Failure to Succeed or Failure to Realize Success

When looking at your start-up company have you ever found yourself asking questions like why am I failing or why is everyone else so far ahead of me? I have and trust me it’s not a good feeling, frustrating to say the least. Day in and day out I plugged away while it seemed that overnight success stories were popping up all around me. Did I give up, throw in the towel and admit defeat? No, I went searching for the answer, feverishly digging through all that is inspirational and there it was as clear as day. The only thing I had so far failed to do was ask myself the more important question, was I really failing to succeed or was I completely failing to realize my success?

The problem is that to many of us have grown accustomed to measuring success in business, our jobs or life in general from strictly a monetary standpoint. No dollar signs on the bottom line equals unsuccessful. Not to say that money is unnecessary as it is obviously very important to the future growth and sustainability of your business. I am simply saying that it is not the only marker by which you should measure success, especially in the early days of business operation. So I took a step back from it all and began to look at what I had achieved that was in some way bringing me closer to my mission for creating this company. What I uncovered was that the only thing I was failing to do was realize my success.

For one thing the business is still alive and kicking, teetering on the edge at times but none the less alive. The brand name itself had been slowly growing in recognition over the past two years, a necessity to the company’s success. I have landed a few retail accounts which is extremely impressive in such a competitive and crowded market. I have established a countless number of good friends and acquaintances that I may not have otherwise met if not for the business. My web traffic is steadier and slowly increasing. That is just a short list of my true accomplishments in business and one that I am proud off. I may not be moving forward in leaps and bounds but baby steps are fine by me.

Here are a few questions I have created to help you realize your success.

• Have you created something that you are proud of?
• Does your business provide you happiness and fulfillment that you had not attained prior?
• Have you created a useful network of contacts and friends alike?
• Are you happy to work longer than normal hours?
• Have you achieved at least one goal in the past six months of operation?
• What did you accomplish today that made you feel good?
• Are you still happy with your decision to have a go at it on your own?
• Are you making progress towards your vision for the company/business?

If you are able to answer yes to any of the above than you have achieved some amount of success and that little bit that you can take away from it all makes worth it. Remember a glass half full is more inviting than a glass fully empty.

Cheers!