As an entrepreneur going it alone during some of the tough times can knock you flat. What was the toughest situation you’ve encountered in your business? Did you make it through? Did you step back, learn from it and use the learning to move on? How often do you let yourself go down that dark road and beat yourself up when things don’t turn out according to “plan?” As you entered this Quarter have you checked your plan? Success comes from doing the simple things consistently.
As entrepreneurs we have a unique makeup that keeps us going.
John Gartner, a practicing psychologist at JohnsHopkinsUniversityMedicalSchool argues that an often-overlooked temperament–hypomania–may be responsible for some entrepreneurs’ strengths as well as their flaws.
Gartner, in his book The Hypomanic Edge: The Link Between (a Little) Craziness and (a Lot of) Success in America, Gartner theorizes that there are so many hypomanics–and so many entrepreneurs–in the U.S. because our country’s national character rose on waves of immigration. “We’re a self-selected population,” he says. “Immigrants have unusual ambition, energy, drive, and risk tolerance, which lets them take a chance on moving for a better opportunity. These are biologically based temperament traits. If you seed an entire continent with them, you’re going to get a nation of entrepreneurs.”
Greg Habstritt says, “every time (you) begin to measure and keep track of it, that “thing” begins to improve and move in the direction you want.” Check you plan, weekly, monthly, quarterly and make adjustments, help catch what is or isn’t working. Your metrics will tell you. Start to apply this idea and you will feel and be more in control of your business in a very dramatic way.
The Challenge: Stop and look at your goals, are you on track, what actions need more focus?