Speaking from experience, in order for me to achieve success I had to let go of my ego. I had this belief, that in order for me to become successful, I firstly had to do everything on my own accord, to be a one-man-band. Secondly, that the ideas all had to come from me, that they should be original so I could “claim” them. And finally, the biggest hurdle for me, was to learn to admit that sometimes I didn’t know best (ouch that hurt!).

What were the thoughts going through my mind? That if I was wrong, it meant I couldn’t be successful. I mean – how far from the truth is that! You look at all successful entrepreneurs – each have made many mistakes along their journey, and that is what makes them who they are today. Thomas Edison made over 1000 mistakes before he came across the right way to create a light bulb, and look how successful he was!

So, this is a chance for all “Learner” entrepreneurs, and probably some experienced ones to put down the ego and walk freely to success! Here are three things to let go of:

1. “One Man Band Syndrome” – I used to think that I would only be deemed successful if I did it all on my own. That way, I thought, I could claim all the credit. I used to think I should do the accounts, the marketing, advertising and the core work. How ridiculous is that?! You become spread so thinly that nothing really gets done. You also end up doing things that you don’t enjoy or aren’t even good at.

LESSON ONE: Delegate duties and positions so you can focus on the evolution and growth of your business. You don’t see Oprah sitting on MYOB doing her accounts, she has the experts doing it for her – find your experts.

2. If I can’t think up the idea, then it won’t mean I am successful – Such a silly thing to think, but to be completely honest, I believed it. I felt that if someone had an idea or suggestion that bettered mine, then I mustn’t be successful enough. After I got over myself, what I realised was it was the successful entrepreneurs that took on other peoples suggestions and criticisms to improve on what they had, make it bigger and better.

LESSON TWO: Embrace new ideas and suggestions from the outside – whether it is friends or fellow entrepreneurs. You can develop and better your business by weaving in the advice or criticisms from others. After all – Feedback is the breakfast of champions!

3. If my original idea doesn’t work, then it will never work, and I won’t be successful. – Having a mindset, whereby you give up when it doesn’t turn out how you planned, will always end in feeling deflated. However if you learn from what didn’t work, adapt it to your idea and think outside the square – often, with commitment and persistence, you may find a bigger and better idea than you originally thought. And this idea would have never come around until the mistakes were made. The Popsicle, along with the Slinky and Silly putty – all began as ideas for something else that didn’t work!

LESSON THREE: Ideas are organic, through trial and error, suggestions and natural progression; it will evolve into whatever it is meant to be.

With the ego left behind and a focus on success – you will be on your way through a fantastic journey. Once I focused on my goal of being financially free – rather than HOW it was going to happen, the evolution of ideas became more natural and more free flowing. Resistance was gone and I embraced ideas and suggestions coming from every angle. If you can just take these three things into consideration – you will be amazed at the success that will be just around the corner.

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