by Beth Bell, author of “Angels, Herpes & Psychedelics“
If you’re not currently an entrepreneur, it’s likely that you will be one someday soon. If you’re already an entrepreneur — or a solopreneur — you may be able to write this post yourself! Still, I share some great pearls that will resonate whether you’re just starting your business or it’s already underway.
Coming from a big corporate job in the pharmaceutical industry, I was rewarded for thinking big. In fact, the bigger the better. I had resources to run multimillion dollar brands and 5th Avenue marketing agencies to support me. The teams I worked with and led were composed of highly strategic, out of the box, innovative thinkers.
When I left the corporate world and decided to take my entrepreneurial dabbling into a serious operation, I had no idea what I was doing. It was a big jump. My initial bumps out of the gate were beyond devastating and I still feel grateful to the powers that be that I survived.
Here are my three most glaring mistakes.
Mistake #1 – I allowed my Midwestern beliefs and work ethics to lead the way.
It’s not that I’m saying you shouldn’t work hard, but it’s important to work inspired. Where I tripped up was letting my mind drive my every move and calling it inspiration.
When I moved to Bali, I was gung-ho to turn my life around. I wanted to live my passion and purpose and contribute to humanity. The products I’d been developing through the years were finally ready for putting into the limelight and I was eager to launch them out into the masses on the worldwide web. But the Universe had another idea for me. Although I never intended to open a brick-and-mortar shop, I couldn’t turn away from all the alignments that miraculously and effortlessly happened. After some resistance it became undeniable that a storefront operation was to be part of my calling.
Mistake #2 – I took everything way too seriously.
I was in an emerging country with first world expectations. My standards were so high that only the most skilled individuals could ever meet my expectations. I tried several times to lower my expectations but it created a situation that eventually imploded.
It was hard to recover from the collision and catastrophe that caused. Still, even in the first world these collisions happen when we’re not matching ourselves with the right characters who have the skill sets that can meet our expectations. Which leads into mistake number three.
Mistake #3 – I trusted in people’s potential, not their true abilities.
Be sure you’re not believing in someone’s potential as opposed to where they really are in their skill sets. I learned that everyone has limiting beliefs and issues. Find out what these are right up front by listening to every word and watching every body movement. I’d often see that people weren’t ready, but I thought I could coach them to their potential and help them grow and develop. Oftentimes I learned that they had no desire to reach their potential. And even more often, I was desperate for help, which didn’t help matters.
Making the transition from corporate life to becoming an entrepreneur took more tenacity than I could have ever expected. My hope is others will learn from the ways that I faltered. Thankfully, the mistakes were only hurdles along the way and my business eventually took off.
Beth Bell spent 16 years promoting 12 brands in the pharmaceutical industry both nationally and internationally. She later became an international entrepreneur, developing product lines for both eCommerce and a retail store in Bali. She produces and is host of the podcast Psychedelic Sages. Her new book, “Angels, Herpes & Psychedelics“, shares her journey of spiritual awakening and provides a spiritual toolbox others can learn from.
