Today I want to share my latest piece with you from Positively Positive. I hope you enjoy it.
You Don’t Need More Experience. You Need More Courage
One of my friends recently shared with me, “I have a dream of starting my own business, but I’m not sure if I’m ready yet. Maybe I should wait. Maybe I need more experience.”
She was shocked when I told her, “You don’t need more experience. You’re ready now. What you need is more courage.”
The Myth of Experience
People often think that the more experience you have, the better you’ll be at something. I’ve found that this is only sometimes true.
In all industries, let’s say marketing, you can easily find people with twenty or more years of experience. But does that really matter? What if they have two decades of experience but only one year of learning?
Many people go through their careers (and lives) doing the exact same thing, in the exact same way. The people who get ahead are those who innovate and blaze new trails, not the ones who repeat old ways of doing things. The people who get ahead welcome new ideas. They listen; they adapt; they are constantly learning and challenging themselves.
Get Started Now
Whatever your dream is, get started now. Don’t wait for the perfect moment. Don’t wait for more experience before taking the next step. If you wait until you feel comfortable, then it’s already too late.
Imagine if Mark Zuckerberg said to himself, “I don’t have enough experience to build a company like Facebook. I’m still a college student! Let me wait a few years. I should get some experience at Google or Microsoft first. Maybe then I’ll have the skills to go out on my own.”
If you read the stories of entrepreneurs, such as Sir Richard Branson or Sara Blakely who have built billion-dollar businesses, you’ll find that most of them had very little experience (and sometimes no experience) when they launched their ventures. That’s because experience is only a small part of the equation.
Yes, today we admire their knowledge and business know-how. But how did they get there? They got experience by getting started.
Courage Matters Most
Anything is possible. But you must believe in yourself before others can believe in you.
You must be willing to get in the game, make mistakes, learn from them, and then move on-wiser and stronger.
As Winston Churchill once said, “Success is not final. Failure is not fatal. The courage to continue is what counts.”
Failure Is a Step Toward Success
In an interview with GigaOm, entrepreneur and startup mentor Steve Blank said, “Do you know what we call a failed entrepreneur in Silicon Valley? Experienced.”
You cannot have success without failure. The two are inextricably linked.
So if you’re afraid to act because you might make a mistake, stop and think again. Roadblocks and setbacks provide us with the information we need to grow, change, and make a move in the right direction.
That’s why we should be thanking our failure.
After all, it’s through our failures that we gain experience. So move forward with courage and know that you are headed in the direction of success.
Thank you so much, Selena. For this wonderfully written and super timely blog post. By keep saying “we need more experience”, “we need to do more research”, “need more planning”, “it needs to be perfect”, etc are just telltales that one is not believing in oneself and hence ends up procrastinating. Indeed, courage is what we need most when it comes to facing life as it is. In the end, all is well as everyone knows the ultimate destination is the same. So, why not live courageously?
Donna – yes! “We need more experience (or to do more research & planning)” are often code phrases for “I’m scared!” Thanks so much for reading and for your kind words about my blog post.
Hi Selena. Didn’t realize I receive a reply to my comment. *facepalm*
As I soon will join the path of the unknown in my career, your article couldn’t come in a more timely manner. Looking forward to reading more of your newsletter. So much to learn from you. 🙂
thank you Donna! Wishing you the best of luck!
Thank you very much, Selena. Happy V-Day to you from Singapore!
Selena – your timing has been so uncanny lately 🙂
I was recently offered to share a booth at an upcoming trade show, and despite the fact that it is financially and politically an AMAZING opportunity, I have been freaking out about committing — because I do not feel quite ready to publicly launch my business.
This is definitely connected to perfectionist thinking – as in, if every minute detail is not perfect, then the whole project is worthless. Today though, I have been inspired to make the commitment for the show — with the faith in myself that by then, I can be ready (even if it doesn’t quite feel perfect). So yes, courage! Thank you for the wonderful reminder to take a deep breath and just begin.
YES! I’m so happy to hear that. I love that you are moving forward and committing, even though you feel scared. The greatest opportunities lie just outside of our comfort zone. Good luck C!
Selena! This is right on time and what a great post to put out on MLK day. His life and legacy are all about courage. It really isn’t about experience and more about courage. Most things are learn as you go and then the experience will come. I have had a few “false starts” when it comes to launching my message into the world. I know it’s time (mmm long overdue) to swallow a huge dose of courage and just go for it!! Thank you for the reminder!! xo
Hi Angela, so happy it resonated! And I’m excited for you to get your message out into the world. You are doing such important work — people need you!
perfect timing Selena! I’m holding myself because I don’t have a team to support me.. you know on those bad days when things don’t go right. But others have done it without a team.. right.. so I shouldn’t worry about a team.
thanks Christine! What you are doing is so amazing. I think that if you put it out there, you’d be able to assemble a team (advisors, interns, etc.). I love seeing the Decorated Life photos in my Facebook feed. They are always so inspiring!
I agree 100%! If you aren’t failing, you aren’t trying hard enough!