Trying Matters

Not to Yoda, of course. He said, “Do or do not. There is no try.” You see that thought everywhere, gracing walls and screensavers, and sticky notes everywhere. Yoda does have a point, but I think it’s more like ‘get up off your butt and DO something…and by god do it with resolve,’ because I have to think that trying is part of the game. If I set out for a 10 mile run and pull a hamstring at mile 9, I failed at my goal, but it matters that I set it, took action and did the run. I tried, I failed, but I gained.

Same goes for life. Same goes for business. You need to do, to take action. And you need to try new things. And really try, not a half-hearted attempt so you can say, “I tried and it didn’t work.” I hear that and I’m like, “So did you google it? Did you call somebody in the industry? Did you try more than once? Did you work it? Did you…” If I get a ‘no’ to those, it’s “Yeah, you so didn’t try.”

Last night I met with a small group of really wonderful women. I was doing a workshop we call ‘Teaching You How to Tame Your Business’. The idea behind the workshop is that many (most) small business owners totally rock at the passion part of their business…they’re inspired, creative and don’t have to be reminded to get up each day to handle the ‘fun’ side of the business. BUT when it comes to the other side, the licensing, business structure, tax organization, books, and administration, they put it off until it becomes overwhelming or a deadline is imminent. And I want that to be different, I don’t want owners worrying. Thus the workshop.

So there were a couple of things that struck me last night. One, is that these ladies showed up…and that humbles me. They took time on a rare Seattle sunny day to sit in a room (albeit a great room at WeWork) and learn about the boring side of business. The other thing was that two-thirds of the women were still in the research or very beginning stages of ownership. Man… I loved that! I see so many businesses open with the “I’ll take care of that later” approach (not that there’s anything wrong with that…) that I was gratified to be with a group being thoughtful of the processes, and trying to make their business ideas a reality. That’s huge.

Small business confidence is at historic highs right now, as is confidence in business in general. Businesses are growing and expanding, and opportunities are truly everywhere. What does that mean for you? It means that if you’ve been thinking about it, now is a great time to open a small business. Don’t get 20 years down the road and wish you’d tried, ‘cause that would just be sad. If you’ve got an idea for a business, do some research… and maybe it ends there… say you discover that the market is saturated, or the cost is too high, and the business is not viable. You tried. You learned. But keep trying until you run into a block that you can’t get around or until you get that business open. And if you end up at that dead end, you tried. Legit. Now go try again with something else.

The beauty of small business now is that you can do it as a side-hustle. You can work on it after work. If it’s your passion, if you really want it, it’s not work…that’s the fun part of your day. Some amazing businesses have started as side-hustles. Hubspot, Etsy, and Instagram all had their beginnings on evenings and weekends. The deal on this is that you have to do just that — hustle. It doesn’t happen while you stream Netflix or hang with your friends and talk about what you want to do. You’ve got to be willing to be on your own, focus, problem solve, and kick yourself in the ass when you start flagging or doubting.

Do it now. Know why? Because you won’t believe how long it actually takes to get up and running. Take your time estimate and double it. Add more. And then be patient with the process. Keep moving forward, you’ll be golden.

And as you get going with your project, your friends and family are going to ask you about how your business is and wonder why after 6 months you’re not a.) up and running, or b.) rolling in money. Don’t get defensive…they don’t understand the process. Stay focused and undeterred. I keep a copy of Teddy Roosevelt’s ‘Arena’ quote on my refrigerator and at my computer. It reminds me that I’m a doer, and trying matters. Failing doesn’t.