Have you ever stopped to think about the control we each have over our own situation? Of course, I know there are some circumstances we can’t control – this is true. But one thing we always control is how we react to every situation and circumstance we’re put in.
Realizing this has changed my mindset in so many ways. I used to play victim to a lot of situations. I used to make excuses as to why I wasn’t doing something I had said was important to me. But this mindset shift I’ve made, it’s changed everything. It’s opened up so many doors for me, because I’ve finally allowed it to.
It wasn’t easy to get there. I first had to do my entrepreneurial stretch – and not just one time, but I’ve committed to doing it every single day.
I’ve known for a long time what my entrepreneurial stretch is: being in the forefront.
For me, being the one that always “works behind the scenes” – never taking any chances – that was always my goal.
How did I know this was my entrepreneurial stretch?
Because it has also been my stretch in life.
When I’m behind the scenes, I’m comfortable. I’m not risking anything. I’m not “putting myself out there” to get hurt or to fail.
I’ve had countless doubts in my mind about a variety of things, one of them being that what I have to offer isn’t valuable to others. That perhaps I don’t have any of the answers – at least not the right ones.
I better stick behind the scenes just in case.
What exactly is an entrepreneurial stretch?
Well, you know what stretch means in the typical sense: you might stretch before you workout, or you may be looking down a stretch of highway, or you could be stretching a rubber band that is bound to break at some point.
An entrepreneurial stretch, though, is one that puts great strain on you, the entrepreneur, due to the circumstances you’re in. It extends you to your limits – your breaking point – a place where you never thought you could go.
This is how I was living my life: scared of putting myself out there; fearful of what the result would be; afraid that I would be uncomfortable – and being uncomfortable was the last thing I wanted.
Then one day, everything changed
I did something I never thought I could do – I went where I never thought I could go.
The importance of me sharing this with you?
Well, this thing I did is what helped changed my entire outlook and mindset. My level of confidence, my ability to take action, and finally recognizing – and giving weight to – my true potential has since skyrocketed.
All pretty important things for an entrepreneur, wouldn’t you agree?
How it all went down
It was the morning of our 1st ever live Webinar for WebinarOnFire.
For those of you who haven’t heard about it yet, WebinarOnFire is a new product course we’re releasing in mid-April that teaches people how to create and present a Webinar that converts.
John has really been the “lead” on this project since inception – I literally hadn’t even seen the keynote presentation he was going to use for the Webinar yet.
Our Webinar was going live at 11 am PST, but because we ALWAYS jump on 15 minutes early to chat it up with the community, it was going live at more like 10:45 am.
At 10:15 am on Wednesday morning – 30 minutes before we were supposed to go live – John Skyped me from the Arizona desert (where he was for an in-person mastermind) and said this:
“Not sure my Internet is going to make it – I really want this to go smoothly… How do you feel about presenting the Webinar?”
Woah… Let’s back that up a bit. ME – present our first ever Webinar for WebinarOnFire?!
My initial, gut reaction: NO WAY.
Of course, presenting this Webinar would not only bring me to the forefront, it would also put me at risk (in my mind, anyway). What if I screw up? What if it doesn’t go smoothly?
John has asked me about presenting Webinars in the past. For example, when he went to the Philippines for Tropical Think Tank, he asked if I would present a Podcast Workshop Webinar.
I said no.
Looking back, I can’t believe I would say no. I mean, at the time, I didn’t even let it sink in – I didn’t even consider it because I was scared by the thought of it.
I was afraid that I wouldn’t be able to do it as good as John does, and that people wouldn’t want to hear about it from me.
It was a place I never thought I could go because I had it in my head that “it just wasn’t for me”.
Just like when John had asked me to present the Podcast Workshop, I kind of flipped out when I read his Skype message about presenting WebinarOnFire.
Again, I hadn’t even SEEN the presentation yet – not even the opening slide. Plus, I had all those fears and doubts running through my mind; I was nervous, there were going to be a lot of people tuning in for this, and maybe I wouldn’t really know what to say…
But then it happened: A switch flipped in my mind.
I read his note again:
“Not sure my Internet is going to make it – I really want this to go smoothly… How do you feel about presenting the Webinar?”
Suddenly, it wasn’t about me being scared anymore.
It was about the over 350 people who had registered to come hear what we had to say.
It was about sharing what I already had in my head – what I already knew – with the over 350 people who value our knowledge and expertise enough to come watch a Webinar about a product we hadn’t even proven – or created – yet.
It was the first Webinar I’ve ever done (presentation-based), and when I was finished, I felt amazing.
Here’s a quick clip from the Webinar:
I ended the Webinar feeling confident, and like I had done something that really made a difference. What I once thought I could never do wasn’t that difficult. In fact, I had people reaching out to me telling me what a great job I did, and that they were so grateful for the information.
Presenting the Webinar was actually really fun.
It also allowed me to prove to myself that being scared isn’t always a bad thing. We converted 22 sales on the Webinar, giving us the proof of concept to move full steam ahead with WebinarOnFire.
What’s your entrepreneurial stretch?
Next time you’re face-to-face with your entrepreneurial stretch, jump off that cliff and make it happen. Turn that fear of failure and those nervous feelings about messing up into something exciting, and break through it. I can promise you it will come up more often than you might like (for example, every day). Instead of hiding from it, why not embrace it?
Being scared doesn’t mean you have to say “No”; imagine what could happen if you say “Yes”.
Facing an entrepreneurial stretch right now? Let us know about it in the comments section below!
