by Guest Contributor: Mandy Wilkins
Sure, they might have thought of an unbelievably creative product, dropped out of college, and bargained all of their life savings in order to become today’s most successful, high-profile entrepreneurs. But while you might not be a Mark Zuckerberg or Richard Branson (yet), you have more in common with billionaire entrepreneurs than you think. Here’s a list of five surprising things that you share with the rich and famous:
- Failure: At 30-years-old, Steve Jobs was a college dropout, a fired techie, and an unsuccessful entrepreneur. But, in a 2005 speech at Stanford University, the man behind Apple noted that his firing brought about “the lightness of being a beginner again. It freed me to enter one of the most creative periods of my life.” Upon his return to Apple, Jobs transformed the face of technology by creating the iPod, iPhone, and iPad. Failure is perhaps even more common among high-profile entrepreneurs than it is for us, with Arianna Huffington – the mastermind of The Huffington Post – noting after her book was rejected 36 times that, “Failure is not the opposite of success; it’s the stepping stone to success.”
- Work/ Life Balance: The elusive balance between working manageable hours, making time for family, having personal hobbies, and sleeping can seem virtually impossible for the modern-day entrepreneur. The struggle is no easier for high-profile businesspeople, with COO of Facebook, Sheryl Sandberg, even writing in Lean In that, “there’s no such thing as a work-life balance. There’s work, and there’s life, and there’s no balance.” But Richard Branson, founder of the Virgin Group, offers some more concrete tips for those who juggle commitments every day: being flexible, delegating work, and prioritizing time for fun.
- Seeking Help: While there is oftentimes a stigma associated with seeking help – from a therapist, a psychologist, a doctor, or a trusted friend – there is no denying that we’ve all needed extra support at some point in our lives. And so, too, do the rich and the famous. Huffington, for instance, is an outspoken proponent of using mindfulness and meditation inside and outside of the workplace in order for employees to be happier and, in turn, more productive. Licensed life coaches, such as Jasmin Terrany, can offer both high-profile clients and budding entrepreneurs advice on everything from relationships to business decisions.
- Self Doubt: Self-doubt can affect everyone, even successful business owners. While a dose of self-doubt is healthy, allowing business owners to double-check their decisions and, in turn, their egos, too much self-doubt can derail entrepreneurs from the task at hand. Steven Pressfield, author of Do the Work! Overcome Resistance and Get Out of Your Own Way, notes that “the enemy is our chattering brain, which, if we give it so much as a nanosecond, will start producing excuses.” Ingrid Vandervelt, Dell’s Entrepreneur-In-Residence, said in a recent interview that her biggest challenge has been learning to push aside her self doubt in order to “keep moving forward and set the best example I can.”
- Rejection: Whether rejected in a relationship, by the bank, or by a job prospect, rejection is oftentimes part of our day-to-day life. Perhaps surprisingly, even the most successful entrepreneurs have faced rejection in all aspects of their lives. Before she became her own brand, Oprah Winfrey was told she was “unfit for TV.” Billionaire Bill Gates was a college drop-out and co-owner of a startup called Traf-O-Data — which crashed and burned – before he began working on the world’s largest software company, Microsoft. Rejection, then, can be turned into the impetus for success.
About the Author:
Mandy Wilkins is a graduate from the University of Pennsylvania with a degree in English with a concentration in Creative Writing. She now resides in Atlanta, where she is a content curator and producer for lifestyle clients like Jasmin Balance and Rewire Me and today, Social Jumpstart. In January 2015, she’ll be moving to southeast Asia to teach English.
