Life will not give you what you want unless you turn on the heat and hit hard until it forges into what you demand from it. In my case, I had to hit harder but in the end, I got the result that I wanted. I started out with business plans like most entrepreneur, my projections of early sales were high, and I felt all will be well. My business idea was simple and straightforward. It was an organic fertilizer business. I was producing and packaging this product for local farmers. I conducted detailed market survey, design an economically sound business model and surrounded myself with a committed team.
I was never prepared for the first 3 months of zero sales or the times when I had to use my hard earn savings to pay workers. I am sure you are wondering why I stayed on. Elon Musk story inspired me. During the economic recession, he had to put in all his money to save Tesla. He believed that a time will come when cars will run on electricity. He taught me about the power of finding purpose in what you do and for me, that is how you build mental stamina.
I invested all my savings without holding back and every time a milestone is reached, I reset the clock.
For me quitting was not an option because I believed that if I stayed in the business long enough my breakthrough will come. I still remember the grin on my staff’s face when we made our first sales and started selling our products to other states. If I can do it then, anyone can do it.
Overtime I have had interaction with a number of business experts that have used the power of purpose to build their mental stamina for success in life. I believe there are many things we can learn from their stories and experiences. Here are some of my takeaways from their stories on deliberate actions that can help you conditioned your mental faculty for success.
Follow purpose
People who have been able to create a purpose out of their passion usually don’t quit. Purpose is simply what drives you and allows you to thrive in what you are good at. A purpose driven life endows an individual with the determination to push hard even when you are up against the odds. When Redfynn technology started out, their purpose was to empower small businesses by providing them with point on sale payment solution. Today they are one of the best providers of Restaurant POS Systems in the world.
There is no point running with an idea or following a career path that is void of purpose. When the situation becomes unpleasant, what keeps you in the race is the understanding of why you are in the race in the first place. Purpose plays a big role on how a passion today can become a product tomorrow.
Follow purpose fearlessly
I have often heard of how people struggle with fear in their business and my question has always been “is this your passion and have you defined the purpose of this business choice”. These questions help me evaluate my choices in life and take a calculated risk. Fear is an enemy of risk and business evolution, probably because of the fear of failing. When technologies like Virtual reality and blockchain hit the market, some businesses were reluctant to integrate it into their operation. The CEO of Muscle and Cut was not shy about it as he integrated virtual reality for bodybuilding and fitness. This is how you take the bull by the horn and push for success by fearless adapting your business to the changing environment.
I don’t want to start what I cannot finish just because of fear and anxiety. Fear is the presence of confusion and doubt but when you know why you are doing what you are doing then you can live above fear.
So, aspire to find a purpose in your business or else you won’t have the needed mental stamina to thrive when challenges arise.
Follow purpose with diligence
No one can isolate purpose and diligence because they go hand in hand. However, true diligence is the application of both the brain and our hands in the proportion needed to get a task effectively executed. One of my routines is to take an hour daily to think about the best ways to solve a problem. I remember when Ramon van Meer, the founder, and CEO of Soap Hub started his business some years back. He had to put up a good fight using one of the best strategies for online business. He leverages on the social media to drive traffic to his business and made millions of dollars within the first 12 months. He diligently acquires the kind of skills that made him a master on how to use the social media to drive traffic to a product site. He was able to do this because he saw purpose in what he was doing. So, don’t just push your way through, spend the time to think and in doing so you are enhancing your mental capacity to solve challenges.
Follow purpose with perseverance
Nobody said you will start making money on the go, so stay on top of your game doing what you know how to do best and money will catch up. In 1814, the British troops were defeated at the battle of the Fort by the American troops led by Major General Samuel Smith and Major George Armistead. After the British fired 1,500 and 1,800 rounds of their ammunition at the Fort with little impact and huge casualties on their path they retreated. The aspiration for a liberated America propelled the troops to persevere the challenge and they prevailed. An entrepreneur needs to have the no surrender attitude to business. At the end of the day, it paid off. Rather than throw in the towel and quit the race, you should persevere.
A purposeful pursuit is a profound thing to do and it’s all we need to access the drive to thrive in adversity. We will all face hard times even when we are in the right place or doing the right thing but there is need to have the mental stamina that helps us stay focus. What I have discovered is that purpose makes it easier to find that stamina, in fact, it comes on you naturally.