by Siimon
28. April 2011 09:17
There's a huge fear amongst those who start their own business.
That they are not good enough.
This fear is exacerbated by the media constantly featuring entrepreneurs who seem to make billions overnight.
Every second article seems to be about some new business superstar that grows their company from 2 people in a garage to 2000 people speedily and effortlessly.
It's hard not to compare ourselves to these geniuses and feel that, well, maybe we don't have what it takes.
This is a huge mistake.
If you're feeling a little unconfident about your chances in business, it's important to remember the following points.
1. ALL BUSINESS SKILLS ARE LEARNABLE.
There's nothing magical about business - it's a craft. If you don't know how to do something you can learn it. Anything.
Don't ever be intimidated by someone who shows outstanding abilities in entrepreneurship - rest assured they weren't born a corporate titan.
If they learnt how to excel in any area then you can too.
2. KAIZEN IS ALL THAT MATTERS.
You may have heard of the Japanese concept of Kaizen - that small and never ending improvements lead eventually to greatness.
It's time to live this philosophy, every day at work. Look for little things you can do just that little bit better. It's important to remember that excellence is not about perfection, it's about self correction.
3. GENIUS IS A MYTH.
As the world's leading researcher on high performance, Anders Ericsson conclusively showed everyone who seems to be a genius actually just worked harder and longer and had an excellent teacher. There's not a single example (other than autistic savants) of anybody just being brilliant at something without long periods of hard training and self improvement. Not Mozart. Not Kasparov. Not Einstein. Not anyone.
(For mountains of research that backs this up read the following books: Talent Is Overrated by Geoff Colvin, The Genius in All Of Us by David Shenk and The Talent Code By Daniel Coyne).
Yep, the research is voluminous and conclusive. You CAN be a great entrepreneur.
But it will take a total commitment to learning. And, unlike what the media usually portrays, slow and steady improvements over time.
This path to business success may not sound exciting, but believe me, the results will be.