Building on this…
I once read a piece of advice from a successful businessman that I frequently recall as the secret to his success: “Fail Fast”.
His explanation was that it was a mistake to believe that ‘successful’ people are people who don’t make mistakes. Don’t make mistakes? Laughable! Everybody makes mistakes, and you are likely to make more than most people if you are aggressively trying new things or seeking progress in your endeavors.
The most successful people in the world, he explained, make lots of mistakes!
They key, though, is not to get mired in those mistakes. Rather, ‘fail fast’. If something isn’t working, successful people recognize it and change - they don’t keep grinding away at some endeavor hoping the results will be different the next time, they don’t get down on themselves because something didn’t go according to plan, and they never stop considering new options or ideas.
So, if you are considering something new, don’t be afraid. But, be open to the possibility that you need to adapt and change, or that something unexpected might happen, or that this might not work. The key is to remember that these things are common and don’t reflect negatively on you, nor are they impediments to your success.
It didn’t work? No biggie; just keep hustlin’.