Secret to Success: Stay in the Game
When you’re just starting out as an entrepreneur, you often look at those who’ve achieved success as an example on what to do. I agree this is a good place to start but what you don’t often see from these success stories are the struggles they went through to get there. I can tell you from my experience, the difficulty and problems are real. Not insurmountable but often daunting. And the one thing I learned was to persevere and get through each one. That is the path to success!
In this article I’m going to share a few of the biggest obstacles I’ve encountered and how I stayed in the game to win. Hopefully my experience will give you a few shortcuts on your journey.
Lesson #1: It takes as long as it takes.
It took me 17 years from starting as an entrepreneur to exceeding my six-figure mark! Looking back now, I think “wow, that is a long time”! But that was my path and what I learned along the way has served me even today. That’s why I’ve been sharing these stories with you in the hopes that you can use what I’ve discovered. Hopefully it will make your journey shorter and less bumpy.
Lesson #2: Success does not eliminate problems.
Once I hit my goal, my business problems didn’t disappear. I still had to deal with all of it including: corrupt customs agents who stole the entire inventory of my products; Amazon literally shutting down every single one of my listings because their AI incorrectly flagged my brand name as a trademark violation; and then, of course, the Covid curveball which caused an 80% dip in sales while travel was shut down.
Even going back to the financial crisis of 2008 – sales were pretty bad, previous tactics were not working very good at all and I really thought that maybe I’d gone as far as I could go and things were over for me. Now keep in mind, at the time I was doing about $50,000 with my online business which is not that bad! But at the time, it felt true.
Every experience has value.
Good or bad, everything you experience has a lesson in it. And sometimes, the “bad” is more informative than anything. After all, if you have to solve a problem, that means you have to find a solution. And then you’ve gained a skill you’ll always have. That’s what’s gotten me this far – skills I picked up in Year 2, helped me in Year 17 when I faced similar situations. I built a business problem toolbox of really useful skills that I still rely on today.
Perseverance is the predictor of success. You stay in the game, you keep finding different avenues to keep your business alive, to keep it fresh, to spark new ideas and new products. You just keep going. This is how you build a business even during times where it looks like your entire business is going down the tubes.
Stay in the game, my friends!
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Who is Leslie Kuster?
I became a 7-figure woman entrepreneur in my 50s -- with my successful Back from Bali clothing brand! It took some getting real with myself to finally say, “Damn it, I want money!” Now I am here to ignite women entrepreneurs -- like you -- to experience the empowerment, independence and joy of creating a business that brings you both money and freedom. Read more about my story here.