Having Courage

“You can never cross the ocean until you have the courage to lose sight of the shore.”

Starting a business is a lot like setting sail across an unknown ocean – there are dangers everywhere, uncertainty surely lies in your path, and you have no idea where you will end up. Every explorer has to show courage to undertake such a venture, and sets out with the right tools to help them to navigate their voyage to success. As a small business owner, what tools are you using? What tools might you need that you don’t have?

When you need help navigating the uncharted, let National Business Services & Development be your tool kit. We have many years of experience in assisting new businesses with their credit rating, funding, loans and more. Countless entrepreneurs have turned to us for help, and have been very glad they did so. Our experts have the knowledge, experience and most importantly, the best tools a small business owner needs to safely sail their ship to success! Call us today, 775-465-8500!

What is Your Reputation?

“You can’t build a reputation
on what you are going to do.”

~ Henry Ford

And he was right, too… People have good ideas all the time, great ones, in fact, that never materialize into anything more than thoughts. An idea can be the most powerful thing in the world, but it becomes completely worthless if action is not taken.

A reputation can be your most useful asset, but they aren’t built on thoughts and dreams – they’re built through hard work and sacrifice. If you say you’re going to do something, that’s great, because you’re making a commitment, and setting a course of action! Telling people you’re going to go on a diet, for example, is all fine and dandy, but unless you actually follow through, unless you take action and DO what you say you’re going to do, they’re just words. And those words that you say have consequences… They are the bricks upon which your reputation is founded. Laying those bricks is what matters! If you stack up a ton of bricks by talking about how you plan to lose weight, but you never actually lay the bricks by taking action and making your words a reality, your reputation will resembe an unfinished building. On the other hand, however, if you take action, and make it happen, make your words a reality, you are building a reputation that is strong, stable and reliable! When the bricks are laid properly, according to a blueprint, (or a plan of action, in this metaphor), people will notice that, and see a strong, stable and reliable person, someone worthy of trust.

Henry Ford was right – you can’t build a reputation on what you’re going to do. You have to prove your merit to people by following through! It doesn’t matter what it is, from the smallest task to the largest undertaking, reputation knows no difference. From vacuuming your house, to running a business, doing what you say you’re going to do is PARAMOUNT to building a good reputation!

Get started today, right now, on something you’ve been putting off! If you’ve been meaning to write your aunt a letter, wash your car, write a business plan, whatever it is, GET. IT. DONE. You will be happier for having done so, and those around you will see that you aren’t all talk, that you take action, you follow through, and you are a person upon whom people can rely!

 

You are Significantly More Significant than You Know!

“There is nothing insignificant in the world.

It all depends on your point of view.”

~ Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

 

Once can never know when decisions we make or actions we take, whether big or small, can make tremendous impacts upon the lives of strangers. By performing to the very best of your ability every day, and focusing on doing good for other people, one person can create a chain of events that may change the world.

Consider the story of the Scottish farmer, a man named Mr. Fleming. One day he was out tending to his fields when he heard someone shouting for help. Without hesitating, he immediately stopped what he was doing and ran to the aid of whoever it was that was in distress.

A young boy had gotten himself stuck in a bog, slowly sinking into the spongy quicksand. The farmer pulled the young man free of the mud, saving his life. The boy gratefully thanked him, and was on his way.

A few days had passed, when a lavish horse drawn carriage arrived at the farmers home. A very wealthy man wanted to thank Mr. Fleming for saving the life of his son, and felt compelled to repay him. The farmer, however, refused payment, saying “no payment is necessary, I would have done this for any man or woman.” The farmer’s son then came outside of their aged and time-worn house, and the wealthy man immediately knew how to repay the farmer. He explained, “if you will not take any reward for saving my son’s life, allow me to educate your son at the finest schools as though he were my own”. The farmer thought it over, and agreed to his generous offer, knowing he could never be able to provide is son with such an opportunity.

The boys were taught and cultivated at the best educational facilities of the day, and the farmers son eventually became a doctor. The wealthy family still faced difficult times, however. Soon after graduating, the boy who nearly lost his life to a muddy bog contracted polio. Fortunately, Alexander Fleming, the son of the Scottish farmer, had invented a treatment for polio – you probably know it as penicillin. The now twice-saved wealthy boy was Winston Churchill, one of the greatest leaders the modern world has ever seen.

In hindsight, it is easy to connect the dots from early interactions, and follow the chain of events for many things, but at first, small actions can seem insignificant and have no discernible connection to other people. The most important action taken in this story was not the saving of the boy from the bog, but that of the farmer’s graciousness, in not taking a reward for saving the young man’s life. The world events which occurred so many years later, under the leadership of Winston Churchill, would never have taken place, had one man not acted so selflessly and reached out to take the hand of a boy in distress.

Have faith in humanity, and know that altruistic choices and actions are seeds that you plant, seeds which will over time sprout and grow in ways you cannot imagine, and will sometimes never even know about.

Do good! Be good! You are significantly more significant than you know!

Success, Failure and Courage

“Success is not final, failure is not fatal: it is the courage to continue that counts.”

– Winston Churchill

 

Failure.  For many people, it is a result, but for those courageous enough to try again, it is a lesson.

Success.  For many people, it is a destination, but for those wise enough to know better, it is a stepping stone.

Let’s analyze the root of the word “Success.”  There is more than one definition, but most often it is used to describe accomplishing a goal, becoming wealthy, or doing well at a given task.  The root of the word, however, is “to come after,” which is also the root of the word “succession,” which means repetition.  To be successful, you cannot be satisfied, you cannot become complacent, and you cannot stop.  You need to reach the goal you’ve set, and once you’ve succeeded at that, set your sights on the next goal, and the next goal, on and on, in a successive pattern.

Now, will you succeed at everything you attempt?  Probably not.  Not many people do, so always be prepared to fail.  The wise entrepreneur knows that failure is a possible outcome of an attempt at success.  But keep in mind, as Churchill said, “failure is not fatal!”  If one has the courage to try again, to get up and dust themselves off, then they have not failed at all, but have learned what not to do on the next attempt!

Courage is by far the most versatile and useful club in your bag.  First and foremost, you need the courage to even try in the first place.  If you fall, rely on that courage to stand back up again.  When you set out on a new venture, you need to be brave enough to take that first step, and even if that first step causes you to slip and fall, don’t give up!  Be courageous!  Stand back up and try again!  On the other hand, if you succeed, don’t stop, but have the courage to start again and strive to reach a new goal!

The point is, whether you succeed or fail, either way you should always rely on the courage that is inside of you to keep doing what you do.  Failure sucks, success is great, but when either of those things happen to you, that is your signal to stand back up and do it all over again!

The Importance of Self Reliance

“Be willing to go alone!
Many who started with you won’t finish with you.”

Tony A. Gaskins, Jr.

Each human being is on their own unique journey through this world.  On our path, we meet countless others, many who influence our lives in ways we may not even understand.  Some of these people do more than simply cross our paths, however.  Sometimes, they join us on our walk, maybe for a short while, occasionally for a long time, and rarely outside of our family ties, a person will share our adventure for nearly a lifetime.

Although the company is welcome, and it’s always nice to have the support and encouragement of others, no matter how many people accompany us along the way, WE are the only ones responsible for our own future!  Our story is written by the characters who populate our lives, yes, but you must always keep in mind that YOU are the central player on your stage!  You must be ready, willing and able to go alone, and to take responsibility for yourself.  Nobody else can do for you the things that you need to do in order to be a successful person.  Whether you seek success in your business or personal life, the key is to know in your heart that you can make it on your own if you need to.  

Be open to those around you, allow them the opportunity to grow with you, support them as they support you, but remember that they walk their individual road just as do you.  Be self assured, make good decisions, choose which direction is best for you, and you will find that your self reliance and independence is the most effective means of accomplishing your every goal!

Reside in the Moment

“If you are depressed, you are living in the past. If you are anxious, you are living in the future. If you are at peace, you are living in the present.”

~ Lao Tzu

Think about where you are right now, in the literal sense. You’re likely seated at a desk, either at work or home, or perhaps a coffee shop, staring at your computer or phone. Even though that’s where you are physically, where is the most important part of you? Where are your thoughts?

You might be watching the clock in anticipation of your next break, lunch or the end of the work day. You may be thinking about what happened yesterday, last month or even ten years ago. You could be worrying about a bill that is due, an upcoming event, or dreading something you’ve been putting off that you’re not looking forward to. One thing that is nearly certain is that very few of you reading this are present in this moment.

We are often everywhere but where we are. There are two places where we tend to spend too much of our time – in the past or in the future. Unfortunately, spending so much of our time in these head spaces leads to missing out on the experience and adventure that is life, something we are given only ONE chance to enjoy!

Anxiety and depression are NOT healthy or pleasant to experience. Make the conscious decision to move out of those places and take up residence right here in the present. Look at your surroundings and take in what is all about you right now. If you are outside, take in the sky, enjoy the trees, appreciate the colors that paint the canvas of your world! Draw a deep breath and smile. Have a conversation with the people around you rather than tapping your phone excessively. And face it, we’re all guilty of that innocuous crime, but make an effort to BE WITH those you’re actually with, the change will be noticed and reciprocated by those around you, and will make for a much more enjoyable interaction. It’s all about residing in the now!

We often look toward the future for our happiness and blame the past for our lack of it, but the secret is that true joy is only found in the right now. Move into this moment and you’ll find what you’ve been searching for. When you move out of the past and the future, you can begin to reside in and enjoy your right now.

Experience Happiness

“We tend to forget that happiness doesn’t come as a result of getting something we don’t have, but rather of recognizing and appreciating what we do have.”

~ Frederick Keonig

Everyone lives their life in pursuit of happiness – it’s what drives us to do almost everything that we do.  Of course, we are all different, and what makes one person happy is not always going to make another person experience that same happiness.  For some, happiness comes in the form of relaxing in front of the television; for others, a vigorous workout.  Many people find happiness spending time alone, while others enjoy nothing more than being with family and friends.  All of this is obvious, innate knowledge that hardly needs to be stated, yet very often people will lose sight of their happiness in the very pursuit of it.  It’s easy to do, because much of our joy is tied to the future – I’ll be happy once I’ve graduated, I’ll really be happy when I land that big job, I’ll FINALLY be happy once I retire.

All of these things are great, having a purpose and a set of goals is crucial to a happy life, but TRUE happiness comes only to those able to recognize the joy that exists on their path to the future.  Balancing your personal and professional worlds can be tricky, and it is up to the individual to prioritize what matters.  The unfortunate reality is that too many business professionals make the mistake of valuing their profession over the actual happiness that is right in front of them.

Measure your happiness in the now, and not in the future.  Acknowledge those little things that would make you smile, if only you weren’t too busy to notice them.  Gauge your joy by being present, awake and aware of the good that exists in your corner of the world, because what else is life for, if not to experience happiness?

The Value of Experience

“Experience teaches only the teachable.”

– Aldous Huxley

Experience is your single most valuable asset, something that is uniquely yours, something you accumulate from the day you’re born and can never lose.  Life constantly throws unexpected hurdles your way, often without warning.  When you encounter these hurdles, your reaction tells a great deal about your character and abilities.  When confronted with difficulty, how do you react?  Do you crumble under pressure, perhaps avoid the problem altogether, or do you face it head on?

The entrepreneur welcomes adversities at every turn, and do you know why?  Simple – because they are opportunities to learn, and to grow stronger.  Challenges that may seem like problems at first are nothing more than opportunities in disguise.  If you can recognize that fact, if you can keep an open mind and seek out the best in a bad situation, success will surely follow.

The simple fact is that you are in control of how you react to a given situation.  You can either bend and break under the weight of your problems, or you can resist the urge to give in, and become a stronger person for having faced down your difficulties.  You may not always win, the outcome may not always be optimal or in your favor, but the one thing you can say is that you tried.  Your best approach is always a positive attitude, because negativity begets negativity, but a positive outlook will exponentially grow and spread, giving you and those around you a hopeful feeling that no matter how bleak a situation may seem, a happy ending is only possible if you work toward one!

An open mind allows you to extrapolate useful experience that can be applied to future situations.  You must remain open minded, and recognize that life is constantly teaching you lessons.  Be open to learning these lessons, because every day is a test, and the more you know, the better you will perform.  Opportunities, otherwise known as problems, present themselves all the time, so learn from them, take the knowledge and experience you gain, and use it to your best advantage!