJs worldwide. He even got into movies. Howard Stern did not quit – and neither should you.
Today’s Enable looks at 6 reasons why entrepreneurs quit – to prevent you from doing so. We then focus on a web site called startupfailures.com that is the first community focused on supporting individuals that have recently gone through or are going through the experience of a startup failure.
6 Reasons Why Entrepreneurs Quit
- No clear and direct goals
- No interest in acquiring special knowledge needed to continue
- Indifference
- Wishing instead of willing
- Looking for shortcuts to success
- Fear of criticism
Startupfailures.com
The purpose of the site is to take the stigma out of failing and to help you recover quickly from a failure and get back into the game and in action. The only true failure is never trying.
The site contains a lot of advise on how to learn from your “failures” and how to move on toward success.
You should check out the entire site, but I especially recommend the section called “Lessons Learned.” It contains real life experiences of entrepreneurs and helps you learn from them.
One particular article in the section is a must read. It is called “Failure is part of a winning formula ”. The following are a few excerpts from the article.
- Failing puts you through hell
- The greater your ambition, the bigger the stakes, the more painful it is to fail.
- Failing doesn’t make you a failure
- ”If anything, the winners in today’s world fail more than anyone.
- Successful athletes, artists, and entrepreneurs fail at all stages of their careers.
- What makes you a winner isn’t avoiding failure, it’s overcoming it.
- Failing sets you back — it costs you time and money and effort — but it teaches you how to succeed.
- The key is to keep looking forward.
- Turning past failures into future success is what winning — and life — is all about.
The above are just highlights. You should read the entire article and go through the entire site at least once. When you feel like quitting – go back to the site and reread this enable. Remember, winners never quit – and quitters never win.
Published by Israel's Business Arena on 23 October, 2001