Entrepreneurship is an exciting and fulfilling career path, but there might be times when you’ll feel discouraged and riddled with self-doubt. Combating these emotions isn’t always easy and takes patience and continued practice.
Our founder and managing partner, Terry Tateossian, gives her take on the subject as well. You could read her opinion under number 2. The Good, Bad and Ugly Have Shaped Who You Are
Whether you’re a newbie business owner or a seasoned entrepreneur, it helps to affirm to yourself just how capable you are of accomplishing your dreams. To offer some guidance, 11 members of Young Entrepreneur Council shared things everyone should periodically remind themselves of in order to be more positive, confident and tenacious. Follow their advice to boost your self-esteem and move beyond self-doubt.
Table of Contents
1. If It Was Easy, Everyone Would Be Doing It
It’s OK to feel overwhelmed when tasks all come at you at once, but remember that you chose to take on the challenge to create a better life. Look back at how much progress you’ve made over the last year and you’ll see how far you’ve come, just by putting one foot in front of the other each day. In no time you’ve become a changed person and are a better one for it.
– John Murphy, eBike Generation
2. The Good, Bad and Ugly Have Shaped Who You Are
Remind yourself to be grateful for the good, the bad and the ugly, for all of it has gotten you to where you are today. No one can take that away from you. Appreciating and loving the person and the professional you have become through struggles, grit and perseverance is the pinnacle of progress and deserves to be recognized on a daily basis.
– Terry Tateossian, Socialfix Media
3. If You Don’t Fail, You’ll Never Learn How to Try Again
Resilience is one of the most valuable and overlooked character traits a person can have, and the key to it is failure. Why failure? Because if you don’t fail, you will never learn how to try again. Aim high, go full out and if you fail, you’ll have learned more than if you never tried in the first place. Then pick yourself up, wipe off the dust and do it all again. Eventually, you succeed.
– Ashley Sharp, Dwell with Dignity
4. The Present Moment Is All We Have
When we really think about the fact that the present moment is all we have, we learn to appreciate what we have in life. We don’t get a second life, and the experiences we go through right now happen just once. Remembering this can help you make peace with the good and the bad and also look forward to positive things in life.
– Syed Balkhi, WPBeginner
5. Everyone Makes Mistakes and Can Recover From Them
Own your past failures. It might sound counterintuitive, but hear me out. When you think about your past failures and how you recovered from them, you understand that everyone makes mistakes and almost everyone recovers from them in a positive way, including you. This thought process typically results in a more positive and confident “you.”
– Andrew Schrage, Money Crashers Personal Finance
6. Everything Will Pass
Everything will pass, both the good and the bad. I very much like this idea of the “Ant Philosophy.” Ants never quit. They prepare for the winter all summer and they know there’s eventually going to be summer again. I think it’s a great metaphor for entrepreneurship. Whatever happens, happens. You just need to keep going.
– Solomon Thimothy, OneIMS
7. Everyone Is on Their Own Unique Journey
I think we need to remind ourselves that everyone is going through their own unique journey. It’s easy to get caught up in our personal and professional lives and let them cloud our positivity. If you recognize that everyone has problems, but that it’s how people solve those problems that defines them, it’s easier to approach each day with more energy and confidence.
– John Turner, SeedProd LLC
8. There Will Always Be Hills and Valleys in Life
I’ve found that reminding myself of the things I’ve accomplished helps me stay positive, even when I’m stressed. I think about what I’ve achieved, both big and small. This little reminder helps me realize that there are always going to be hills and valleys in life. You have to work with what you have and, eventually, you’ll make it to the top of the mountain again.
– John Brackett, Smash Balloon LLC
9. There’s Always Room for Improvement
Remind yourself of your weaknesses and then from there work on changing them to become a better person. If you constantly say positive things about yourself, become conceited over time and think there’s no more space for improvement, you’ll fail. But when you are familiar with your weaknesses, your strengths will beat them before they destroy you.
– Daisy Jing, Banish
10. You Are Capable of Anything You Set Your Mind To
You must remember that you are a person capable of doing anything you set your mind to. You have all the resources to do it and you have skills that distinguish you from the rest of the world. You can generate an overwhelmingly confident attitude to get ahead when you want to.
– Kevin Leyes, Leyes Media & VVS, by Leyes Empire
11. It’s OK to Be Where You Are
A lot of us stay stuck on the feeling that we’re behind a regular timeline and should have accomplished way more by now. But the truth is, you’re exactly where you’re supposed to be. It’s important to be present in the moment and appreciate what you have right now. Gratitude can turn anyone into a more positive person.
– Jared Atchison, WPForms
These answers are provided by Young Entrepreneur Council (YEC), an invite-only organization comprised of the world’s most successful young entrepreneurs. YEC members represent nearly every industry, generate billions of dollars in revenue each year and have created tens of thousands of jobs. Learn more at yec.co.
