Everything Begins With One Tiny Step

A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.

– Lao-tzu

When I was young and people would ask me what I wanted to be when I grew up I would always give them an answer that would be a profession that would let me have as much control of my life as possible. I didn’t ever want to work for someone else. It was my greatest desire to own my own company and be in charge of my own life. I did of course work for someone else as I entered the “working world” at the age of 14. It wasn’t until I was married and had our first child that my husband and I opened up our first company. That is a story for another day but I share it because it was the beginning for us…our single step.

Since that first step we have been on the entrepreneurial roller coaster. If you haven’t ever been on that ride, I must say it is not for the faint of heart. Some months you’re soaring with the eagles and the next your wallowing with the worms. Ramen Noodles vs. food in the fridge. All the bills finally caught up vs. the power being shut off. It has been quite the ride.

In the book Rich Dad, Poor Dad Robert Kiyosaki states, “Success is a poor teacher. We learn the most about ourselves when we fail, so don’t be afraid of failing. Failing is part of the process of success. You cannot have success without failure.” That has certainly been true for us. We have had several businesses that failed and some that have kept us barely above water. I can say without any hesitation that failure has been a huge part of our success. When you fail, you learn invaluable lessons about yourself, your spouse, your resilience, and your market. If I had a dime for every lesson I’ve learned along the way I would be rich from just that!

I’ve honestly lost count of how many businesses we’ve attempted and thought of attempting over the past 12 years. The failures don’t matter. What matters is that you continue trying. Do you want to be the person who lets reality suck the dreams out of your life or the person who makes your dream a reality? It’s time to take the first step…your single step.

This is probably going to sound silly but years ago I felt like I was at a place in my life that I really needed to find a way to be more active and also to find something that was grounding for me. Yoga seems like it would be the thing, right? I had a plan to incorporate several things that I felt were exactly what I needed to get more healthy, including yoga. I mentioned this plan to someone that I respected and they said I should only focus on one aspect of my plan. I did as he suggested and here I am years later wishing I would have followed my heart and done the thing that I knew was going to be beneficial in taking care of myself. Oftentimes, it’s best to take your first step without anyone knowing about it. 

I’ve been focusing more on my health and I’m determined to figure out a way to incorporate more activity in my life. I spend a lot of time at my computer managing our businesses. I need to do something for me. I know that once I get into the groove it will not be hard to maintain…it’s just the getting started part that is hard.

This is true for everything that is worthwhile! Even after having some pretty incredible success in our last business venture, it’s still hard to believe that you can create that success again. Here’s what I’ve discovered though. The majority of people in this world are either dreamers (with no action) or those who are afraid to dream at all. Do you know what that means for you? There is a very small group of people who are actually taking action and going for it. Even better, there isn’t anyone with your same set of skills and life experience. You have an extremely high chance of succeeding at whatever you want to venture into…you just have to get STARTED!

What are you dreading starting on? Chances are it’s only hard because it’s the thing you really need to do. Go get ‘em friend! The world needs you to show up.